Thursday, December 10, 2009

Hello, Pretty Kitty

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This is an alert from the
Emergency Retail Sale Broadcast System. The dedicated shoppers of your area in voluntary cooperation with the retail stores, both brick-and-mortar and online, have developed this system to keep you informed in the event of an emergency sale or newly released hot item.
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Ooooh, just found out about these pretty kitty jewels released in honor of Hello Kitty's 35th anniversary! Interesting to note that she is almost as old as I am!) If you'd read previous posts on my family blog, you might know how much I adore Hello Kitty from my Asian-girl childhood.

Zales is offering a rather wide selection of jewelry and bling-y accessories such as ear buds and iPhone cases from Simmons Jewelry Co. Basically, these are scaled down versions of Kimora Lee Simmons' more exclusive designs from a few years ago. I have always adored her Hello Kitty line, although it was always out of my price range, so this is a nice treat. Hello Kitty bling for the masses.


A few of my favorite blingy things
(Images from Zales.com

And even better is the storewide 10% discount (through 12/13) and free shipping for $149+ orders. I heart Hello Kitty.

The Princess and the Frog? Mais Oui, Cher!

Image from the San Antonio Current website

This past weekend, I experienced another "first" in my not-so-young life: I attended a press screening for a major film! And then I wrote a review of it!

I was asked last month to review Disney's The Princess and the Frog for the San Antonio Current. This was my second assignment, and my first ever film review. (October's assignment, you'll recall, was my first ever book review.)

I was overly excited about going to a press screening and an added bonus getting to take Thalia along with me. She really looked forward to it, although commented that no one else she had mentioned it to at school thought it was particularly cool! (ahhh . . . left jaded by Disney at the age of 8).

The theater was packed for the screening, which was a combined press screening and sneak preview for the local Radio Disney station. Ever since teaser stills and trailers of The Princess and the Frog first appeared online earlier this year, everyone and their dog has had something to say about it. Animation fans. African-Americans. Feminists. Louisianians. Thankfully, I didn't watchi it with any of those people. Instead, Thalia and sat in the packed theater with other parents and girls waiting eagerly to meet the newest Disney Princess on screen.

For my humble opinion on this new film, check out my review online at the Current's website.

Monday, December 07, 2009

Decadence

Well, that daily blog-prompting thing didn't last long with my too-full schedule over Thanksgiving! And now we are knee-deep into Christmas planning and celebrating. I'll revisit the daily blog themes later!

Speaking of holiday planning, Dylan and I did something so decadent last night--we hired a babysitter to put the kids to bed so we could do some Christmas shopping! Although I have actually been 99% finished with my gift shopping and wrapping since early November, I tend to do my best shopping for myself in the few weeks leading up to Christmas. hahaha The only thing that gets in the way of that, however, is having two kids in tow!

A few weeks ago, I received an invitation to a special after-hours holiday shopping event at our Nordstrom. I had been invited once before, three years ago, and it was a lovely shopping experience--sipping white wine, listening to live musicians' holiday tunes, munching on strips of sugared bacon (more on that later) and truffles, while browsing new stuff at my leisure.


Brown Sugared Bacon--Sybaritic Decadence
(Pic from Google Images
)

So when I got my invite, I knew I was definitely going back to Nordstrom. And I wanted Dylan to come along because although he is not a shopper, he would really enjoy this. And he was really curious about going.

The event last night did not disappoint. I go to Nordstrom frequently, but it was quite dressed up for the event, with tuxedoed waiters proffering wine, cocktails and yummy h'or dourves while a sharp jazz quartet entertained us all. There were lots of people there, so it was quite festive.

The thing I remembered most about the event three years ago was these awesome brown sugared bacon strips. People were going nuts over them. And they served them again last night! I was so happy. But alas, I only had one strip, when I could have easily eaten a dozen. They were that good. No worries though, as we also had great regular and tempura sushi and other great little bites.

I had several items on my "list" that I wanted to look for, and I amazingly found all of them! Dylan was just happy to eat, drink and carry my purchases and my wine glass as he followed me around the store--what a sweetie.

Some cool finds:

Ivory wrap desperately needed to keep warm at cold office holiday party


Adult-size slippers that are still ok for an 8-yr old girl

I love Nordstrom. They don't try to shove items down your throat when you say you're not interested. They don't follow you around the store. They don't have a gazillion items for sale, just a choice selection that makes the process easier. They have a wonderful cafe inside that my kids love. And they still respect the holidays--all of them:

Photo taken at Nordstrom 2 days before Thanksgiving, which is thankfully still a real holiday for some and not just a speed-bump on the way to Xmas . . .

We shopped some other stores besides Nordstrom as well and finished the evening off with dessert at Sonic! We would have gone for holiday lattes at Starbucks except that all four of the Starbucks around us were closed before 10 pm. Strange but ok, as my retro Coke Float was a perfect end to our shopping date.

Monday, November 23, 2009

My Perfect Autumn Day

This week's blog prompts are courtesy of the Imagination Prompt Generator, because Digital Scrapbook Place's daily blog prompts were too boring! (No offense, and what a great idea, but in general, I couldn't get excited about them.)

Today's Imagination Prompt:
Describe the perfect autumn day and what activities you enjoy.

The perfect autumn day, in theory, would involve some real autumn weather. Regrettably, we've had not enough of those kinds of days here in South Texas this autumn season. We have had temperatures in the 80s, ginormous mosquitos, and no excuses to wear our autumn finery. *sigh*

Another component of my perfect autumn day would be not having to be somewhere in particular at a certain time. Just free time to explore the changes in nature (again, in theory) and in my community: take in the leaves that have changed color and fallen from the trees, breathe in the cooler air, admire God's handiwork once again.

My perfect autumn day wouldn't be complete without some autumn food! Just this week I was craving a caramel apple, which I haven't seen anywhere lately. That's odd to me. I like sweet potatoes in the fall; they just seem to match the season in more ways than one. As does cranberry pork roast with apples. Hmm, I'm hungry for autumn!

Friday, November 20, 2009

T.G.I.F.

DSP Blog Prompt of the Day - Its Friday and what do you usually do on a Friday to gear up for the weekend?

It depends on whether or not the weekend is "full" or not. As a cake decorator, the majority of my orders are for weekend events, so Friday nights are often crunch time for me. Not at all laid back or lazy! If there's an event the next day that my kids are involved in (ie. Girl Scouts or parties), then I start planning for them on Friday, especially if they are early Saturday morning. I have to psych myself up for getting up early on a Saturday if I have to be somewhere first thing. If we are going on a weekend trip early Saturday morning, then Fridays, especially the evenings, are crazy busy getting everything and everyone packed and ready to go.

It's a rare treat for me to do nothing on a Friday night and even rarer to go out on a date night with my hubby on those nights too. But Fridays are still the best days of the week, in my opinion! No homework and no school lunches to pack for the next day!

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Recycle, Recycle, Recycle

Image from Google Images

DSP Blog Prompt of the Day - It's America Recycles Day. How do you recycle are your home?

We recycle constantly at our house. So much so that my husband wishes we recycled a little bit less! We have two bins in the kitchen, a paper bin in the office, and a large bin in the garage. Everything and anything that can be recycled and collected by Waste Management goes into the bins, except for paper which goes to our elementary school so they can make money from our recycling efforts. I also make an effort to make sure that nothing gets thrown into the recycling bins that shouldn't be there, as that defeats the whole purpose, and not everything can be recycled by Waste Management. When we lived in apartments, before we bought a house 12 years ago, I still insisted that we do our part by hauling our recycling to a drop-off place or someone else's house!

We also take old, recyclable materials (shoe boxes, coffee cans, egg cartons, toilet paper tubes, etc.) to Thalia and Carys's old preschool for the kiddos to use for art projects and creative play. In five years, we've probably hauled hundreds of little plastic and paper "gems" that we can't bear to throw out just yet!

Once a month, on a Saturday or Sunday, we take clothing, furniture, small appliances, toys etc. that have seen better days but are still usable or useful to Goodwill, Salvation Army or Medina Children's Home. In addition, barely worn clothing and almost-new toys go to children's resale boutiques here in town; my favorite is Once Upon a Child. It's oddly satisfying get (some) money back for my kids' stuff! Books, CDs and DVDs that we've grown tired of or outgrown find new life at Half-Price Books, where we can choose new (used) stuff to read and enjoy.

More recently, we've discovered Craigslist as a way to get rid of stuff that is in great condition but no longer needed. And it's really nice to meet the people who buy your couch/crib/TV in person! We don't even care how much (or little) we make on the transactions; we're just happy that our stuff goes to a new home that needs it. Last year, our couch that we'd had since the month after we moved in together in 1996 finally found a new life in the apartment of a college student on a budget! It was the comfiest couch we've ever own.

So, yeah, recycling and reusing in some way are really part of our everyday life. It keeps us from wasting even more than we already do, and helps us keep on top of things in our home!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Disney Faves


DSP Blog Prompt of the Day: Today is Mickey Mouse's Birthday. Do you have a favorite Disney character?

Oh, how I love today's question! Of course I have a favorite Disney character! Well, actually that isn't true. I have many favorite Disney characters, some beloved from my childhood and some new ones too.

I think the very first Disney animated movie I saw at a movie theater was The Rescuers, so those characters (Bernard, Miss Bianca and Penny) have a special place in my heart. I also saw Bedknobs and Broomsticks, re-released, as a very young child as well. I adore Bedknobs as a film, but none of the characters stand out as faves.

I also loved Mary Poppins. I still do. And Hayley Mills as the twins in the original Parent Trap. And Peter Pan, who I first saw in film as a high school senior when Peter Pan was re-released.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Our Daily Bread

Chocolate Babka (Photo from Google Images)

DSP Blog Prompt of the Day: Today is Homemade Bread Day. Do you have a great recipe for bread to share or do you prefer to buy it already made at the store?

I don't make bread from scratch--ever. I have an aversion working with yeast. However, I do like to bake cake-like, non-yeast breads. But for 'regular' bread? That's what the grocery store and bakery are for!

I also am not a huge bread fan. I think it's my Asian upbringing, with rice being the staple at each meal. I did not eat bread every day growing up like other kids. I never even tasted wheat bread until I was a freshman in college! My husband loves bread and carby foods, as do my kids. I don't even really like stuffing at Thanksgiving, but will make it for my hubby. The only stuffing recipe I really like is, not surprisingly, made with wild rice!

Dylan and I eat stone-ground whole wheat bread, a little harder to find than regular wheat bread. The kids did too, until they discovered white bread, kind of by accident. Now they won't eat wheat bread unless forced to. So we have Iron Kids white bread as well. And some pita bread-looking things for lunches and croissants for breakfast. Lots of bread at our house.

My favorite non-yeast breads: Pumpkin Bread, Banana Bread. My favorite yeast breads to buy: Chocolate Babka, Challah, King's Hawaiian Bread (a taste of my childhood), Cheese Bread.

Now I'm very hungry for bread.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Button Day

DSP Blog Prompt of the Day: Today is Button Day. Do you prefer buttons or zippers or none at all?

Hmm . . . buttons. I never think about buttons, until they disappear and then I'm cursing them! For my own clothing, zippers make life easier and don't get lost. I detest sewing buttons back on. I'll wait months and months and months before I'll fix up a blouse or shirt that's lost a button! One particular outfit that belonged to Thalia's American Girl Bitty Baby sat in my "to fix" pile for 5 years before I finally sewed the button back on!

Image from Knitty Cent's Flickr stream

Buttons and zippers are equally problematic for little kids; Carys has a hard time getting her zipper parts together on her jacket. So do I when I'm helping her. Little kids' clothing have few buttons, mostly snaps. Her teacher sent home a note on Friday saying that she's having to zip or button up too many coats as well tie too many shoelaces. Apparently, this is something we need to work on at home!

I do like buttons on their own though! They can turn a blah piece of clothing into something better instantly. I used to love to look at all the different buttons on cards at the fabric store when I was a little girl. Especially the shaped buttons, like school buses or hearts or rainbows. I buy these now for my Girl Scouts to use for our craft projects!

Image from www.elizabethstar.blogspot.com

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Blog Prompts

Well, my NaBloPoMo dreams bit the dust last weekend, very early into November, when I went out of town and was too busy/lazy to pre-post a few days' worth of blogging. And I was trying to do this times 4 blogs, so it was a lofty goal. I managed to blog daily in November on 2 of my 3 blogs last year. Oh well, there's always next November!

In any case, I have a new plan to jump start my daily blogging: Digital Scrapbook Place's Daily Scrap Blog Prompt Challenge! Each day there is a topic to write and/or scrap about, which is just what I need to get motivated.

Some of you may remember that I tried to start my own monthly scrapping/journaling club that theoretically would have done the same for its members, only it too bit the dust due to my sad neglect. The Once-A-Month Memory Club, I believe it was called. It was a good idea, but not for me to be in charge of!

So I hope to blog daily here about whatever DSP's clever folks come up with. Wish me luck.

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Love Letters

It's not our anniversary or even half-anniversary or anything, but for some reason my thoughts were meandering the other day and something made me think of the food at our wedding. Dylan and I were married on May 9, 1998 in Austin. We hired a lovely European woman named Frauke Baylor, who was just the most generous and caring soul you could ever want to cater your wedding reception. Her small but wonderful catering company, Blue Trout Catering, was so unique in their presentation of the small bites and sips, and the flavors were fabulous.

Flash forward several years into the future to 2007. A friend had requested caterer recommendations for her upcoming nuptials, and I looked up Frauke's company online hoping to find a website. (In 1998, not one of our caterer, photograper, DJ, florist or traveling minister had an Internet presence.) Was I ever shocked to see our own wedding on Blue Trout Catering's website! I literally stumbled onto our own wedding pic from 9 yrs before on a page appropriately titled 'Love Letters':

Our wedding reception, Umlauf Sculpture Garden,
May 9, 2009
Image from BlueTroutCatering.com. Photography by Anne Butler Photography.

I was so pleased to discover that Frauke's company was still thriving in Austin and to be featured on her site! I sent her an email that day thanking her for the wonderful food she created for us that day. I even told her that my cousin had mentioned to me at her own wedding, six years after ours, that she planned her wedding reception menu around what she remembered of ours!

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Embellish-ment

Starting today, I'm wearing yet another "hat." In addition to the many chapeaux I wear as wife, Mom, volunteer, cake designer, etc., I can now add a brand new one: lady-whose-writing-has-appeared-in-print. The San Antonio Current, our award-winning local alternative gem of a news weekly, has printed my first book review.

This all fell into my fat lap by pure chance. And I have Facebook to thank in part for how it all came about. My writerly friend, Sarah, who is the Associate Editor of the Current's Arts section, mentioned in a FB post several months ago that there was a "paranormal vampire romance novel" she had to review. I'm a closet romance novel hoarder myself, so I had to open my big mouth and ask if I could borrow it. And then Sarah had this crazy idea that I should review it! So that's kind of how it happened in a nutshell. Thanks, Sarah and Facebook!

But really, I didn't think I could write a book review. I love to read, but this was something waaay out of my comfort zone. I write emails and short notes and occasional blog posts, with little attention paid to syntax or grammar or how interesting/boring my writing really is. In conversations, my vocabulary has become reduced to the same dozen words that small children easily understand. However, after some encouragement from Sarah over awesome crunchy spring rolls at Viet Nam Restaurant, I finally hoisted up my big girl panties and got to reading and writing. And surprisingly, I enjoyed the writing process.

I won't say any more about the book except that the title is Embellish and it was written by a San Antonio author, R.L. Sloan, because everything else is in my review. And here is the result of my labors (click on the lovely book cover):



Tuesday, November 03, 2009

I Heart Stella & Dot

I went to my first Stella & Dot Trunk Show last week at a friend's house. I first heard about the company several months ago from a Facebook ad of all things (yeah, the targeted ads really do work). I was definitely curious, as it's a direct sale company, and if you don't already know, I am drawn like a moth to the flame when it comes to direct sales! And their product, fashion jewelry, seemed nice and trendy enough, from what I could tell.

So the Trunk Show isn't what I expected. There's no sales pitch or presentation to sit through, like at other jewelry shows. I've hosted a Premier Designs show or two before, and those are definitely a different experience altogether. The Stella & Dot gathering was really more about browsing, chatting, sipping wine and trying all the designs on. Waaaay more fun! I tried practically everything on and definitely stepped out of my "jewelry comfort zone."

Here is my typical, everyday jewelry wardrobe:
'Return to Tiffany' bracelet, white gold earrings, and a stainless steel watch

My daily look is pretty boring! Serviceable, subdued, conservative, lazy more than anything!

And here is what I bought from Stella & Dot:
Soiree Black Pave Bracelet that matches everything in my closet, since everything in my closet is black!
Soiree Champagne Pearl Bracelet for the upcoming company Christmas party.
Turquoise Sea Drop Earrings--I never wear colorful stuff like this, but these were such lovely stones.
Bloom Flower Ring, again something I would never usually pick out for myself!
Avery Chains & Pearl Necklace--definitely a departure for me. Will I really wear it, I wonder?!

Clearly I had a bit of a splurge! But I very, very rarely buy jewelry, so this was alot of fun. My jewelry either comes from my Mom, who adores jewelry and has made something of a hobby out of shopping for jewelry of all kinds, or the occasional gift from my hubby (hits or misses from both quarters).

I had such fun at the Trunk Show that I may even host one myself soon. And you really have to see the jewelry designs in person; several pieces I liked online or in the catalog looked completely different up close. The designs are fresh, fun, young and diverse enough to appeal to different tastes. I definitely noticed that at the show, where the range of guests' ages and tastes was quite wide and varied. I also have a very long wishlist of items I did not buy but absolutely have my eye on! I heart the pretty jewelry!

Images from TiffanyOnlineStore.co.uk and StellaDot.com

Monday, November 02, 2009

"Handmade? It Looks Like You Made It With Your Feet."



Mermaid Hair Clip by hibilly on Etsy.com

Well, it was just a matter of time. Some enterprising person was going to take the "all things handmade" website Etsy to task for being a little to Etsy-ish. Too tacky. Too cutesy. Too . . . something.

I heard about Regretsy from my in-the-know writing friend, Sarah, just a few weeks ago. I don't think the site's been around very long, the earliest archived post is from about 2 months ago. The site is priceless! Regretsy picks out the "cream of the crap" (their own words) that can be found on Etsy's website. You know, like the Woolen Tampon Cozies (aka Plug Rugs). Or the custom-made Corset Jeans, the "corset" being just below your ass and all the way down your leg.

Regretsy is to Etsy what Cake Wrecks is to the mediocre-to-crappy cake decorating world. And just like with the Cake Wrecks, on Regretsy you can't not look. Yes, the "crafts" themselves are something else when you're just looking at the pics, but it's the clever snark accompanying the item photos and descriptions that make you laugh out loud.

If you've never heard of Etsy before, you can read my blog post from about a year ago, waxed on about my Etsy-love. I still do love Etsy; there are lots of wonderful stuff to be had from some seriously gifted crafters. But I love Regretsy for shining a light on the not-so-great "crafts" for sale!


Have you seen this one yet? It's made from real moose poop! It's called the Doo Doo Nugget Necklace. You simply cannot make up shit like this.

Sunday, November 01, 2009

It's NaBloPoMo Time!


Thursday, September 10, 2009

Princess for a Day: An Invitation


You are cordially invited to take part in a fairy tale Mother/Daughter event, My Princess & Me, at the elegant and historical Red Berry Mansion on the Lake on Sunday, October 11! For just a $30 donation, each little Princess will receive a professional hairstyle from top hairstylists in San Antonio, make-up application, a tea party, music, dancing and a keepsake photo with her Queen Mum – all while helping support the children of St. Peter – St. Joseph Children’s Home.


Princesses will arrive in their most royal finery with their Mothers (or Grandmothers, Aunts, Sisters, Friends). All Princesses will receive a magical treat of hair design and makeup from our very talented fairies.

And this year, my company, Sweetest Whimsy, invites all Princesses to decorate their own royal cookie treats and dine on special Princess Cake and punch with their Moms! I will provide all the sweet ingredients for each girl to let her inner sugar artist come out!


There will be time for a fairy tale photo to remember this special day. What could be more magical than seeing hundreds of girls of all ages enjoying time with their Mothers and new friends?


Of course, this Royal Event wouldn’t be complete without dancing! Princesses will gather together and dance to great music with girls from the Royal Court. Special appearances by San Antonio Fiesta 2010 Queen of the Vine, Hannah Montana and other special guests!

And the best part of all? 100% of the profits from this royal event go directly to St. Peter - St. Joseph's Children's Home! St. P-J's is a home for children who have suffered sexual and emotional abuse, neglect, poverty and broken homes, as well as a community counseling and service center for families in crisis. This event is made possible by the many companies and individuals who are providing funding, services and in-kind donations, and I am thrilled that Sweetest Whimsy is a sponsor this year! I hope everyone will join me at the Red Berry Mansion on the Lake!

Event Details:
Sunday, Oct.11th, 2009
12:00pm - 4:00pm
The Red Berry Mansion on the Lake
858 Gembler Road
San Antonio, Texas
Ticket Information: Order Your Tickets Online!
$30 donation per person ~ Your entire donation goes to help St P-J's Home
(Or call 210-408-0101 to purchase tickets)

All images from My Princess & Me website

Monday, July 27, 2009

Half-Staff


Today on the drive home from Austin I noticed that all the flags in New Braunfels, and only New Braunfels, were at half-staff. I asked Dylan if he knew anything about it. He had no clue either, and we both thought it was unusual.

Tonight I googled for an answer to my question. According to the Herald-Zeitung (the New Braunfels/Comal County newspaper) website, the flags were being flown at half-staff in honor of a New Braunfels man who was killed in action in Iraq on July 19.

Today he returned home forever. And through Monday, his hometown pays tribute to a Marine who fell fighting for his country. He was 20 years old.

With a very grateful heart, I say a small prayer for him and his family tonight. Thank you, Lance Corporal Brandon T. Lara.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Doing Our Part

Yesterday Thalia and I did our part to shore up the economy by shopping spree-ing through the local mall. It's Anniversary Sale week at Nordstrom, and due to the unexpected excitement of last week, missed the beginning of the sale. They aren't kidding when the say "quantities are limited" on the special sale deals. Everything I wanted from the Anniversary Sale catalog was no longer available online as of Saturday night; the sale started Friday. I am usually invited to a sale "pre-show" which always cracks me up. Items from the sale catalog are on display in a trying-on room for your perusal. But this year, I wasn't invited to view the stuff. (I probably didn't spend enough this past year to warrant an invite!)

So after a quick visit to the pediatric orthopedic physician, who said Thalia's broken bones were healing nicely, we headed for the mall for some catch-up shopping. We tore through Nordstrom and amazingly found everything we'd wanted from the catalog (some were ordered from other Nordstroms to be delivered to our door for free--I love that). Thalia got shoes for school (crossing my fingers that they'll fit), Carys got an adorable t-shirt for school (probably too big but she'll grow into it), and I got some workout clothes. Then we bought other stuff we liked! All on sale and double Nordstrom points!

Thalia's new shoes for school. Can't believe she fits women's shoes now and is only a size and a half away from me! Eeek!

Thalia was so excited about lunch at the Nordstrom cafe, always a treat. She was even more excited that they had the "old" ranch dip back. The last time we ate there, about a month ago, they had replaced their usual ranch dip with a "new" different-tasting ranch which upset her greatly. She *loves* that "old" ranch and was very happy they were serving it again. Whatever! She has also adapted quite well to having only good arm right now as she was rather adept at using her fork with her other hand at the cafe.

We were in that "shopping" mood for sure by this point, so we ventured into the mall, beyond Nordstrom. Thalia begged to go the the "Lilly" store. Lilly Pulitzer, that is. She loves that it's all pink and green and flowery. So do I. And they were having a big SALE! Fifty minutes later we emerged with several bags of stuff for ourselves and birthday and Christmas gifts for everyone else. Although I had to talk Thalia out of a Lilly tie for her Daddy. And did I mention everything was on sale? Like 50-to-75-percent-off kind of sale?! We sampled all the Lilly fragrances while the salesperson kindly wrapped all of our purchases separately in adorable pink and green boxes (of course). Thalia and I liked the 'Squeeze' scent the best. It's also the "juiciest."

Lilly Lace Cuff Bracelet, not really my style, but will be an awesome gift for someone I know who loves this kind of thing.
How cute is this coin purse?! Thalia picked out several for us to give as gifts to favorite relatives.

Thalia magnanimously offered to carry one of our Lilly bags with her good arm as we made our way to the "make-up store," also known as Sephora. The store generally freaks me out, all those cosmetics and styling products in one place. But we were actually there for Thalia. They were having a half-off sale on Gwen Stefani's Harajuku Lovers perfumes, and my daughters absolutely love those little East-meets-West girls! We were there to use some of Thalia's birthday money on a bottle of HL perfume. And also to buy some dry shampoo for her, which is practically a necessity now that showering is no longer an option due to her non-waterproof cast.

The Harajuku Lovers: East Meets West Cuteness

The HL girls, or as Thalia and Carys call them, the "little girls", were so cute in perfume form and all smelled so fruity nice that it was almost impossible for Thalia to decide which one she wanted. I already have one bottle myself, the Li'l Angel one, which started the whole love affair at our house with these "little girls" to begin with. And since the perfumes were 50% off anyway, we bought 4 of the 5 "little girls," all except Li'l Angel. We picked out Music for Thalia, G for Carys, Love for me, and one extra (Baby). And some dry shampoo, and oddly enough there were two other people shopping for it as well.

The "Little Girls" Fragrances. We bought 'em all.

Can't wait to try this out. Might be great to take on our campout?

Now we were really loaded down with bags and boxes, so it was time to head back to the car! Thalia's good and bad arms were both hurting now, and we both needed to get out of the heat. Funny how we didn't notice how the day got hotter and hotter until we were leaving! (And we were at an outdoor mall!)

Our shopping day wasn't over yet, however. Dylan came home from work with the suggestion that we use our coveted 30% off everything Kohl's coupon in the evening. So the whole family piled in the car and went to Kohl's!

We very rarely have a 30% coupon there, by the way, usually it's 15% or 20% off at the most. So we go a little crazy there when we do get the 30% off! We'll buy things we probably wouldn't have and look at things we definitely wouldn't have. This time around, we picked up:
  • Girls Undies
  • Girls Shorts and Top--lots of them
  • Men's Jeans
  • Men's shirts
  • Yankee Candles
  • Digital Frame
  • Greeting Card
  • Girls Skirts
  • Drink Dispenser
  • Running Shoes
  • UT Logo Wear
  • Perfume
  • Girls Jacket
  • Girls Tank Tops--perfect to wear now that Thalia's cast won't fit regular sleeves
  • Pink Lamps
Pink Clip-On Lamp, times 2.
Goes-with-lots-of-things plaid shorts = $3.36.
High School Musical undies, 7 for $7.

Our only Kohl's shopping rule is that whatever we buy has to be on sale, and the bigger the discount, the better. I love weeding through the 80% off racks at Kohl's, and I'm a natural speed shopper so I do it quickly. They're just begging you to look when they're at that price! So the 30% discount is on top of the 80% markdown. And some of the stuff we bought were for gifts, and it's always great to be able to buy more for our friends and relatives at the same price.

Thalia and Carys adore going to Kohl's. It's practically the only true department store left that sells a bit of everything, including toys and games. They love the tiny toy section, and also weaving through the rounders and racks of clothing, as well as trying on lots and lots of pairs of shoes.

So our Monday was definitely our day to contribute to the economy! And I have to say that everyone who assisted us at each of the stores was very pleasant and helpful, something I rarely say. Only two items were purchased full price (much needed bike shorts and dry shampoo), and we can also cross gift-shopping off our to-do list for fall birthdays and even Christmas.

All photos from Google Images

Thursday, July 02, 2009

For Steve & Tyra: Forever & For Always


here is the deepest secret nobody knows

here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life

which grows higher than soul can hope or mind can hide

and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart

i carry it in my heart


e.e. cummings


Happy 15th Anniversary! We love you!






Saturday, June 20, 2009

Life-Saving Cookie Recipe


Saturday, May 16 of this year was going to be one of the best days of the year for our family--Carys's 5th birthday party, a big "Disney-Princess-Ariel-Under-the-Sea" themed bash in our backyard with lots of splish-splashing water fun. I am not joking when I say that we had talked about and planned all aspects of this party for at least nine months, and my daughter absolutely had her heart set on this theme.

Well, we got the water part alright. May 16 turned out to be probably the wettest day of the entire month. In under an hour, we watched our carefully laid out backyard 'Under-the-Sea' wonderland torn apart by high winds and sheets of rain. Not dainty raindrops but sheets and sheets of rain.

So our outdoor party quickly became the "Under-the-Sea-in-my-living-room" party. With a little more than an hour left before a dozen and a half or so pre-schoolers would arrive at our house, I planned an entirely different party. (This is the part where I run around the house looking for suitable indoor activities for all these kids.) Coloring activity? Check. Foam craft activity? Check. Play-doh? Check.

Right, now I had enough stuff for them to do to last about 30 minutes if we were lucky. Hmm . . . how about decorating cookies? Great, only we had no cookies of course. Thank God I am a cake decorator and always have extra frosting in my freezer. I quickly thumbed through all of my cookie recipes, trying to find the easiest and quickest one for shaped cookies. (Not that I would be making shapes, except for "round").

The recipe I decided to make was one I hadn't actually made before, at least I don't remember doing so. It's from the Southern Living Incredible Cookies book. I'd had hit-or-miss luck with other recipes from this book, but I was pretty desperate at this point so decided to go with this one because it used few ingredients and ones that I happened to actually have on hand:

Sugar Crinkles

1 cup shortening (ie. Crisco)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp lemon extract (I used orange, it was all I had citrus-wise)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
  1. Beat shortening and 1 1/2 cups sugar at medium speed w/ electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs and flavorings, beating until blended.
  2. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to shortening mixture, beating well. Cover and chill dough. (This is where I stuck the recipe in the freezer for a quick chill.)
  3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls, roll in 1/4 cup sugar. (I did not roll in sugar as I wanted the kids to decorate them, but have since done this step as well.) Place on ungreased baking sheets.
  4. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-9 min. or until barely golden. Cool 2 min. on baking sheets; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Makes about 5 1/2 dozen.
So, all in all, May 16 turned out to be one of the worst days of the entire year. Several guests couldn't come last minute because they were having their own "worst days" and some very hopeful bathing-suit-wearing kiddos were super-disappointed to be kept indoors. But the cookies turned out to be a hit! The kids loved decorating them with my rainbow of frosting colors, candies and sprinkles, and the parents loved eating them (plain, no frosting). I've had several ask for the recipe. Seriously, these are great cookies, and I usually dislike sugar cookies.

We couldn't wait for the day to end. It made me sad that Carys was so disappointed about her party, and to see her cry made me want to do the same. And just our luck--the day before and the day after were beautiful, sunny days! Oh well, we may have ourselves a do-over party this summer, when we're guaranteed weeks of dry hot weather with no rain in sight!

Tuesday, June 02, 2009

ABCs of Me (and maybe You too)

Wasting time when I should be cleaning my house, cooking dinner, or something else constructive . . . received from a Facebook friend and hadn't done a "list" in a quite a while so here it is . . .

ABC's
You've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with the ABC's of YOU. At the end, choose 26 people to be tagged. You have to tag me so really you just need 25 more people. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

A - Age: 38

B - Bed size: Queen

C - Chore you hate to do: Dust

D - Dog's name: No dog

E - Essential start your day item: Coke

F - Favorite color: Pink (in general), Black (to wear)

G - Gold or Silver: Silver

H - Height: 5 '2"

I - Instruments you play: Piano

J - Job title: Mom/Cake Designer/Internet Retailer/Instructor

K - Kids: 2

L - Living arrangements: We live in a house

M - Mom's name: Ofelia

N - Nicknames: Lissa

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: Stayed overnight when 3 day old baby had to go back due to jaundice, but I wasn't the sick one!

P - Pet Peeve: Public signage with bad grammar/spelling

Q - Quote from a movie: I don't have one yet

R - Right or left handed: Left

S - Siblings: 1

T - Time you wake up: I will wake up 6 hrs after going to sleep, so that's usually around 9 am if left to my own internal clock. But that never happens, so my alarm clock wakes up much earlier!

U - Underwear: optional

V - Vegetable you dislike: Brussels Sprouts

W - Ways you run late: not paying attention to the time; need to wear a watch and actually look at it

X - X-rays you've had: shoulder

Y - Yummy food you make: cakes!

Z -Zoo favorite: National Zoo, Washington DC

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

It's All Personal

Or, Really, Really ?!*%&$#@ Mother's Day Gifts

If you're a Mom, what did you get for Mother's Day? Brunch with your family and a complimentary rose? (Or better yet, complimentary Mimosas?) A day off from cooking and other mundane mommy-chores? Or maybe even a store-bought gift? I sent my own Mom her favorite perfume and a card across the miles since we couldn't spend the day together.

I was excitedly summoned to the living room on Sunday morning by my kids for the presentation of a mysterious gift that arrived earlier that week. Hints of a wonderful "surprise" had me slightly curious, although in all honesty, I've learned over the past 8 years that lowering your expectations to the point of nothingness is really the way to go with this holiday. There were homemade cards that the girls created at school and at home, and of course, I always love and appreciate those. Thalia also made me a "rock person" at school, and even has the hot-glue gun burns to prove it! But last of all was the piece de resistance:


Don't you love it?! What do you mean, what is it? My FACE on M&Ms of course, silly goose!!! Yeah, because every Mom wants to eat her own face in chocolate, right?!

As a bonus, the M&Ms also have custom sayings on them:
Best Mom Ever!
Terrific Wife!

I was rather underwhelmed by my gift. I think Thalia picked up on that right away, because she quickly said "It was Daddy's idea." And so it was. Apparently my spouse thought it was a great gift idea. Interesting. Of course my little half-pints went along with it, what do they know? Candy for Mom? Hooray! They chose the colors, pink and platinum.

To humor them, I opened one of the three packages of customized M&Ms and let my kids eat my face. Several times in fact.




And then I got up off the couch and went back to bed for three more hours. Happy Mother's Day, y'all.

Friday, May 01, 2009

Cheap Eats


I've been both amazed and repelled by all the posts and articles I've read lately about how to feed your family on next to nothing. One of my favorite blogs asked readers to comment on their favorite cheap meals. Wow! These ladies don't mess around--one Mom feeds her family of four for less than $8.50 a meal. Another made dinner for two for $7.38. Both cooked meals from scratch. Yum!

What kind of grossed me out and yet fascinated me at the same time were the "recipes" or "meals" that consisted entirely of packaged or processed foods. Some call them "pantry staples." Full disclosure: our pantry has quite a few of these staples (Uncle Ben's Wild Rice Pilaf, Cornbread Mix, etc.) so I'm not knocking them altogether. But a whole menu of canned/boxed food? Hmm. For example, the dinner made up of 1 can of corn, 1 can of black beans, and 1 can of meat or meatless chili. Heat in a pan and serve. Doctor it up with spices if necessary. Hmm. Or this one: Top Ramen cooked with only a little bit of water and add a can of Pork-n-Beans at the end. OMG.

So here is my "quick-scratch" contribution to eating in these lean times (and what we had for dinner last night):

Easy Chinese Chicken Pasta Salad

Leftover boneless, skinless chicken breast or thigh meat, shredded or sliced (1 - 2 cups or whatever you have)
1 green onion, finely chopped
1/2 head iceberg or romaine lettuce, shredded
2 ribs of celery, sliced
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/3 cup cucumber, peeled and chopped
Leftover cooked pasta (regular or whole wheat, any shape, about 2 cups or whatever you have; I have used penne, rotini and thin spaghetti)
Chow Mein Noodles (ie. La Choy)

Dressing:
4 tsp hoisin sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1/2 tsp soy sauce
3 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp vegetable oil (I used olive oil)
1/8 tsp pepper

  1. In a bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients and mix well.
  2. Toss chicken, pasta and all vegetables together with the dressing. Add a few handfuls of chow mein noodles on top. Best if served immediately. (**If you are serving the salad much later, you can leave out the lettuce and chow mein noodles and add them right before serving to keep them crisp**).
Makes about 6 servings, can be stretched by adding more pasta and lettuce. Since I buy most of my produce at Costco, this meal is really economical. For example, 6 heads of romaine for $3! Enough celery for a month for about the same price. About $1.50 worth of carrots, green onion and cucumber combined. And I always have these particular Asian ingredients on hand anyway, so I didn't have to go out of my way for them and they seem to last forever in my fridge. Definitely a yummy cheap meal!

*Variations: You can add/omit vegetables based on what's in your fridge. For example, I think it would look/taste really great with some red bell pepper strips or mandarin oranges. You can omit the pasta if you don't like/have any. You can substitute roasted cashews or friend wonton strips instead of chow mein noodles.

Recipe adapted from a much more involved one in Every Grain of Rice by Ellen Blonder & Annabel Low

Friday, April 24, 2009

Guilty Pleasures: 16 Free Romance Reads


It's rare these days when I squeal with delight. (It sounds funny just to type it.) But squeal I did when I read about Harlequin's FREE book download from the Barnes & Noble website. Make that downloads as there are 16 free books in all. Yippeeeee!

As one who was a closet romance novel reader for a few years before "coming out," I'm very proud to share this gift with everyone (all 4 of you loyal friends who might be reading this!). Be warned, the downloads are low-tech: PDF files. No Kindle or Sony Reader downloads here. Who cares? Free books!

I almost never read Harlequin books, but I'm looking forward to sampling some of the romance genres represented among the freebies. NASCAR romance, anyone?

And for any non-romance readers, B&N is also giving away nine FREE MP3 Audiobook downloads as well. An interesting mix of authors, such as Kurt Vonnegut, Mark Twain and Alice Munro. Something for everyone.

So get to reading already!

Image from eHarlequin.com

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Family Fued


So I've been tagged by Janine in yet another Facebook "list", but this time I'm willing to play along because it really did remind me of watching "Family Fued"!


YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO USE MY ANSWERS! Copy this note and write a new note. Then erase my answers and fill in your answers. Tag your friends and don't forget to tag me too. Remember, you can't use the same answer as the person who sent it to you. Remember, if my answers are dumb, it's because the person before me had the good ones!


1. Name something you use in the shower? Bath gel

2. Name something a football player wears under his uniform? Athletic supporter

3. Name something people hate to find on their windshield? Flyers stuck to the wipers that will NOT fly off!

4. Name something a man might buy before a date? Breath mints

5. What is another word for blemish? Zit

6. Something you cook in the microwave? Leftovers

7. Name a piece of furniture people need help moving? Piano

8. Name something a dog does that embarrasses its owner? Pees on the carpet when company arrives

9. Name a kind of test you cannot study for? blood test

10. Name something a boy scout gets a badge for? camping

11. Name a phrase with the word "home" in it? Home run

12. Name a sport where players lose teeth? Skateboarding

13. Name something a teacher can do to ruin a student's day? Assign detention

14. What is a way you can tell someone has been crying? Red eyes

15. Name something a person wears even if it has a hole in it? Underwear

16. Name something that gets smaller the more you use it? Ball of yarn

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Hot Mom, Hot Kid?


"I love how they dress their age.

And I don't love how that's remarkable."

~ Recent anonymous comment online about Sasha and Malia Obama

I'm back after a "Spring Break" from posting and then getting caught up at home from the Break! It takes a whole week to recover from Spring Break around here.

Anyway, my previous post was about looking older than I was 20 years ago, and today's is about even younger kids who do so as well. And I don't mean "looking older" in a dowdy, frumpy kind of way, like I did! I do mean 8 year old girls who are dressed by their parents to look like they are 16 yr old Lolitas. And this is a uniquely girl-only phenomenon. (Little boys start dressing like little men when they're a year old and continue to dress the same until they really are little old men.) If you are the parent of a girl, you know what I'm talking about unless you sew all your kid's clothing yourself and never have to go shopping for girls' clothes. And lucky YOU!

Suffice it to say that once you cross the line between infant/toddler outfits and girls 'size 6 and up' (and often even before you've crossed the line), you have to steel yourself against the slutty, tacky or merely inappropriate "Mini Me" clothes that are all they sell at many stores. If it's ever been your dream to have your kid dress exactly like you, well they certainly can! Right down to that Mommy tatoo on your arm/hip/ankle/lower back. It's a real and constant challenge to pick outfits for my almost 8 year old daughter from what's available that don't scream "tiny slut."

So for example, a bra for me, a bra for little 5 year old her:

This is a size 30AA bra that is basically sized to fit a little girl. Really little girl.

Attitude tee for me, attitude tee for 7 year old her:


Such cute graphics and not-so-cute sayings on tees.

Other actual attitude t-shirt sentiments seen on actual girls:

“Santa Loves a Hot Cookie”

"Dinner: $60. Movie: $40 dollars This shirt off: Priceless.'"

Sexy undies for me, sexy undies for 8 year old her:

Size 7-10. Won't these look great peeking out from the top of her jeans?

And don't even get me started on parents who dress their kids just plain old inappropriate for the occasion! For example, I can't tell you the number of kids I see daily, even in the winter, who are wearing flip flops to P.E. class at my daughter's school. Or tank tops on cold, wet days. Or shorts with high heel sandals all day at school when it's 42 degrees outside. Whatever.

So it's just been so nice to see photos of the First Daughters, Malia and Sasha Obama, who are 10 and 7 yrs old respectively, dressed as girls who are 10 and 7 yrs old! Wow, dressing age-appropriately, what a concept! All the body parts that need to be covered up are and nothing detracts from their smiles or from their primary mission: to just be kids.

Dressed for a very special occasion


Dressed for school


All photos from Google Images

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Twenty Years Ago

Totally 80s style blue floral print Multiples outfit, plus icky 80s shoes and my favorite fake Fendi bag. Visiting Stanford University, March 1989.

My absolute favorite Multiples outfit--loved, loved, loved this one! I wore this everywhere. Apparently also wore the denim jacket everywhere too! A view of the Golden Gate Bridge after just crossing it. March 1989.

The new Units/Multiples by Sandra Garratt, the original designer of the 80s fashion craze. They look almost exactly the same and the prices aren't bad either. (Photo from Sandra Garratt Design website)

I posted the first two photos on Facebook three months ago, after my friend Tyra sent me a link to a website about the founder of Units. Units, and later Multiples, were these amazing cotton/poly knit separates (excellent quality, never faded) that were "convertible"--you could mix and match the solids (later prints too), wear certain pieces in different ways (as a belt or as a tube top!) and they were one size fits all. And according to the new website, the designer is selling her Units pieces again starting this year!

I hunted up pics of me wearing my beloved Units/Multiples pieces, and found several. These were from my Spring Break trip to visit family in the San Francisco Bay area in March 1989. Although I loved these outfits so much, I realized how OLD they made me look, and not in a good way. Dowdy-looking old, not sophisticated and chic old(er)! My uncle, who drove me to Stanford the day I wore the blue outfit, told me I looked "middle-aged." I didn't think so then, but he was soooo right!

I decided to post these pics on my blog because they were taken exactly twenty years ago this week. I was 18 years old in these pics, and yesterday, I turned 38 years old. 20 YEARS. Wow. The question is, if I wore Units/Multiples now, would I look my own age (now that I am middle-aged) or would I look even older?!

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Goodbye, Facebook (kind of)

Photo from Google Images

It's official: I'm over Facebook. I still think it's a great time-waster and reunion place for people I've lost touch with since elementary school. But I no longer feel compelled to update my status or check FB compulsively.

I read this great blog post about why this woman left Facebook and found myself laughing at how funny and yet true it all was.

Several people I know, including my hubby, have voiced their privacy concerns about social networking sites like Facebook. Seriously, I think the idea of Internet "privacy" is overrated! I have no problem putting my information "out there" in exchange for the privilege of shopping, doing research and generally being entertained by various websites and blogs online. I'm not a famous person and likely won't be, so I doubt there is a whole lot of interest in my personal information anyway. So I'm not shying away because of privacy issues.

My real reason for taking a break from Facebook is just because I'm kind of bored with it and would like to meet people in person for a change! Or maybe just through other venues besides FB. Time spent online in general is time sucked into a huge vacuum and I can't ever get it back. Time that possibly could be spent on other things. Like hanging out with my husband and kids (who are not on FB), enjoying the all-too-short spring Texas weather, planning my upcoming vacation, etc. I'm sure I'll fill up that time with something!

I'll be checking my account now and then because now that I've reconnected with so many people I had missed for so many years, I still want to stay in touch. I've really enjoyed meeting for lunch with my found-on-Facebook friend from high school, for example. And catching up on another found-on-Facebook friend's awesome foodie blog. Facebook began as a really strange thing for me because I had to lie and say I was a college student in order to get an account a few years ago, and then everyone and their dog showed up and it got really fun, for a while, but now it's time to move on. I may have to sneak back in too for a round of Scramble or such; I think I might miss those games most of all!

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

A Rotic Invitation

Happy Valentine's Day, 3 days late! I never thought I'd say this, but I am heartily sick of chocolate, candy, cookies, and other sweets from this past holiday. Ugh.

Last Thursday I picked up a flyer at Nordstrom's shoe department, where I treated myself to some cute pre-spring shoes in honor of Valentine's day (yes, any excuse will do). The flyer was an invitation to a shopping event at Nordstrom on Valentine's Day:

Join us for a "Rotic" Evening
What's Rotic?
It's Romantic without the man!! Do you have plans? If not join the gals for a night of shopping!! Enjoy treats & a movie while shopping the latest trends!!

At first glance, I thought I was reading the word "erotic"! But instead "Romantic without the man"! I love it! As it turns out, I've had a standing "date" on Valentine's Day now for over 17 years, but if I didn't, I would have been at the Rotic event in a heartbeat. A shopping party! Seriously, who needs a man when there's shopping to be done?!

Valentine's Day is a fun holiday for kids--valentines and treats for everyone, no one gets their feelings hurt anymore. But no so for grown-ups, especially those who are still looking for their one and onlies. I'd be lying if I said I'd never been disappointed on a Valentine's Day. But then again, it's just a day.

In fact, I may be the first one in line at the next Rotic Valentine event.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

25 Things: Redux

Yes, they're everywhere! The 25 random things about me/you/your dog that no one wants to read anymore on Facebook and everywhere else! haha But just for those of my pals who aren't on FB, here you go:
Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

1. Between Kinder and 12th grade, I attended 7 different schools. And no, my father was not in the military. He just loved to move around.

2. I like eating sour cream just by itself.

3. I absolutely love to read. In 9th grade, my English teacher said something like “A person cannot consider himself well-read if he doesn’t read at least 2 books every month.” With the exception of college, when I had to read too much for all of my classes, I have consciously tried to meet and exceed her standard for the past 23 years.

4. I have 3 college degrees, all from the University of Texas at Austin. None have been particularly useful in my daily life, but I loved being a college student.

5. People who walk around with very expensive designer purses/shoes/whatever but complain to me that they can’t pay their mortgage/car/utility bills annoy me. I don’t feel sorry for them at all. I thank my parents for instilling in me a healthy sense of establishing priorities.

6. I have been a cake decorating/sugar art instructor since 1998, with a little time off in between to have some kids.

7. I was excessively shy growing up, compounded no doubt by constantly being the “new girl” at different schools, and finally found my own voice in college.

8. I have a mild fear of flying now that only developed when I was pregnant with my first child and has not gone away. Prior to that, I would hop on an airplane going anywhere like it was a city bus.

9. I discovered when I was 6 months pregnant with my first child that I love to scrapbook! My child’s earliest memories from the womb are probably of me frantically scrapbooking until 3 a.m. for the entire third trimester. I’ve also taught scrapbooking classes for Michaels.

10. I think the Internet is the greatest invention ever in my lifetime.

11. For a long time I used to love to collect random little “things” for various reasons. Over the years I’ve grown to dislike “things” around me and have to restrain myself from taking beloved “things” away from my kids. Seeing 40+ years worth of collected “things” all over (taking over) my in-laws’ house has cured me of “collecting” forever!

12. I have lived in 4 cities/towns in Texas plus Chicago and Seattle in my lifetime.

13. I wanted to have 2 girls, and God blessed me with 2 girls. I just didn’t know that they would be extremely different from one another!

14. I love to give things away, to friends and total strangers who can really use them. I also love to give birthday gifts and treats at different holidays. I get this from both of my parents, who would gladly give you the clothes off their back if you asked. I don’t care as much about receiving gifts and encourage my kids to “be a giver” by having no-gifts-please birthday parties each year. And seriously, they don’t care/haven’t noticed the difference! Other people think we are totally nuts, however.

15. I wish I could sing better. I love karaoke, and have a typical Asian karaoke setup that we almost never use.

16. I have been a Girl Scout Leader, on and off, since 2000, before I even had daughters of my own.

17. I am an INFJ.

18. I have known my husband since we were 16 years old, over half my lifetime. We’ve been married almost 11 years after dating/living together for 7 years. We complement each other because he likes to look at the big picture, whereas I am all about the tiny little details of life.

19. Motherhood is absolutely the hardest job I’ve ever had. I simultaneously love and despise it daily.

20. I was a Financial Aid Officer many years ago which pretty much made me immune to (crocodile) tears on students’ faces. They cried all the live long day.

21. I have not cleaned a bathtub or shower in my house since 2000 when my husband decided the fumes were bad for baby in utero, said he would do it himself, and hasn’t stopped since. I love this man.

22. I am an exercise hater. I only do it so I can fit into my clothes. I hear people say that exercise gives them so much energy, but it just makes me want to take a very long nap afterwards.

23. I would love to live in another country, not forever, but just a little while, with my family.

24. I recently learned that I’m part of the new “Gig Economy.” Some “gigs” from the past 9 years: custom cake designer, stationery/gifts Internet retailer, teaching classes in the evenings and weekends in different cities, supervisor/reader for an educational testing company from my laptop. All stuff that looks really odd on a resume.

25. I love to make lists.

Friday, February 06, 2009

Kitty Kouture

If you've read my family blog, you might have guessed already that I heart Hello Kitty. Last month I was in the MAC store at the mall, and the salesperson mentioned that a new Hello Kitty line would be out at the beginning of February.

I had forgotten all about it until the other day, and rushed online to check it out, but they don't go on sale until next week. But I did get a sneak peek of the new line, and it's all soooooooo damn cute:


Photos from Temptalia.com

I think I'm going to want everything in this line. They even have non-cosmetic accesories, like a key clip and a bracelet too! Good think my birthday is just around the corner . . .

Monday, February 02, 2009

Just One Word


Cool time-waster lifted from my friend Shannon's FB page.

USING ONLY ONE WORD! It's not as easy as you might think! Copy and change the answers to suit you and pass it on. It's really hard to only use one word answers. Be sure to tag the person you received it from!

1. Where is your cell phone? car

2. Your significant other? dylan

3. Your hair? ok

4. Your mother? active

5. Your father? working

6. Your favorite thing? reading

7. Your dream last night? none

8. Your favorite drink? coke

9. Your dream/goal? happiness

10. What room are you in? office

11. Your hobby? scrapbooks

12. Your fear? regret

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? austin

14. Where were you last night? home

16. Muffins? chocolate

17. Wish list item? time

18. Where you grew up? texas

19. Last thing you did? drove

20. What are you wearing? sweatshirt

21. Your TV? digital

22. Your pets? none

23. Friends? wonderful

24. Your life? good

25. Your mood? mellow

26. Missing some one? nancy

27. Car? volkswagen

28. Something you're not wearing? bra

29. Your favorite store? nordstrom

30. Your favorite color? pink

33. When is the last time you laughed? today

34. Last time you cried? thurs

35. Who will resend this? few

36. One place that I go to over and over? costco

37. One person who emails me regularly? dallas

38. My favorite place to eat? chinese

39. Why you participated in this survey? interested

40. What are you doing tonight? teaching

Saturday, January 31, 2009

Sad

One of my favorite blogs to read daily has ended, and I feel so bereft. I loved it not because the blogger leads a glamorous life with exciting posts about her adventures around the world, but because she is a mom of 3 (although mostly grown) kids and loves to cook and putter around in her home. And she is a writer and I have such an affinity and admiration for those who make magic with words. She lives in one of my favorite cities in the world, in another country, and I loved all the local references to places there I have visited. I have never met this woman in my life, but feel like I know her and her family through her words and what she has shared of her life experiences. Very grateful for that as a total stranger given the privilege to know another total stranger but feel very connected.

She has decided to go "unplugged," disconnecting her Internet today and ending her blog after 16 months of posts about everything and anything. She writes:

Now I’m going to move on, unclench the tight grip this computer has over me and try to rediscover and enjoy other aspects of my life. Things that I have let fall by the wayside.

It is time for me to simplify.

That takes alot of courage and discipline! I know how much I depend on the Internet for my daily amusements and communications. But I admire her desire to simplify her life. I discovered her blog only a few months after she started it, and checking in with Meg became a natural part of my day, five minutes of chatty musings, recipes and inspiration from another Mom who'd already been through everything I am going through right now. The craziness of parenthood when the kids are small. And to know that there's a light at the end of the tunnel, and the tunnel isn't as long as you think it is and someday you'll yearn for those days again as she often does.


I hope she'll leave her blog up anyway, for those days when I want the comfort of familiar words (like watching a favorite movie I've already seen a hundred times). I wish I could thank her, but she's never taken comments or emails so I just hope she realizes that there are many of us who loved visiting her peaceful, tranquil site.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

"Porcelain Mary" and Other Etiquette Dilemmas

Photo from Miss Conduct's blog

I love discovering new blogs that I really love. (Overuse of the word love?) I stumble upon other blogs all the time, independent or sponsored by some other entity, but rarely find one I want to revisit often. And I love when the blog has been around for a while, providing me with lots of entertaining backreading as well. Today, I happened upon Miss Conduct's Blog during some research on the subject of "etiquette" for my business blog.

Miss Conduct offers some very good advice about everyday etiquette; according to her bio, she writes a weekly advice column for the Boston Globe Magazine. People ask all sorts of questions, and I mean all sorts, and she answers them. And she has her own humorous anecdotes to relate. I have been laughing out loud for the better part of half an hour already.

I haven't backread very far yet, but here are two of my favorite "issues" so far: Popcorn at the Movies and Toilet Decor. I also like that her blog is regional (and not my own region of the country) and at the same time, universal. Good manners are never out of style anywhere, right?

I'm adding Miss Conduct to my list of faves today.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Love This


I just love this pic! The NY Times chose such a charming, intimate photo for it's cover page. Can you just imagine what the First Couple were saying to each other as they walked the parade route?! I love how they're holding hands.

Youth . . . Optimism . . . Energy . . . Family . . . Hope
These are some of the words I heard used over and over again on Inauguration Day. It's going to be so nice to have a First Family with children near the same ages as mine. Everyone who has kids knows that kids help you keep it real. They connect you to the world in so many ways that you never expected before you had them.

And I so admire the Obamas for having a grandmother who lives with them, helping to raise the children. How many families in this country are struggling to find affordable, reliable child care and are yet cut off from family members who could help provide this kind of support? Because it truly takes a village to raise a child. Coming from an Asian background, it is nothing but natural to me to see a wise, helpful Grandma move in to help with kids. My own parents live over an hour away, but will come on a moment's notice if needed to help out in any way with the girls or our other every day needs. That's simply how it's done in our culture, and likely the same in traditional African American culture as well.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Icky

From a blogger I follow daily and whose writing I admire, on watching Obama's inauguration:

The pastor is speaking now. He irritates me. He is sooo pompous and full of himself. I can feel huge ego emanating from him. Icky.

Thank God, he is done. Now Aretha Franklin is going to sing. Hopefully that will get the taste of that pastor out of my mouth.

YES, that is exactly how I felt watching him on Tuesday! Icky indeed. I am not into his books. I have never trusted him. Gave one of his books away when I received it as a gift (from someone I can't stand anyway).

I'm just glad Warren's bit part was at the beginning of the event rather than the end. The "rhyming reverend" Lowery gave a warm and even humorous (who says you can't smile and laugh in prayer?!) benediction to close out the event. Some have said his words were racist, but I wasn't offended (and I'm the "yellow" one). I liked him and his genuine words way more than Pastor Icky.

Monday, January 19, 2009

The Choice of a New Generation

Michelle Obama, who've I written about before as my new "friend in my head," is about to receive the best 45th birthday present ever! She celebrated her real birthday two days ago, but can anyone argue that watching the husband you helped elect get sworn in as President of the United States isn't the most wonderful birthday gift?!

I am soooo excited about tomorrow and will spend as much of it in front of the TV witnessing history along with everyone else. I actually have friends who are in DC and will be part of the actual throng of well-wishers, but I'm ok with my front-row seat at home!

The voters of the United States of America did a very grown up thing last November by voting for change. Not the kind of change that looks and talks like what we already have right now, or at least for 12 or so more hours, but real change. You know it's a good thing when your friends in other countries are congratulating you and your nation for the choice we've made!

The thing about change, however, is that it always has to hurt a little bit. Or at least make us uncomfortable. I hope, when the post-inaugural euphoria dies down, that we don't give up immediately on Mr. Obama and the plans that he and his team have for us. I'm just so grateful that it's him at the helm, and hope everyone else will just get behind him for the long haul. Who knows what miracles will occur in the next four years?

New Pepsi . . .

Obama . . .

Old-school Pepsi

And now, slightly on- and off-topic: When I bought a twelve-pack of Pepsi in December because it was on sale, I noticed that the logo on the box and cans was new, in a retro-ish kind of way. Two seconds later I thought that it looked alot like the Obama campaign's logo. (Clever? Pepsi's capitalization of Obama's popularity? But if you think back (waaaaaay back), the Obama logo actually looks like the old Pepsi logo. The one you saw when you were about 4 years old on the one-liter bottles, the kind you never see anymore.)

Today, I remembered the slogan from the old Pepsi ads and commercials from the 80s. As Pepsi was then, so Obama is now: The Choice of a New Generation.

Enjoy tomorrow, y'all!

Images from Google Images

Monday, January 12, 2009

Plaid Stallions

Getting sick always sucks. But being sick during the holidays really sucks. So unfair. I wish I could have a do-over for the two weeks I was "out" (and still officially not 100% yet). All the things I didn't get to do, the friends I didn't get to see. Oh well, enough complaining. My blog's been calling out to me, begging to be updated, but I've ignored it because, you guessed it, I've been feeling sick lately!

Today's post was going to be a rant about some aspect of volunteerism in the parenting sphere, but then I changed my mind because that would just depress us all. Saving that for later! haha

Instead, I guarantee that I will bring a smile to everyone's faces (who is actually reading this). Everyone, I present the blog I go to whenever I need an honest-to-goodness laugh: The Plaid Stallions. Both the blog and the website are seriously fall-out-of-your-chair and pee-in-your-pants funny if you were a child of the Seventies. If you weren't, then it might be mildly amusing or even downright confusing. But if you lived it, you will love it!

I think if I were a male with a little more time on my hands (ok, alot more time) then I could have dreamed up this website. As it is, I have been obsessed with catalogs since I was a child. Obsessed. Apparently, so was the owner of Plaid Stallions. The only difference is that he kept alot of his catalogs and keeps finding more, and I don't have any of mine because my Mom threw them away.

The website name is Plaid Stallions: Rambling and Reflections on 70s Pop Culture. Plaid Stallions, in it's own words, is "mocking the seventies a catalog page at a time." Seventies toys, fashions, housewares, Halloween costumes, etc. are all there in living catalog color and even some vintage TV commercials. The blog is a daily feast of 70s gems such as:


and this:

(For more 70s "fashion" commentary, see my earlier post about this on my other blog.)

It's not always cheesy fun though. Sometimes I just have to smile really big when I see the toys from my childhood so lovingly revered:

I LOVED THIS TOY! I still have it, my girls play with it, and the elevator still works!

Received excitedly some of this for Christmas, either 1977 or 1978, only to have my Mom give it to the neighbor's child when we moved away. Still mourning the loss 30 years later.

And some days I even feel sad (again) about the toys I desperately wanted but never could convince my Mom to buy:

Barbie Airplane, as seen briefly at a birthday party in the mid-70s and always wanted, even now!

This website and blog brings back memories of pretty much my entire 70s life-- what my parents wore, what my brother and I played with for a whole decade, what we watched on TV, the colors and textures of the world around me.

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

It's Never What We Think It Is

On the last day of 2008, one more disappointment pertinent to this blog: one of my favorite blogs, Mrs. O, is a fake. The New York Times has found them out. Mrs. O is not simply a blog by a well-informed, well-researched fashion-obsessed fan. It's a marketing tool for a global advertising agency, BBH, written by one of its employees.

I think I might have to remove Mrs. O from my faves list. Knowing it's just another piece of the marketing puzzle makes it not so clever anymore. I feel duped. At least I hadn't gone to Target yet for the oh-so-enthusiastically reviewed Thakoon pieces!

But I still heart Mrs. Obama, if not Mrs. O.

Monday, December 29, 2008

Christmas Eve Boots

Photo successfully snapped by Thalia on take #3 and actually did not cut off our heads!

Dylan and I in our Christmas Eve finery! Dylan, wearing the shirt he bought on his birthday and one of many Snoopy ties, and I in my just-bought-that-day sweater dress. Do we look our ages?! Do we look hip?! Ha!

I think my pointy-toe, high-heeled boots really made my outfit:


I just love wearing them, but not very often because you can't chase after a bunch of kids with them on! Yes, that's me taking a pic of my own boots while I'm wearing them . . . .

That evening, we went to the Children's Mass at church and then to Magic Time Machine for what is becoming a yearly tradition for us--Christmas Eve dinner with costumed character waiters! This time it was Captain Jack Sparrow, and he was the best waiter we've had yet. Very much "in character." Lots of food, bubbly potion and merriment enjoyed by all.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

In the Doghouse, Or Memories of Hubby's Gifts Gone By

I meant to post this days and days ago after telling my friend Amy about it. This is in memory of all the "doghouse" gifts I've received from my better half over the years. And there have been many, many of them. Oh my yes.

I was cracking up watching this video with Dylan, and then realized that I have actually been the lucky recipient of some of those gifts! Ha!

The last few seconds of the video are kind of lame, but the video on the whole is quite brilliant. Cheers!

Monday, December 22, 2008

Just a Girl Who Once Fell in Love with a Boy

The Lovings of Virginia

Dylan and I have been married since 1998-- 10 whole years of (mostly) wedded bliss! When we married in May 1998, a marriage between someone like him and someone like me had been legal in this country for not quite 30 years. When I say "someone like him," I mean a Caucasian American male, and "someone like me" being an Asian American female. In the same year that my husband's parents married, 1966, it would have been quite illegal for Dylan and I to do the same in many states. Amazing and sad and true.

I was reminded of all of this today when I was reading an online tribute to famous people who died in 2009. One of those people was Mildred Loving, who passed away in May of this year. I would guess that very few people knew who she was. I learned about Mildred Loving in college while writing a paper on interracial marriages in the U.S. in the 20th century for a US history course. In 1958 Mildred Jeter, a black woman, married Richard Loving, a white man, in Washington DC, where it was legal to do so, and then drove home to Virginia, where it was not. They were in jail within a month. They avoided a one year prison sentence by agreeing to leave the state of Virginia for 25 years. And their marriage was still considered illegal in over half of the states.

In 1967, the US Supreme Court ruled in the landmark case of Loving v. Virginia that all anti-miscegenation rules were unconstitutional, ending the Lovings' 4 year legal battle to be able to return to the place they knew as home in Virginia. For eight years, the Lovings lived happily ever after, until Richard Loving was killed by a drunk driver. They had been married for 17 years.

Mildred preferred to stay away from the limelight for the rest of her life. She also said that "you see so many" interracial couples now, that they hardly turn heads or cause comment anymore. However, last year on the 40th anniversary of Loving v. Virginia, she issued a rare public comment on same-sex marriages:

Surrounded as I am now by wonderful children and grandchildren, not a day goes by that I don't think of Richard and our love, our right to marry, and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the "wrong kind of person" for me to marry. I believe all Americans, no matter their race, no matter their sex, no matter their sexual orientation, should have that same freedom to marry. Government has no business imposing some people's religious beliefs over others. Especially if it denies people's civil rights.

I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard's and my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or white, young or old, gay or straight seek in life. I support the freedom to marry for all. That's what Loving, and loving, are all about.

It's a privilege to be married to my husband, whom I chose to marry and who chose to marry me, and how fortunate we are to have been given that freedom in the first place. Today I am thankful for the Lovings and their marriage, which got us to where we are today. Mildred and Richard could have lived out the rest of their marriage under the radar, in exile from the place they called home, but chose instead to fight for the right of any woman to marry any man she loves anywhere in this country.

Dylan & Melissa

It's amazing to me as well that we have our new President-elect Obama who is himself the product of a biracial marriage (fortunately his parents lived in one of the handful of states that never enacted anti-miscegenation laws). How far our society has come to catch up with the reality of courtship and marriage, that love is color-blind, however cliche that is, and can't be reined in by rules or definitions of what is socially acceptable. Mildred Loving was, in her own words, "just a girl who once fell in love with a guy."

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Stuff I've Been Reading

Photo from Google Images

Ok, I was supposed to post this at the end of November, but I totally forgot! The "Stuff I've Been Reading" list is my planned running tally of books I've read and books I've bought or borrowed (sometimes not the same books!) in a month's time. I got the idea from one my favorite authors, Nick Hornby, and which I wrote about last month.

The really sad thing is that I cannot remember exactly what I read last month! I don't ever write down what I'm reading. So starting today, I'll keep a running list of books read/borrowed/bought and try to post monthly. Call it my first New Year's Resolution for 2009!

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Facelift

I've been experimenting these last few months with different Blogger templates, but I'd been envying our friend Tracy's cute background on her scrapbooking blog, along with all the other bells and whistles there. Today I finally figured out how to get this super-cute cupcake theme on my blog! So appropriate. Free background from The Cutest Blog on the Block.

I'll probably continue to tweak the color combinations. I love pink, but hate hot pink/magenta. As soon as a pink starts looking like magenta to me, on any given day, I'll get rid of it.

The new look makes me happy! I'm so easily amused and entertained these days, no?

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Four, Four, Four, Four . . .

Received from my friend, Janine, via email:


Here's what you are supposed to do...and please don't spoil the fun...

Delete my answers, type in your answers and send it to a bunch of people, including me. It's not spam. It's fun! Happy Holidays!


A) Four places that I go to over and over: Target, Michael's, Costco, HEB (yes, I'm quite the retail queen, aren't I?)


B) Four people who e-mail me (regularly): Dallas, Rachel, Kelly, Anjali


C) Four of my favorite places to eat: Places with good enchiladas; The Salt Lick; Places with good steak; The Melting Pot (with friends)


D) Four places I would rather be right now: On vacation pretty much anywhere; In bed with my electric blanket keeping me nice and warm; Having lunch with friends; Shopping (when what I am really doing is answering emails, updating blogs, etc.)


E) Four people I think will respond: I don't know. I hope I get around to forwarding it to my friends!


F) Four TV shows I watch over and over: Sex and the City; Charlie & Lola (yes, the kids show); Thirtysomething; Biography (I realize my favorite TV shows are really odd!)

Friday, December 12, 2008

I'm Baaaaaccckk!

Jaden of the Steamy Kitchen (photo from www.steamykitchen.com)

After a few weeks away from my blogs, I found that I really missed writing every day! I didn't miss the stress of "having" to blog however. That was a bit too much like school. So I'll be blogging not daily but more often than I was before, which was more like quarterly! I have so much "non-news" to share!

Anyway, I found out about this cool giveaway on the Steamy Kitchen's website through my found-on-Facebook-high-school-friend Archana, who is a foodie herself! Steamy Kitchen's keeper Jaden is a Modern Asian food writer and she is giving away some fantastic stuff she's found or received from other companies. And I like Jaden's writing so I'll be a frequent visitor to her site from now on. Because we can all use some culinary inspiration now and then, for sure. She has an awesome list of food links too. So if you're reading this (whoever you are), enter the big giveaway and maybe you'll win that really cool salt block.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Visions of Sugarplums Danced in Her Head

Photo from www.surlatable.com

We put up our two Christmas trees (the "family" one and the "fancy" one) over the Thanksgiving break, and I had been toying with the idea of buying a smaller third tree to put my baking/cake themed ornaments on it. I've amassed quite a collection in the 10 years since I started my cake business, although until the last few years, it used to be much more difficult to find these kinds of ornaments.

So we were at Lowe's today buying more Christmas lights (so cheap), and they had these little table-top Christmas trees in urns. They were charming and not tacky/cheap looking like usual. $15 for a third tree. I was almost ready to buy it and had it in my cart, but at the last minute I put it back on the shelf. I suprised myself. It just wasn't something I needed, merely something I wanted. We do have two other trees after all. Sometimes it sucks to be a grown-up, because the kid in me would have bought that tree and had it decorated and on display in no time flat!

But I'll still be thinking about a cupcake/cake/candy/baking tree for future years. And maybe it will look something like this:
Photo from www.brentwood.thefuntimesguide.com

In Hiding

Our missing Advent wreath (photo from Google Images)

It's that time of the year for me--time for all the wonderful holiday things I've packed away to come out of hiding. The problem is, when you only use something once a year, it's really, really difficult to remember where you put it!

I bought an Advent wreath for the first time last year. I really wanted to start that tradition with the girls, to make the meaning of Christmas the most important part of the season. Today I found the pink and purple candles but not the wreath! Aaack! And this weekend is the start of Advent! (Deep calming breath) I have one more box of decorations to open; I will pray it's in there!

Now for the other 99 things that I did find but had forgotten all about:
  • The gifts I bought for Thalia's teachers after Christmas last year. In the meantime, Thalia and I had bought other stuff to give them--oh well!
  • Christmas craft kits so the girls could make gifts for our relatives. I was so happy to find these!
  • Ornaments for our tree and for our friends' too. A welcome surprise.
Maybe this year, on December 26th when I start my Christmas 2009 shopping, I'll also start writing down what I buy and where I hide them for the next 11 months.

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Getting To Know You: The Holiday Edition 2008

I love receiving the 'Getting to Know You' emails! I always answer the questions and forward to my friends, hoping they'll all respond, because I always learn something new about people I've known forever. This year, I am posting the Holiday Edition I'll be sending out to my friends and family (might as well get the ball rolling):

Getting to Know You: Holiday Edition

Fill out the questionnaire, replacing my answers with yours (of course!).

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
I like to do both. I have too much of both thanks to several years of selling both for school fundraisers at two schools!

2. Real or artificial tree?
Artificial all the way. I find it sad watching a real tree slowly fall apart over several weeks.

3. When do you put up the tree?
Either the day of Thanksgiving or day after. No later than 2 days after Thanksgiving.

4. When do you take the tree down? Usually no later than the 2nd weekend in Jan.

5. Do you like eggnog?
No way! I can't stand the smell of it; I think it's the nutmeg I can't stand. But amazingly, I bake tons of stuff with it and everyone just loves it, except for me!

6. Favorite gift received as a child?
I loved alot of my toys, and I love the memories of them even more, so I don't have any one favorite.

7. Hardest person to buy for?
My Dad. He has everything and wants nothing expensive.

8. Easiest person to buy for? My kids.

9. Do you have a nativity scene?
Yes, we have 2. One is made up of dolls and the other is Fisher-Price. Very kid friendly.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
Mail. I have to send cards--I sell them!

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Pretty much anything given to me by my mother-in-law, especially the year she gave me the gift I had given her for her bday!

12. Favorite Christmas Movie?
Miracle on 34th Street, 1994 version. I just love that little girl!

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
I shop almost all through the year. My shopping for the following Xmas starts on Dec 26 and usually ends in Sept. I like to have everything wrapped by Veterans Day in Nov.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Spritz cookies, Honey-baked ham, anything sinfully chocolate.

16. Multicolor or White lights on the tree?
White.

17. Favorite Christmas song? Angels We Have Heard on High' to sing. 'Carol of the Bells' and 'Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song)' to listen to.

18. Travel or stay home
at Christmas? Travel.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeers? Yes.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? We had an angel for 11 years and just bought a star last year!

21. Open presents Christmas Eve or Morning? Grew up opening Xmas Eve but now make my kids wait until morning!

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Just about everything. Is that sad?

23. Favorite ornament, theme or color?
My favorite ornaments are the ones we've bought during our travels.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Prime Rib.

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? Good health.

Friday, November 28, 2008

Black Friday

It's been generally understood that the day after Thanksgiving is the official start of the Christmas shopping season. This is probably still true, despite the fact that Christmas merchandise appears in stores as early as August and decorations go up just weeks after Halloween. When I was younger, Thanksgiving was my favorite holiday because it meant getting together with loved ones, great food, and shopping!

Shopping at a reasonable hour, that is. When I was yonger, we didn't get up at 3 a.m. in order to be at the store by 4 a.m. for doorbusters. We left as early as possible to get a good parking space, but that was when the mall opened at say 9 a.m., not 5 a.m. But then, a few stores at a time, shopping became a marathon event starting with Thanksgiving day. Stores would stay open for days at a time (ie. Garden Ridge) or open practically in the middle of the night (ie. Walmart) to get an edge on sales.

I almost hate the whole day-after shopping thing now. What's fun about rising before dawn?

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Thankful

Photo from countryaccentspa.com

Tonight is Thanksgiving eve, and I've already baked and frosted my pumpkin cupcakes (and licked the frosting bowl!), made Dallas's 'Company Sweet Potatoes' (messed up and had to start over), and whipped through my homemade Mac & Cheese recipe. I also picked up our favorite Pumpkin Cheesecake from Costco. I'm ready for tomorrow's marathon of eating!

As I'm taking a break from cleaning up after all of that, I am pausing to say thanks to God for all of my blessings: the gift of life, my husband, my girls, my parents, my brother and his new wife, many relatives near and far, old friends, new friends, new acquaintances who may become friends, good health, youth, shelter, nourishing food, clean water, education, employment, freedom, the future and good luck.

Thanksgiving isn't about the turkey, it's about giving thanks, and this year in particular, I have much to be thankful for.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

In Mourning

Tonight Thalia, Carys and I had another "girls night" at Nordstrom Cafe Bistro at La Cantera. I was so disappointed with the food. My Rosemary Chicken Ciabatta Sandwich, which I order all the time, was a good 3 inches shorter than usual. I was actually still hungry when I left, which is not usually the case. The fries on the kids' meals were kind of over-fried-- over-crispy to almost burnt. Pathetic little strawberries instead of the lovely fat ones. The order taker forgot to place one of the girls' orders, and our waiter forgot to our silverware and requested condiments.

I hate when a favorite restaurant disappoints. It's like a broken friendship. Even the kids noticed it. Sad, sad, sad. I had actually noticed the slide in quality a few visits back but was in denial. What are we to do? We live not very close to any good restaurants, especially ones that are not part of a huge international chain. Nordstrom Cafe Bistro was a rare gem-- five minutes from my house, cloth napkins, friendly waitstaff who indulge my children. And it's at the mall, which is my natural habitat.

I'll be mourning the loss of a good place to eat that was also quite healthy. Maybe I'll give them another chance, but it probably won't ever be the same.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

On the Cusp

I just discovered a new store/website that I love the other day: CUSP. As in "on the cusp of fashion." It's owned by Neiman Marcus, which I think is how I found out about it (I was browsing Horchow's site, I believe). It's like NM for the younger crowd. I'm actually not the target demographic for these stores, I'm probably too old, but I love the stuff on the website. It's like they weeded out the ridiculously expensive and the "stuffy" stuff that I would never buy and trimmed it down to just the cool stuff. I also like that there's not a huge, cumbersome selection online. Who needs to choose from dozens and dozens of jeans?

I'm currently looking at some Tory Burch bags on their site; good sales right now on some cute designs. I read that she is a "working Mom" which makes me like her more!
The Betty Tote (Photo from ToryBurch.com)

I rarely, rarely shop at Neiman Marcus, the actual store. I do buy frequently from their website, which does not have snooty hourly-wage employees. However, if a Cusp ever does open in Texas, I'd be very interested in shopping there. Somehow, I think it would have a completely different vibe from the posh, grandma-ish feel of NM.

Cusp has apparently been open for a couple of years now, but as I don't live in any of the cities they're located in AND I'm too old to be really hip, it's a nice new discovery for me!

Monday, November 24, 2008

Funny Weddings

I can't exactly post this on my 'business blog' but I really have to share this somewhere . . . The Return of the Funny Wedding Photos. I stumbled on this website while doing a Google search for something else, of course. These pics are SO funny and strange. It's really interesting what some people consider to be their dream wedding idea.

I particularly loved the faux wedding invitation at the end; OMG that could have been sent out by my own mother-in-law, only she wouldn't have been half that clever.

Here is a peek at some of the craziness the site has to offer:
Look closely . . . yes, it's really a dress made out of . . . you know. (photo from The Return of Funny Wedding Photos website)

Sunday, November 23, 2008

In the Pink


Yes, Breast Cancer Awareness Month has come and gone, but my all-time favorite tie-in product will still always be this pink colander that my friend Amy gave me. It is probably used at least once a day, and I never tire of looking at it. That is the sign of a perfect gift at my house!

Saturday, November 22, 2008

The Turn Of The Tide

In 1987 the book Free to Be A . . . Family by Marlo Thomas came out and a corresponding TV special aired as well; it was a sequel to the 1970s Free to Be . . . You and Me which I've never read. I was 16 years old when the second book was released and I saw the TV special one night. I must have wanted to watch it because I even video taped it. I absolutely loved this song, "The Turn of the Tide", that was written and performed by Carly Simon. I watched it over and over again just to hear the song. The sheet music is included in the book, which I also have. It's a hard song to sing unless you have Ms. Simon's fabulous voice.

To me, the song was an anthem for the youth of the 80s--that it was OUR world and OUR responsibility to help "turn the tide."

We cannot go on
sounding alarms
And rattling swords
and building bombs
And fouling the air
and the streams underground.
We've got to begin
to turn it around!
It's our right to be heard,
Our right to decide--
Here comes the turn of the tide.

Maybe our generation hasn't done everything it should or could have so far to turn it around, but we still have a responsibility to change what we can, however we can. This song is just over 20 years old, and while I may not have quite the positive outlook that I had about the world and the future when I was teenager, I have a duty now as a parent to bring about some meaningful change.

Meanwhile, I'm enjoying this video again after so many years. It really brings back the 80s for me! Note the kids who sing between verses are singing in Russian! (This was the world in the mid 80s when the USSR was our enemy.) And Carly Simon looks great!

Friday, November 21, 2008

Prayers Please

Please pray for our friend, Steve Damm, who has had a really tough week. Steve is fighting brain cancer, and is truly the bravest, most patient, most uncomplaining person in the face of all of this. The Damm family needs everyone's prayers and positive thoughts right now. You can read their story on their blog, Check on Steve, and leave some encouragement and good wishes there too. Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your prayers and thoughts.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Heel Wedgies

Image from kixbykatie.com

Heel Wedgie. Any woman who has worn slacks or jeans with mules, sling-backs, wedges and other backless shoes will surely be familiar with this very annoying clothing malfunction: it's when the hem of your pants gets caught between your heel and your shoe. Until this week, I didn't know that this fashion pet peeve had a name, nor did I know there was a solution. Thank God for fashion magazines clueing me in!

I saw an ad for Out-Ease Struts by Daryn in either InStyle or Lucky (can't remember now) earlier this week. That sent me searching for more information online, and I found a couple more companies who've similarly solved this fashion problem, most notably Kix by Katie. In fact, "heel wedgie" is a trademark of Kix by Katie so the other companies can't use it in their advertising. Too bad because it's a very clever description for stepping on your hem over and over and over again.

So the solution is basically these rigid yet somewhat flexible strips that attach to the inside back hemline of your slacks. Each company's looks a bit different, but they all profess to do the same thing. I absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on these strips!

I was originally going to order the Struts because I saw their ad first, but now I think I'll try the Kix. I have a coupon code, and if you're reading this thinking you would like to try them too, feel free to contact me and I can share my code with you. Fashionistas unite against further fashion annoyances!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Odds & Ends

It shocks me that I've blogged for over two week straight, after previously blogging about an average of once every three months or so! There's nothing like a good challenge to force you to do something!

The problem with daily blogging, for me at least, is that I don't really have enough to say every single day. Thus the random stuff I've posted this month. But then again, my blog has been pretty random from the get-go anyway.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Art to Wear

sold by LoveYourSoles on Etsy

I heart these shoes. Dr. Scholl's Exercise Sandals take me back to the 1970s when my Mom and I had matching pairs! But ours were strictly the boring kind, not like these gorgeous ones.

I found these today on Etsy when I was looking for some examples of painted clothing and shoes to show my Girl Scouts. We are working on our 'Art to Wear' patch, and these shoes are definitely art! I love how clever and creative people can be.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Heavens to Etsy

Many months ago I discovered a site called Etsy (like 'Betsy' without the B) while on someone else's blog. If you're female and an artsy-craftsy type, you're probably already familiar with Etsy. If you grew up with a Mom who sold her wares or shopped at craft fairs or church bazaars, like I did, you will appreciate what a kick it is to see these all-handmade items sold in a very slick, high-tech way. Gone are the folding tables covered with crocheted potholders, ceramic soup tureens, and beaded ornaments-- Etsy vendors list their stuff using tags on a site with Flash interface and "widgets" (whatever that is). I LOVE IT!

Anytime I'm feeling decidedly uncreative, I wander over to Etsy, and then I feel EVEN MORE UNCREATIVE! ha! Seriously, the women (and they are almost all female artists and crafters) who create and sell on Etsy are amazing. Who knew you could do this:
Cupcake Tea Cosy pattern sold by skye4 on Etsy

Or this:
Ballerina Princess Table Topper sold by FrogPrincessCouture on Etsy

And the best thing about anything you buy through Etsy is that it is guaranteed to be handmade. Never any questions about whether it was mass-produced in a factory somewhere in China. Many of Etsy's items come from the US, and you can do a regional search and buy from someone in your own state.

These are not your granny's crafts. Yes, there's knitting and crochet and ceramics and needlework, but many of the artists have taken them to another level, either through the materials they use or the unique design. Like this:
Blooming Vine Scarf sold by fray on Etsy.com

And this:
Tote Bag made from recycled Starbucks Coffee Bags sold by lzubal01 on Etsy.com

Growing up, I'd seen my share of not-so-creative wares sold at fairs and bazaars, and have even bought my share of them to support a cause or just to be nice. But the stuff on Etsy is good stuff, and I heart alot of it! I like mass-produced stuff too, don't get me wrong, but there is something really special about buying something that no one else will ever have. How cool is that?

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Ugh

Today I took my Girl Scout troop on a hike to the top of a mountain with an observation lookout tower. We walked almost two miles round-trip. About halfway up the mountain, I felt a sudden twinge in my mid-back. Uh-oh. It was a twinge that was similar to the one I had last week when unloading some Costco-size purchases from the back of my car. When that happened, I spent the rest of the afternoon lying flat on my back. Unfortunately, this morning our Girl Scout hike wasn't even halfway over.

I said nothing to my husband or the other parents. I said nothing to the girls. I realized that I could move my back in certain ways and the pain wasn't excruciating, but if I moved a particular way, it nearly made me double over again. So I carefully made my way up to the top, a little slower than I had been walking but pretty much the same. I was dying to just stop and lie flat, but that was just impossible.

On the way back down, I whispered to Dylan what had happened with my back and that I could hardly stand it. This was after having played a quick game on the trail, climbed up the observation tower, the trip to the primitive bathrooms, and a snack activity where we made our own "Walking Salads" (trail mix). There is also a playscape with a rock climbing wall at the base of the trail, so I couldn't even escape after the hike--the girls would not be denied the chance to play!

I finally did make it home, took a really hot shower, and lay down for about 40 minutes . . . until it was time for a friend's baby shower which I could not miss. I even put on my high heel sandals that I can barely walk in--why not really be miserable and yet fashionable all at once?!

I got through the afternoon and evening with very much Motrin and will power. We went out for dinner and even some shopping. And I gradually forgot about my back, except when I felt the twinge again. Busy Moms just don't have time for bad backs! Needless to say, I am looking forward to some down time tomorrow. I've got too much planned next week to make room for a uncooperative back.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Jezebel

Some of the YA books reviewed recently by Fine Lines on Jezebel (photo from Jezebel.com)

The name Jezebel usually conjures up images of wicked women. It's a provocative name. It's also the name of a website that I absolutely love and can't get enough of. An old friend, Sarah, got me hooked on this site when she recommended it in September.

Jezebel's tagline is: Celebrity, Sex, Fashion for Women. Without Airbrushing. It's a bit like People Magazine for the feminist/liberal/thinking gal. And once I start browsing on their website, I can't stop! Because there's so much to read and catch up on, even if I visit daily. In the past 24 hours, for example, there have been 62 posts on Jezebel's site.

My favorite feature on Jezebel is Fine Lines. Each week, they review classic Young Adult books (circa 1970s and 1980s) from an adult female feminist perspective, and since I must be pretty close in age to the author (probably a bit older), these are the same books I grew up with and adored.

I hope everyone I know visits Jezebel, particularly if you were a hopeless library geek like I was in the 80s and want to revisit some favorite reads from back then. Like its name, its content is provocative, strong, assertive. Hussy!

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Good Hair Day

Well I am back from my haircut, and I love the way it looks. Of course, I always love it right after it's been properly blow-dried and styled! It will never look this good again. haha

The 'senior stylist' I requested turned out to be a lovely woman who graduated from my high school the same year I did! It was fun reliving the 80s with her. I will definitely go back.

If someone were home right now to snap a photo, I would show you all my gorgeous new hair!

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Hair Drama


I recently vowed to reduce the number of haircuts and color jobs I usually have in a year's time as part of our family's "recession bail out plan." I wrote this in earnest, of course, but my hair is seriously out of control and I will need to at least have it trimmed.

The reason why I haven't done so already in 4 months has less to do with saving money, although I have, and more to do with the fact that my beloved hair stylist with whom I had an on-again, off-again relationship moved away in August! Boo-hoo! Four months ago I had decided to go to him exclusively for my haircuts after a humorous hair incident involving an associate of his at the same salon.

Earlier this spring, Emily (not her real name) at Salon FooFaLa (also not the real name) cut my hair, just a little trim as I was still growing it out for my brother's wedding. I'd actually been to her a couple of times already and she'd cut my hair in late summer/early fall. however, when I went back to her in April, this is the conversation we had:
Emily said:Your hair is uneven. Whoever cut your hair last didn't cut it evenly.
I said: Are you sure?
I thought to myself: YOU cut my hair last!
Emily said: Oh, yeah, it's definitely uneven.
I thought to myself: OMG! YOU cut my hair crooked!
I said: Oh. Ok.

So when I decided to cut off 6 inches this summer, I requested Roger (not his real name) again. I told him, on the sly, the story about Emily and my crooked hair. (Her station was next to his.) He laughed and said that would never happen again while he cut my hair. Roger is the most precise hair stylist I have ever met. He cuts and measures and cuts and measures and then checks it all again. All was well with the world again.

But when I returned later in the summer for another cut, he had moved away rather suddenly! Boo-hoo again!

So tomorrow I'm trying a new gal at the same salon, NOT Emily of course, and I specifically requested the most senior stylist. This probably means I will pay the highest price ever for my cut, but it may be worth my peace of mind. So much for our savings plan!

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Appliance Love

And doesn't this look just like me?!
From The Apron Queen's Flickr photostream


I do 100% of the cooking, but luckily only half of the clean-up. However, the half that I do in the kitchen always involves loading and unloading the dishwasher. Our house came with a standard builder-grade GE dishwasher; in other words, it was a piece of crap. After exactly 5 years and 1 week of life with this dishwasher, which did a sorrier and sorrier job of cleaning as time went by, I announced to Dylan that we would have a new dishwasher installed in our kitchen before Thanksgiving.

I am very rarely that decisive when it comes to large purchases. But really, what is the point of hand washing all your dishes after they've come out of the dishwasher? Well, Dylan picked up the ball and moved even quicker than I would have thought--two days later, he suggested we pick out a dishwasher at Lowe's. I thought we would just go take a look at what was out there, but Dylan had already researched the different models online at Consumer Reports and picked out one that was highly rated and a good buy: a Bosch.

Bosches are known for being so quiet when in use that you don't even realize they're on. But beyond that, they are just a treasure chest of cool features you never knew you needed. Adjustable top rack, fold-down dividers, cutlery basket that can be "reconfigured" in a bunch of different ways . . . it's too much, it's too much!

Here is a pic of our newly installed (today!) Bosch 500 Series Evolution Dishwasher which is like the Mercedes-Benz of dishwashers compared to our former pathetic GE model:


It holds up to 12 place settings of dishes and stuff, more than our old one would hold, so it will likely take longer to fill up. Even so, I can't wait to wash something! Wait--it has a Half-Load Option! How cool is that? Saves on energy and water consumption that way. It's so easy being "green." haha

So indulge me in my excitement about our new kitchen appliance! Is it sad to be so excited about a dishwasher? A sign of maturity? Or just tired of doing the dishes after doing the dishes? Life is looking brighter and squeaky clean at our house.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Girl Scout Cookie Overload

Photo from Google Images

This year, from January to March, was Thalia's first ever Girl Scout Cookie Sale. Because I am her Girl Scout leader, and because we were all so excited about the cookies, we bought quite a few boxes for ourselves. My business also ordered a case to donate to charity, and all I can say is thank God those cookies didn't end up in our house too!

Needless to say, we still have quite a few boxes left, and at the same time, this week are gearing up for Cookie Sale 2009. Uh-oh. We need to get rid of these cookies. I served several flavors at our recent Girl Scout Pot-Luck at our house, but we still have so many left.

I remembered tonight that I have this awesome recipe to use up Girl Scout Thin Mint cookies, and I am posting it just in case someone else out there ordered a few too many cookies too:

Thin Mints Pizza Supreme

From Every Day with Rachael Ray, April 2007 (but I got the recipe originally from my friend Casey's friend Kathryn who is a great cook!)

1 18-oz pkg refrigerated choc chip cookie dough
1/2 box Girl Scout Thin Mints (about 20 cookies)
1/2 cup white chocolate chips (6 oz)
2 Tbsp. heavy cream or half-and-half

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12" pizza or 9x13" baking dish with parchment paper. Using fingers, press cookie dough to fit pan. Break Thin Mints into quarters and gently press into dough. Bake until golden brown, 15-20 min. Let cool.

2. Meanwhile, in a double boiler, whisk together the white choc chips and cream until chocolate melts. Remove from heat. Using a fork, drizzle the topping over the cooled pizza. Cut into slices.

So easy! I am going to be making this one several times during the Thanksgiving-to-New Years rush. Cookie Sale starts January 1, 2009, so I'll just have enough time!

Sunday, November 09, 2008

My Space

Out of roughly 37 posts in the past three years, I've posted about my kids/family four times; the rest have been about me or stuff I was thinking about. I had no idea what this blog would really be about, what direction I would take it in, when I started it. Clearly, it would seem that I forgot I even had a blog at times! A few months ago I decided that my family should have its own blog, and this one would be my "me-blog", my space all for myself.

The family blog has really flourished! My kids have known about it from the start, and they love to see themselves online(!), so they keep me blogging. The blog is family-friendly and mainly written and updated so our friends and family scattered everywhere can see pics of the girls as they grow and read funny little tidbits about our daily life.

My personal blog, as I now think of it in my head, is a little harder to define. I often have no idea what I should write about, especially now that the family and my kids have their own showcase elsewhere on the web. And perhaps that says alot right there about how I see myself. What am I besides a Mom and Wife, my "official" roles in life right now? Well, I also run a business on the side-- but wait, my company has its own blog too, in addition to a bonafide website run entirely by me, the very amateur webmaster!

About two years ago, I got a Facebook account due entirely to my teenage cousins who seemed to exist solely on Facebook. I knew no one else for a very long while on Facebook who wasn't in college, high school or just young! Now, everyone I know or have known is on Facebook. It's hit critical mass with the 35+ age group! And it's alot more fun now. I use to check my facebook account every few months, and then it became every week, and then a couple of times per week, and then daily, and now it's all day long. Facebook is great because it ties together all the different people I've known through all the different phases of my life--childhood friends, relatives, long-lost high school and college pals, ex-work colleagues and now Mom-friends.

My blog is kind of the opposite of my Facebook page, because there is no immediate social interaction going on. This is all about me, just me, and I have no idea if anyone reads this stuff or if I'm writing into the void. I know within seconds sometimes if someone has read my Facebook comment. I admit, I like the immediate gratification aspect of that! I can blog about anything, everything, often nothing, but there's no feedback. Now, I know there are bloggers out there who get dozens or hundreds of comments per post, to let them know how they're doing. I am not one of them! So sometimes, I feel like I'm just writing aimlessly, like a little tiny dinghy out in the big sea.

Even so, it's nice to have your own spaces in the world.

Saturday, November 08, 2008

Stuff I'm Reading

Ever since my not-so-recent blog about my Romance D.I.K. list, I've been thinking about a D.I.K.-Part 2, a list of contemporary fiction that I'd like to have with me on my desert island. Can't do it! Too many great books to list! And "fiction" is too broad to have to narrow down to a dozen or so titles. So I'm borrowing an idea from a British writer who I like and respect very much but I fear is not well-known enough here in the States--Nick Hornby. I love all of his books, and I love the way he fleshes out his characters in his fiction, whether it's a young boy or middle-aged mom. They're so real. But it's one of his non-fiction books that gave me the idea for "Stuff I'm Reading."

In The Polysyllabic Spree: A Hilarious and True Account of One Man’s Struggle With the Monthly Tide of the Books He’s Bought and the Books He’s Been Meaning to Read, Hornby took about a year's worth of columns he wrote for Believer magazine and turned into a cool book. The idea is simple--he writes about stuff he's been reading and books that he's bought in the past month. Brilliant.

So at the end of November, and hopefully each month to come, I'll be sharing my Books Bought (or Borrowed) and Books Read!

Friday, November 07, 2008

I Heart Blogs


Today I added a blog roll (see side bar), a self-updating list to help me keep track of some favorite blogs out there. I don't know very many people personally who blog, but I am a fan of very many others in the virtual world who spin a good yarn. I've listed all my personal friends and their blogs, including my friend Janine whose blog got the ball rolling for me 2 years ago.

It's interesting how many blogs I can't live without these days. I get antsy when I don't get my daily fix of other people's lives. Is that weird?

I'm sure I'll be adding to the list as I find more blogs that I love!

Thursday, November 06, 2008

Mrs. O

Photo from Mrs. O blog

Another fashion-forward blog I'm enjoying--Mrs. O. Yes, Mrs. O spends lots of money (sometimes) on her clothes, just like Mrs. P supposedly did. But Mrs. O paid for them herself! No wealthy donors footing the bill or unsuspecting aides surreptitiously using their own credit cards to throw off the trail. (Mrs. O is a Harvard-education lawyer who worked for a living, for God's sake--she probably has some money in her bank account, unlike the used-to-be Miss Alaska.)

Photo from Google Images

And according to the Mrs. O blog, sometimes Mrs. O just likes to buy off the rack like everyone else, even online in the middle of the night like I do! J Crew on sale! (I can relate to that. I can't relate to $150,000+ spending sprees at Neiman's for my entire family paid for by someone else. Not that it wouldn't be nice. But nice doesn't make it right or ethical, does it?)

Then there's Mrs. Obama's "dress" from Tuesday night's victory speech. It was the kind of dress that made you cock your head to the side and say "huh?" It's also an expensive dress--Narciso Rodriguez. The next day I saw the dress on a runway model; it looked awesome on her. On Mrs. O's very tall frame, not so awesome.

But this is America! She can wear whatever she wants! And I'm hooked on her clothes blog anyway. I think Mrs. O's style will be a nice change from Mrs. B, who for the past 8 years has pretty much looked like a very sweet, slightly boring librarian.

Photo from Google Images

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Lieberman

Photo from Google Images

At our house, the name 'Joe Lieberman' is greeted in the same exact manner by Dylan and me in which Jerry Seinfeld greets Newman, the overweight mail carrier on his eponymous show. Lieberman. Often followed by the words loser, jerk, shmuck, traitor.

I stumbled upon this piece about Lieberman's "fear" if the Dems win 60 Senate seats. It was amusing. So basically, it's not the survival of America that's in doubt--it's Lieberman's political career. Even more amusing were the random comments after the article. This was one of my favorites:

Lieberman is such a sad figure, maybe even sadder than Bush.

Lieberman is like a guy who was on the debate team when they sucked, and he quit and joined the chess club just as the debate team started winning. And no one on the chess club likes him, they just pretend to like him because he makes fun of the debate team with them at the lunch table.

I still get nauseated when I think about the fact that I VOTED for this creep in 2000. Ick, ick, ick. This is also the guy who was McCain's #1 choice for VP nominee this year; Sarah Palin was apparently an afterthought compared to Joe. And I still think he looks like Alf's Dad.


Photo from Google Images

Photo from Google Images

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Election Day


I missed my chance to vote in 1988 presidential election by only 4 months--I turned 18 in March 1989. It was a real disappointment to me, especially as I was taking the state-required senior Government class at the time. The teacher was young and irreverent, and she made government and politics interesting. I couldn't wait to vote in an election, any election. The first election I was eligible to vote in was a school board election a few months after my birthday. I was so excited to cast my ballot at the mall.

Although I haven't been as diligent about voting in every minor election since then, I haven't missed a presidential or governor's race since 1992. I love to vote. I love receiving my voter registration card in the mail. When I was within a certain age group (ie. younger), I used to tuck blank voter registration cards into '18th birthday' cards or 'congratulations on your new address' cards, trying to encourage my friends to do their civic duty too. I love receiving the sticker at the end of the quick voting process and will proudly wear it all day. (In fact, my 'I Voted' sticker from the 2004 election is still stuck to my bathroom mirror.)

Talking about government and elections was not something we really did as a family when I was growing up. As immigrants, my parents were not eligible to vote, and although they paid taxes and contributed to their community in various ways, were a bit removed from the democratic process. The first time I voted in 1989, I was proud to be the first person in my family to do so. And I grew up with stories from parents about how elections were done in their homeland, the Philippines--the buying of votes, fraudulent ballots, election-related violence-- made me realize how different the process was here in this country. How we take the peaceful transition of power for granted. And as I got older, studying elections in history and democracy around the world also made me realize that there are people who crave the freedoms and rights we so carelessly disregard, such as our right to vote.

I voted on the second day of early voting, eager to avoid he predicted long lines. I took one of my two kids with me; she complained the whole time. I felt, as I always do, proud to cast my vote again. I also wished that I had done more research on certain down-ballot races; in my pre-parenting days, I would have!

Yesterday, the day before the election, a caller on the Diane Rehm Show on NPR stated she was still undecided and didn't know what she should do. She was young, probably college-aged, and lived in Missouri. I was annoyed listening to her. Here she was, at the end of the longest campaign ever, still undecided?! All the information was out there, accessible in every possible media. All the opinions of each candidate's character and trustworthiness were out there, from everyone and anyone you could ask. Lazy. I hope she made it to the polls, but I suspect she might not have.

I guess I don't understand when people don't vote. Some people in other countries, who don't have that privilege, would fight for that right, maybe even die for it. A record number of eligible voters did cast their votes today, and in the weeks leading up to the election. It makes me very happy to have that one thing in common with so many other Americans. So many young people voted and enthusiastically took part in the process, maybe just not the caller from Missouri.

We turned on CNN to watch the election returns at 6pm this evening. Thalia, who had heard and learned much about the presidential race at school, was keenly interested in watching it. She stared at the pie-charts with the red, blue and orange (other) slices. "Who is Other?" she wanted to know. She noted the rising number of electoral votes on the bottom of the screen for Obama. It was really cool to watch the early returns with my 7 year old child, who had voted online at a kids' website about the election process earlier today. She voted for Obama, but could have gone either way really, and that was her choice to make. Someday, too soon, she will be old enough to cast her own vote for president. I want her to reach that decision using her brain as well as her heart, to utilize all the available information and resources out there. I don't want her to be a clueless, undecided voter on the eve of election day, but an informed, confident one who proudly casts her ballot. And even if her vote isn't the same as mine, I hope she'll get the same thrill I do when I vote.

Photo from Google Images

Monday, November 03, 2008

Things I've Bought That I Love

Photo from Google Images

I love the show 'The Office.' I didn't always, but it grew on me very quickly. I think the reason I didn't just love it instantly was because the setting and the characters were a little too real--dingy, boring office with not-beautiful, very ordinary-looking people. Just like EVERY OFFICE I'VE EVER WORKED IN. And Pam . . . I was "Pam" at several places of employment . . . I felt her pain. I indignantly noted to Dylan, the first time we watched the show, how unattractive the characters were. This is TV for pete's sake! He replied that it was just like a real office, and over time, the people you work with start to look nicer, prettier, better-looking, etc. because you just get used to them. hahaha

Anyway, one of the funniest characters, although not a main one, is the Indian-American, Kelly. I see her as an Asian-American airhead, and have known several like her. So funny! Her story line with Ryan-the-temp-turned-executive cracks me up. It turns out that the actress who plays her, Mindy Kaling, is also a comedy writer and was originally hired as a writer for the show. (That explains why she does not look like your typical "actress" and hooray for that). Mindy also, coincidentally, loves to shop, and writes a blog as Mindy Ephron called Things I've Bought That I Love. Although the blog hasn't been updated in a while, there are some great posts. Lots of shoe love going on for sure. The funny thing is that she writes just as you might expect 'Kelly' to!

I hope Mindy/Kelly/Vera (her real name is apparently Vera) finds time to post something new soon. I have enjoyed back-reading her posts! I love to shop too.

Sunday, November 02, 2008

NaBloPoMo

November is National Blog Posting Month! I only found this out yesterday! So I am going to attempt to post a blog at all of our sites (this one, The Sweet Spot and With Four You Get Eggroll) each day. I may not be able to keep up with all of them, but I'll give it a shot! I probably needed to try this a while ago to develop the daily habit of posting something!

Saturday, November 01, 2008

Trying Something New

Thursday, October 30, 2008

I've Been Tagged!


I've Been Tagged!
via Resistance is Futile by Tracy Kosofsky on 10/30/08


Tracy tagged me (thanks to Tyra who pointed this out), so I'll play along!

The Rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you (Tracy)
2. Post the rules on your blog (this is what you are now reading).
3. List 6 random things about yourself.
4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.

Random things about me:
1. I love the color pink but rarely wear it
2. I am a cake designer and instructor
3. Texas Longhorn, Classes of '93, '93 and '96!
4. Love to travel
5. Romance novel reader
6. I am getting braces soon

I am tagging Janine, Eileen, Julie, Carisa, Archana and Tyra
hoping any of them will read this and post to their own blogs! I hardly know 6 people personally who have a blog! Now I have to remember to tell them I tagged them!

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Why I Love HEB


An item I found on CNN's website today:


Araceli Garcia's quarter-mile trip to the grocery store Tuesday morning took 2 ½ hours. She came away with $72 worth of food from the H-E-B supermarket and considers herself blessed.
"I got my eggs," the 32-year-old Humble, Texas, resident said. "I don't know how they're doing it."
In the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, the supermarket was letting in just 20 people at a time, she said, and the long wait didn't annoy customers just happy to have a place to buy basic needs. Of Kroger, Target and Wal-Mart near her home, Garcia said, only H-E-B was fully functional.
"H-E-B is going to be the hero of the day," Garcia said.
The company said on its Web site it had brought in 500 employees from across Texas to get its Houston area stores up and running.


H-E-B stands for "Here Everything's Better." It's true! I'm so proud to be a an HEB shopper!
Thank God for companies like HEB that go that extra mile (or more) to serve our communities. During a crisis like this, we are all so vulnerable in so many ways. Just being able to buy something to feed your family becomes an ordeal. Very humbling. I feel so lucky to live away from the hurricane's path.

Thursday, September 04, 2008

"Tell me where to go to be heard"

Listen. Think. Do something. This is too important.

I received this today from Astrid Heger and thought that she said it better than I ever could, and so, I am sharing her words with you:
Maria had driven to Tijuana with her mom, sister and little brother to buy a special dress for her aunts wedding. This was the most beautiful dress she had ever owned---no the most beautiful thing she had ever seen----and she hung it on a nail pounded into the wall of a garage in Bell Gardens that they called home. Every Sunday she tried on the dress---anxious for the time to pass when she could wear it to be in the wedding. But this past Sunday the dress had become too small, her mother could not fasten the small white buttons. Her mother rushed her to the emergency room fearing the worst----cancer. I was summoned to the Emergency room to evaluate Maria----She was sitting in the corner of the windowless exam room with tears running down her face. Her mother had fled the room leaving her to fend for herself. A tiny 10 year old she looked much younger than her age, and now dressed in a too-big dress handed down to her and wearing black Mary-Jane shoes and bright white socks she looked translucent---a shadow of the girl that might have been.
At age 10 she had just been told that she was pregnant. Pregnant by her father who had been raping her for over two years. We spoke and I comforted her---on examination we found her to be 16 weeks pregnant, and because she was so small her womb was now pushing down her vagina making intercourse impossible so her father had been raping her anally. Her sister when asked about whether the little brother had been sexually abused----said “No, he still laughs.”
So last night when the Republicans welcomed with thundering applause, a woman who believes that all abortions must be outlawed----my heart stopped in my chest at the very idea that we as a Nation would ever considered taking away the rights of women and children---my patients---raped, abused and violated in the most horrific ways. How careless we are with the lives and souls of those who are less fortunate.
I am moved to tears at the thought of the precipice that we are approaching. I could spend hours on poverty, loss of the medical class, no health care etc etc etc.----but sitting there that day in that stark, cold clinic room with a little girl whose only hope for survival was an abortion----I was glad to have that option. Of course I would love to see a time come when everyone knew to practice abstinence, or even birth control, or a time when rape and incest were words we did not understand and women had the right to say no and have someone hear her--but apparently none of these words---abstinence, birth control, rape or incest has penetrated the isolated, cold world of Gov. Palin.
Tell me where to go to be heard---I cannot believe that women across this country who understand what violence against women and children really means---will not stand up to be counted.
Astrid Heppenstall Heger, M.D. Executive Director Violence Intervention Program 1721 Griffin Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90031


I've never read a blog post that made me stand there frozen, unable to breathe, move, speak or even cry. I cut and pasted this exactly as it is from Meg Tilly's blog. I hope everyone reads this. My heart breaks for this girl. What can I do about it? Exercise my right to vote to make sure that the next little Maria, whose parents have failed her, has an option that may save her life? And even that may not be enough.

Decisions

Excerpt from the New York Observer, 9/1/08:

Palin and her husband, Todd, said their daughter plans to marry the child's father - who sources said is Levi Johnston - and that both "are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family." Johnston, 17, who is entering his senior year at Wasilla HS, plays on the school hockey team and was once teammates on a youth squad with Palin's older brother, Track, 19, who is now in the Army. Despite suffering a cracked bone in his shin last season, Johnston scored 24 goals in 24 games. "We don't want to talk about this," said a woman who answered the phone at the Johnston home. On his MySpace page, Johnston boasts, "I'm a f - - -in' redneck" who likes to snowboard and ride dirt bikes. "But I live to play hockey. I like to go camping and hang out with the boys, do some fishing, shoot some s- - - and just f - - -in' chillin' I guess." "Ya f - - - with me I'll kick [your] ass," he added. He also claims to be "in a relationship," but states, "I don't want kids."

I'm happy for Bristol Palin that she has made the very grown-up decision to keep her baby. I just hope she isn't being pressured into marrying the father, instead of someone she really loves and wants to spend her life with. Choosing to have a baby doesn't ruin your life. But marrying the wrong person can. Her intended hasn't said anything on his MySpace page that would be considered unusual for an 18 year old boy, and he's probably a nice enough guy, but still . . .

I wish them well.

MOM: a PALINdrome

An actual letter from an actual conservative Republican. And I absolutely agree with the writer. Who says liberals and conservatives can't see things the same way? Text is word-for-word from the Dr. Laura (Schlesinger) website:

2008-09-03

Dr. Laura,
I am aghast with the McCain VP selection. As a voting Conservative Republican, the proud mother of children that include a soldier and an airman (my soldier is deployed), and who is raising 3 additional children 13 and 6 year-old twins who have various disabilities, HOW IN THE WORLD DO YOU LEAVE A DISABLED INFANT TO GO BACK TO WORK THE THIRD DAY, when you do NOT absolutely have to????? What kind of serious mother does that? She said her family came first. SHE LIED. I am so totally outraged with this I could scream. Did we want to win so badly that we would absolutely destroy the values of HOME, motherhood, family values? I am sickened by it all. Soccer mom? Unbelievable. Even the dad wasn't holding the baby. The child was carrying the baby. I'm sorry, was I foolish enough to have accepted such a nomination, I would have been carrying my baby. I think she is emotionally detached from the baby, personally. God Save America from itself and the craziness we do.ABTW, I gave up a career in corporate America to stay at home and raise these other little ones. A REAL MOM would have given up governorship, too. But that's my not-so-humble opinion.

The Palin nomination has made me feel many emotions and think many different thoughts in the space of just a few days. But ultimately, I think it just makes me feel sad. Sad for a 17 yr old girl whose entire life is now an open book for the hungry press. Sad for a special-needs infant who has already been toted around on various stages in the public eye in his own short life.

I absolutely believe that any woman should have the opportunity to have a career outside of the home AND have a family if she so chooses, and to create and maintain a balance that is liveable for all. But I also believe that you can't have 'everything' all at the same time. Because sometimes, or should I say often, what is 'liveable' isn't exactly perfect or easy for everyone involved. Does this woman from Alaska want too much for herself and her family all at once? Yes, I know that only she has the right to answer that question. And I realize that offers of the vice-presidency don't exactly land in your lap on a regular basis. But also this: To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. (Ecclesiastes 3:1) All evidence of political inexperience aside, is this a good time for the self-proclaimed hockey mom to take on the job of being a heartbeat away from "leader of the free world"? Just my Mom's-eye view on it.

Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Blog Anyway

I have blogged so rarely that any readers I may have had here have probably decamped to better blogs! (I know I have!) And I have tried to explain to myself and others why I post so few entries: too busy, too tired, mediocre writer, etc. But one reason I've known deep down but haven't been able to articulate to myself or anyone else very well is that my daily life is pretty good and normal, and given the high drama of other blogs, "normal" is kind of boring to read about. Rather than a hip mommy-blog where someone's letting it all hang out about themselves and their families (photos included), I've self-edited myself over and over again and convinced myself that I've nothing interesting to say. And not only that, I was brought up with the "if you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything at all" rule--so I'm not going to bash anyone else I know (or don't know) just to have something to write about. I've just had this feeling that if I posted something every day, it would be something really prosaic and dull-ish. Proposed solution: get over it, embrace the "normal" and the "boring," and write about it anyway. And feel blessed that I have so little to complain about! Maybe there'll be too much sunshine and happiness in my blog, but so be it.

I started out thinking I would just blog about whatever came into my head on a given day, like the notebook journals I used to keep. But then I also realized quickly that I had to decide if I wanted this blog to be about ME, or if I wanted it to include my family members. (I've done a little bit of both kinds of blogging here.) My whole life is my family--leading, organizing, soothing, loving and also going insane at times. So I decided that because I spent my entire day being there for my family that I could have a space online that was just for and about me. But that's still hard to do when there are only 24 hours in a day and so much going on around me!

Perhaps ironically, I just launched, with my family's permission, a new family blog to chronicle our daily joys. With Four You Get Eggroll is about the 4 of us, not just me. I recently decided that I might be a better blogger if I wrote about my life with my spouse and kids, instead of it being just all about me! And I wanted someplace to post our favorite photos and favorite things (at the moment). The girls are thrilled about it--they love to see themselves online!

I had just taken the plunge and posted twice at our new family blogsite when I checked on one of favorite blogs yesterday. Mrs. G (which must stand for Mrs. Genius!) at Derwad Manor writes about herself and her loved ones with great honesty and humor and integrity. Her post responds to an earlier one a few days ago, but really speaks to something I'm going to have to think about alot more now that we have a family blog: how to maintain the fine line between sharing the good and funny about family life and sharing waaay too much. She writes from the heart and her blog backs her up in that she never belittles or reveals too much of her family. Her particular post from yesterday, simply entitled "Tired" is a great reminder to all of us who seek to blog about our kids, marriage and families to also seek balance.

So once again, I'm renewing my dedication to filling up my blogs (all of them) with posts about me and us as we "get through this thing called life." Stay tuned!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

American Idol Ramiele Malubay Sings Filipino National Anthem

I have not liked Ramiele's funky hair on the show (yes, I am that shallow) and find it distracting despite her lovely voice, so I was pleasantly surprised to see this video, supposedly posted by her cousin, with her 'old' hair! After watching her sing the entire Filipino National Anthem, my respect and admiration for her has really grown! This is difficult song to sing, way too many high notes. Not unlike our own national anthem, which doesn't exactly roll off the tongue smoothly, but maybe that's just me!
Originally posted 3/14/08; reposting because original video no longer available.

If It Weren't So Funny, It Would Be Sad . . .

My best friend sent me this photo in an email this morning. Because I am a cake designer, she thought I "would be the perfect person to get it"! I couldn't stop laughing for a good 5 minutes when I saw this:
When sad cakes happen to Suzannes in the world

OMG, I am laughing all over again just typing this! I found, after not very much research because this photo has been blogged about a thousand times in the last few days, this cake was originally created in October 2007 (note the "Fall" colored flowers and trim) for Suzanne's going away party at her work. Depending on whose blog you read, "Suzanne" either lives in Arkansas or Florida (my bet is on AK). The photo and story made the rounds in October and then resurfaced again in the past week, and I'm so glad, because I missed it the first time!

And here is someone's clever imagining of the cake order being place:

Okay, so this is how I imagine this conversation went:

Employee: "Hello 'dis XXXX-marts, how can I help you?"
Customer: "Yes, I would like to order a cake for a going away party this week."
Employee: "Whatchu want on da cake?"
Customer: "Best Wishes Suzanne." And underneath that "We will miss you".


Actually, it's even funnier if you read the imaginary conversation first and then look at the pic! Pretty much everyone in blog-world agrees that this cake came from a Walmart bakery somewhere, but I'm also guessing that a warehouse bakery like Sam's could have produced the same "masterpiece." For what it's worth, the flowers and shell border on the cake were lovely, considering that it very likely was made by someone who is required to turn out 7 other similar cakes in the same hour.

I guess this cake is a commentary on places like Walmart, where people who may not be native English speakers are required to communicate (in frosting!) in English every day. And I guess you really do get what you pay for, and I say this a wee bit smugly to all those who have ever called me for a price quote for a cake and then complained that they can get it "so much cheaper at Walmart!" Rest assured, my clients will NEVER get THIS cake from me!

I probably won't post this on my business's blog, but I thought it would be funny on my personal one!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

1984 Kids Incorporated Theme Song

This blog entry is dedicated to my little brother, Richard, who quite worshipped this show and everyone on it when it first aired 23 years ago. Who knew that Stacy would become the fabulous Fergie we know today?! I still remember my brother taping the shows when they aired each week so we (yes, I kind of liked the show too despite its very bad acting) could watch it all week! Ahh, memories . . . !

(originally posted 1/7/08; reposting due to 'technical difficulties'!)

Saturday, January 19, 2008

I Found a Guy

. . . whose blog is deemed worthy of mention! In writing my previous post, I realized that I gravitate towards the blogs of other women. I couldn't remember ever reading a blog by a guy. But I discovered a male-written blog yesterday! I had actually visited his website before, but had not taken the time to read his blog.

Rick Riordan is an author that I've glommed recently. He is a native San Antonian, so I already feel a certain affinity toward him, and until recently was a middle school teacher, so I definitely admire him! He writes the wonderful Percy Jackson and the Olympians series of books for children. I love these books, and like so many thirteen year olds, I can't wait until his next one comes out! So I was perusing his blog, Myth & Mystery, which has many entries about school visits, book tours and interactions with his fans, but also some really thoughtful entries about writing, teaching, education, children, success and censorship. I especially liked his views on censorship.

I was lucky enough to hear him speak at the Texas Book Festival in Austin last November, and he was so lovely with the kids, who were the majority of the standing room only audience in a gymnasium-sized room. And these kids really knew their stuff-- they knew his books backwards and forwards and were just so excited about reading them. How many kids get excited about reading anything? Especially books about Greek mythology?!

So I am proud to add Mr. Riordan's blog (another one by a writer!) to my growing list of favorites, and pleased to read about a guy's take on the world as well.

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Blog Envy

When I first started this blog in 2005 (and yet I only have a handful of entries!), I'd only ever visited a couple of other blogs. Recently, I noticed that all of my recent 'Favorites' on my browser are blogs. Because *everyone* has a blog. It certainly seems like every stay-at-home-Mom has a blog! Every business (mine included) has a blog. There are fake blogs too. It's like everyone has a diary online and is begging the world to read it! I will say that I am impressed by the quality of writing on so many of these blogs, particularly the Mommy-written ones. Might English teachers throughout the country be breathing a collective sigh of relief that all is not yet lost?!

Today, while doing research for an upcoming Girl Scout meeeting with a music theme, I stumbled on this lovely site called Mama Lisa's World. In addition to free lyrics and MP3s of world music and stories for children, which was too hard to find online by the way, she has a great blog with great information about songs, books and other things for kids. Loved the discussion about American Girl dolls. Made me feel a little bad about having just bought one for my daughter!

There are blogs that I must visit regularly, even daily. Some are written by people I actually know. Check on Steve has been such a gift to all the friends and family of Steve and Tyra Damm, who are going through the toughest challenge anyone could ever imagine with such bravery. Steve was recently diagnosed with a lesion on the right side of his brain stem, and has handled it all so far with such grace. I am humbled by his courage.

I also read blogs by people I don't know. In fact, I read more blogs by total strangers than actual friends. I am particularly drawn to blogs by writers. I am loving former-actress-and-now-writer Meg Tilly's blog for its honesty, homeyness and awesome recipes. I have laughed out loud and also cried at her posts. Now how I came upon her blog in the first place is an entirely different and also interesting story! I will have to post that sometime.

I also love reading about the writerly life through the eyes of some kick-ass romance writers on Word Wenches. I found out about this blog because one of its writers is my all-time favorite romance writer, Mary Jo Putney. I actually know little of the other six writers, but I enjoy their blog posts.

I just discovered the funniest blog site last week, by a teacher and home-schooler who is also an awesome writer. I found out about this one from another blog, so it's a discovery-by-association kind of thing. Love that about the Internet, that free association of clicking from page to page, kind of like reading the World Book Encyclopedia as a child (yes, I was a total geek and I really did that) and going from volume to volume looking up the SEE ALSO: topics. But I digress, and Derfwad Manor is just too entertaining! And others agree because she gets in the neighborhood of at least 50 comments per post.

I just now realized that I only read blogs by women! Is that a crime?! hahaha I never thought about it before, but that's what I like to read right now-- the world according to other women. By the same token, my own hubby has never read my blog, so maybe it's a Mars/Venus thing.

So after discovering so many talented writers online, I know now that I will probably never be a writer, at least one who publishes anything that someone else would read! I envy those who write with such wit and candor and humor and honesty online, and I thank them for making my spare moments during the day (and middle of the night) richer.

Sunday, January 06, 2008

So Enchanted

Carys is ENCHANTED! Thanks to magical Disney.com software, she has been transformed into Princess Giselle and Evil-Almost-Mother-in-Law Narissa. The image is supposed to move back and forth and wink and smile, but it wouldn't upload properly.
My girls and I have a favorite new movie! We finally saw Disney's Enchanted during our mini-vacation in the Dallas-Ft Worth area, and our entire family loved it! It's so appropriate for kids, families, anyone! It's a clever homage to every Disney Princess movie ever made, and at the same time, full of twists and turns and enough adult-ish humor to keep it from being saccharine.
Last night, we three piled on my bed and went online to the Enchanted website. We watched all the trailers, TV spots, behind-the-scenes videos, clips from the film and music videos. Then we played all the online games, including one where you can "enchant yourself." You upload your head shot and the email you some cool software where you can turn yourself into any one of they Enchanted characters or some of Disney's classic heroes, heroines or villains. It was great fun!
Finally, we did the Enchanted sing-along, where we watched the music videos again but this time the words appear for you. Thalia and Carys LOVE the Ever Ever After song by Carrie Underwood, and Carys said she was so beautiful in the video!
It was fun to cuddle with my daughters and do something really "girly" while Dylan watched basketball in the next room . . . !

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

D.I.K.

Edmund Cody Library, where I have been a patron since 2003! It was close to our rental apartment (aka The Roach Motel) and now very close to Carys's school at the JCC.

Ever since I discovered the "hold" option on the San Antonio Public Library's website, I have been reading like a fiend for the past 2+ years! My enthusiasm for the resources of the public library has resulted in my buying fewer books than I used to, although I still buy *LOTS* of books! There was a time when I didn't even step foot in a public library for at least 6 years; why would I, when there was Barnes & Noble just opening up around town with their Starbucks coffee plus my crack-like addiction to Amazon.com? Then came the "layoff of 2002", and suddenly the library was a treasure of riches! (Plus we had to cancel the cable TV too, so I had more time to read.) It was fun again to browse the shelves of my branch of the public library, small as it was.

When I moved to San Antonio, I discovered soon after trying to find certain books at my branch library and coming up empty-handed each time that you can actually put them on hold online! Why I did not know this before, I have no idea. Probably because I never knew the library was online! The entire catalog of the entire library system is on the city's website, and even better, it's "open for business" 24 hours a day! Yippee! This is a huge boon for night owls such as myself who do all substantive work after the midnight hour.

Another great thing I can do is hold and pick-up books for Thalia that are on the recommended reading lists for her age/reading level. Otherwise, my nutty kid will go to the library and only select books she has already read! Some people resist change, what can I say?! Thank God for technology, especially the kind paid for with my tax dollars!

Anyway, now that I can read whatever I want almost whenever I want without having to buy the book every time, I have been developing my own Desert Island Keeper List of Books (an idea borrowed from the
All About Romance website). A D.I.K. book is one you'd like to have with you if you were stranded on a desert island! Certainly, I already had quite a few romance novels on the list in my head for years, but now I'm ready to round it out with some other kinds of books as well. Here is my unfinished list, still in development and also available on Amazon,with the romances I adore:

MY DESERT ISLAND KEEPERS: ROMANCE
1. Silk and Secrets by Mary Jo Putney
Melissa says:
"I've lost track of how many times I've read this book! Lord Ross Carlisle is the hero I judge all others against!"

2. One Perfect Rose (Fallen Angels) by Mary Jo Putney
Melissa says:
"Was the 1st 'Fallen Angels' book I read, and I was clamoring for more! I believe it was also the 4th historical romance novel I ever read, thanks to my friend Nancy. My favorite in the series."

3. In Our Dreams by Linda Lael Miller and Friends
Melissa says:
"A little something for everyone here! I love Susan Wiggs' Bridge of Dreams and Mary Jo Putney's Avalon. I never get tired of this short story collection and was absolutely bereft when I lost my original copy! Thank goodness for used book stores!"

4. Brazen Angel by Elizabeth Boyle
Melissa says:
"The best 'first book' by an author! Unfortunately, none of her subsequent books has really impressed me in comparison."

5. Thunder and Roses (Fallen Angels) by Mary Jo Putney
Melissa says:
"Really love the 'Fallen Angels' series! Clare and Nicholas really complement one another."

6. Dancing on the Wind (Fallen Angels) by Mary Jo Putney
Melissa says:
"Unusual plot-- really liked the' twin' aspect of it, especially the bond between sisters."

7. Going Home by Danielle Steel
Melissa says:
"I gave up on Danielle Steel long, long ago, but I really admire her 1st book for its honesty and enjoy a good cry. I am embarrassed to tell you how old I was when I first read it."

8. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Melissa says:
"Ok, not really a "romance novel," but the grandmother of all of them (Georgette Heyer being the mother!). Ironically, I never enjoyed this book the 1st and 2nd time, which just goes to show that sometimes, you have to give it a few tries! I think part of the disconnect was the time period in which the book was set, which was completely unfamiliar to me as a teenage girl and even as a twenty-something adult."

9. The Nonesuch by Georgette Heyer
Melissa says:
"GH really helped establish the "Regency" romance novel, with it's quaint phrases, stock characters and sweetly innocent plots. She was NOT responsible for the "bodice-ripping" aspect of the genre! I love this book because it's different-- the heroine is an "older" woman with a little more wisdom therefore than the rest."

10. Slightly Dangerous by Mary Balogh
Melissa says:
"Actually, I enjoyed pretty much the entire 'Slightly' series, of which this is the final book. But I ADORED this one! It's such a sweet and clever homage to 'Pride and Prejudice' but with it's own unique twists. I read this often, when I feel like a happy ending! The hero is even more Darcy-ish than Mr. Darcy himself, and the heroine is an all-too-human, earthy version of Elizabeth."

(blog originally started on 5/15/07)

In Remembrance: Paul Epner




It is with the greatest sadness that I resume blogging: I want to write about a lovely, funny, creative person who died suddenly last month. Paul Epner was the father of Thalia's best friend from pre-school, and our friend too. I don't know the details of his death, only that it was sudden and that he left our world far too soon. My heart breaks for his family--his wonderful, gracious wife and his adorable daughter, and his extended family. Especially for his daughter, who is fatherless at the tender age of 6.

Paul was a middle school math teacher for many years, and for that he should have received a medal! I can only imagine how his students must feel, suddenly teacher-less in the middle of the school year. You got the sense that he really connected with the kids, because he wasn't going to talk down to them and they "got" his humor. He also wrote several books for children, which we are proud to own and will always treasure. He was always self-deprecating about his writing, but the books are real gems. Thalia adores them. I am rather partial to Paul's Herbert Hilligan series of books myself. Several of his books taught math to kids in a "fun" way.

Paul was great fun to talk to. You really couldn't have even the shortest conversation with him without laughing. He had a dry humor and an unusual take on the world around him. I'll miss talking to him!

I looked him up on the Internet today, and found his teacher bio on his school's website. It was uniquely "Paul-esque" and made me laugh out loud, of course. Here it is:

Epner, Paul
Mr. Epner's Story
Math Guru for team 6.3

Paul Epner was spawned from loving parents Marcia and Martin Epner on December 21, 1963. Hatched in a hospital in Yonkers, New York, Paul was the cutest and youngest of his 4 siblings. Even as a small child, Paul's proud parents realized he was a "gifted" child. His mom was over protective, while his father felt that the "gifted" label meant that he could put Paul in a box, wrap him up, seal with a bow, and "gift" to someone else. Growing up in a family of "overachievers" it soon become apparent to Paul's family that he had "super powers". He soon began flying at the speed of light, could leap tall buildings and was able to solve math problems in his head. As Paul grew up and became a more "portly" child, he lost his power to fly and leap tall buildings, though he once did leap over a bush and broke his arm, Paul retained his ability to solve math problems in his head. Realizing Paul had superhuman mathematical abilities, he enrolled in an elementary education program at UTSA, and in 1988 received his Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education. It did take two years extra for Paul to earn his degree, because Paul had a hard time understanding that a Bachelor's Degree referred to something other than his ability to remain single. However, Paul's insistence on carrying a lunchbox to all his college classes did not help Paul to become more attractive to the opposite gender. Only because of his father's large dowery to his future wife, was Paul able to marry and allow his father to get the empty nest he longed for since Paul graduated from college.
If anyone is interested in becoming a member of the Paul Epner fan club, operators are standing by. Due to the high volume of calls and e-mails from Paul's fans, it is sometimes up to 24 hours before he can respond to his adoring fans.
As for how Paul ranks the interest level of his fans, he assesses that 60%of their interest stems from the tests they put Paul through, and 40% of their interest is figured by how they treat him on a daily basis.
At this time Mr. Epner is tied up in a tour of talk shows and appearances throughout the United States, but he does try to make himself available for discussions and conferences from around 10:30-11:30 each day.
Your support is always appreciated and Mr. Epner loves to hear from his fans!

If you feel like getting help from your math textbook..... Check out this website and take a good look Tutorials, videos and other cool stuff..... Make math easier and not so tough. Don't be afraid, do it, I say...[website] will make your school day! Mr. Epner is here, he's the coolest of cool...... He will help all his students be successful in school. But you must always remember, put yourself to the test... I will always expect you, to do your absolute best!!!!!
Mr. Epner is here!

Paul once said in an interview: "In this world you've gotta find a passion in life. I love working with kids and I love to write, so I've found a special place." I hope he's found peace and another special place in Heaven.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

NEW BLOG!

Yes, it is truly ridiculous that I, who blogs once every 6 months, should have another blog, but it's true! I have a new blogsite for my newly updated business, Sweetest Whimsy. It can be accessed from my new website: http://www.sweetestwhimsy.com/. It's chock full of news, product information and ideas related to my world of cakes, paper, parties and gifts! I hope the faithful few who actually check 'Who are You Calling Little?" will visit my new blog! I promise I am keeping up with it much more consistently, in the interest of good business! Please visit!

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Six Weird Things

Was backreading my friend Tyra's enormously enjoyable blog today and read where she "tagged" me on Sunday, December 03, 2006, so it's my turn to be "it", only 4 1/2 months later . . . !

SIX WEIRD THINGS ABOUT MYSELF

1. I've never seen E.T. (the movie). I have seen snippets of the film, probably about 5 minutes worth at a time, but never the whole thing. And it's about 25 years old?!

2. I am hypercritical of myself. Sometimes I relive entire conversations I have had with people in my head, and then suddenly will scream or moan or swear when I remember what silly/stupid/inane/boring things I said. Then whoever is around me will look up at me, startled, and I will feel silly/stupid/inane/boring all over again.

3. I was a Girl Scout Troop Leader before I even had any kids. Before I even knew I would have daughters. I was a troop leader for a bunch of girls whose parents were "too busy" to volunteer, and now that I am a parent myself, I totally understand why!

4. I attended four elementary schools for K-6. (Tyra still wins the prize!) ABC Land (Kinder), St. Mary's School (1st-2nd), Morningside Elementary (3rd & 1/2 of 4th), McCoy Elementary (1/2 of 4th - 6th). The really weird thing is that my father was not in the military! (Many people assume this when they learn how many schools I went to as a young child). I also attended two high schools, Newman Smith (9th-10th) and Churchill (11th-12th). So basically, every 2 years I went to a new or different school!

5. I don't like big jewelry (real or fake) or yellow gold. All the other women in my family do.

6. I have been "writing" a romance novel in my head for several years. I work on it when I'm in bed and can't sleep.

The first person to read this, besides Tyra, please consider yourself "tagged" and now you get to be "it"!

Homemaking 101

When I was about 13 years old and in junior high in Carrollton, Texas, I took a home economics class called Homemaking. This was circa 1984. The teacher, whose name I can't recall, was a former stay-at-home Mom who was finally an empty nester. She seemed ancient, but was probably in her forties! The class was all girls, of course, and although it has been 33 years since I was the class, I still remember quite a bit of what she tried to teach us about housekeeping, cooking, sewing and etiquette.

I thought of my Homemaking class last week, when I was trying to find some simple recipes for my daughter's new Easy Bake Oven. Basically, you have two choices when it comes to the actual baking/cooking with this oven. You can purchase the convenient Easy Bake Mixes, which will make approximately 2 very tiny cakes or 6 very tiny cookies, for about $5. Those are some pretty expensive little cakes, and not really the best tasting either! Or you make mixes from scratch at home for your budding young baker to use. There are two big things to work around, however, when you are baking from scratch for the Easy Bake Oven: 1) No raw eggs in the recipe; 2) The pan only holds about 3 tbsp. worth of batter! After searching the Internet a few times, I found some clever Moms who'd come up with recipes for mixes for cakes and cookies using boxed cake mix or flour and shortening; however, each recipe made something like 15 little cakes! That is alot of cake! And they had to be used within a certain amount of time due to no preservatives.

I decided to look through my own stash of recipes for some ideas, and came upon two yellowing photocopied pages of recipes from my junior high Homemaking class! I had kept them all through high school, college, and well into adulthood until right now, when I realized the recipes were exactly what I was looking for! There were two pages entitled Biscuit Mix Variations, the Biscuit Mix being Bisquick. From one recipe of Bisquick biscuit dough, which does not require any eggs(!), you can make: Cinnamon Pinwheels, Butterscotch Pinwheels, Cheese Biscuits, Jelly Biscuits (like little pastries), Bacon Biscuits, or Quick Sticky Buns! Furthermore, I realized you can halve the recipes, which is perfect for making about 2 batches of Easy Bake Oven sized treats.

Looking through the recipes reminded me that our teacher had given us a similar handout of Refrigerator Biscuit Recipes as well, which I have since lost to my regret. I still remember all the things we cooked using a tube of Pillsbury biscuits: Tuna Pockets, Mini-Pizzas, Pinwheels, etc. We were really cooking! I also remember having to "tell" on some mean 8th grade girls who had eaten all the grated pizza cheese during the cooking phase of class, leaving nothing for us poor 7th graders!

Last night, we made Butterscotch Pinwheels using my Homemaking class recipe, with chocolate chips added. It was so much fun! It takes 15 minutes to preheat the Easy Bake Oven, and only about 3 minutes to prepare one of the $5 Easy Bake Mixes, so it was much more satisfying for Thalia to be able to make the dough "from scratch", knead it, roll it, add the toppings, and slice into pinwheels. We actually used up the entire 15 minutes! They were really quite good too! The full recipe made 3 1/2 Easy Bake-sized batches of Pinwheels; next time, we will do a half recipe because even 6 year olds get "tired" of the prep work. :)

I also made up my own recipe last week for her Oven--Cheese Nachos. They actually sell a Mix for that, but I had heard that it is so disgusting that there was no way I was going to pay $5 for it! Thalia really, really wanted to try it, however, after seeing the picture on the Oven box (good marketing!), so I came up with this instead:

Cheesy Nachos for the Easy Bake Real Meal Oven

Ingredients:
a hunk of Velveeta Cheese
Tortilla Chips
Child-safe knife

Preheat Oven for 15 minutes. Let your child cut off slices of Velveeta. You won't need very much to fit the tiny pan.

Spray the tiny pan lightly with Pam. Put the cheese slices in the tiny pan.

Bake for about 6 minutes in the Oven. Cheese should be smooth and melted.

While cheese is heating, put a handful of Tortilla Chips in the Oven's warming chamber. They will get nice and warm while the cheese melts.

Put Chips on a plate and top with melted Cheese, or as my daughter likes to do it, dip the Chips into the pan of Cheese.

Serves 1 child.

Yes, I can heat up the same amount of cheese in the micro for 30 seconds, but for kids, it's all about the process, isn't it?! :)

And to my former Homemaking teacher, wherever you are--Thank You!

Monday, April 02, 2007

Flaming Mixer

I love Gmail. It's part of the world of Google, which I rely on so many times a day that I'm embarrassed to admit exactly how often that is. What I love about Gmail is the sponsored links that appear the right-hand side of the screen that are based on the content of your emails! At first, when I realized what Google was doing, it really used to creep me out. But now I like browsing the list of offerings. Take today for example:

Flaming Kitchen Aid Mixers, anyone? Yes, flaming as in 'hot rod' decor. You can turn your mundane, everyday workhorse into an awesome kitchen accessory! This website totally cracked me up! Apparently, to have it done "custom" at some shop will run you about $150 (I had NO idea people would do this to their Mixers!), but for $15 you can trick out your Kitchen Aid with some high-quality decals! I think my pink 'Cook for the Cure' KA is decorative enough as is, but I really found this idea quite humorous. Maybe toasters are next on the list?!

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Happy New Year, Happy Valentine's Day, Happy Birthday!

Well, it's been a long time since my last posting, for those 3 or so of you who may actually be reading this! hahaha I guess what unnerves me the most about the idea of blogging is that although this is basically just my diary or journal, someone else can read it! Not that someone actually will though. And there's my blogger's dilemma (I can't think of the appropriate word): in the back of your mind, you hope someone will read it, but at the same time wonder if anyone ever does and cringe at the thought of someone actually doing so!

Anyway, enough of that. I've been on holiday from my blog due to many time-wasting reasons, none actually being a good excuse for not writing though! I did endure rotator cuff shoulder surgery at the end of last year, and until 9 days ago, was locked into multiple visits per week to my physical therapists. It helped, then it didn't, then it got worse, and then I cried and demanded that my doctor take a look at my shoulder again! So now I'm off therapy for a couple of weeks but charged with the task of doing my therapy exercises by myself, which is even harder than going to therapy was! It is nice to get a break, however.

Overall, I've been really down since my shoulder started giving me trouble again. Ironically, it seemed to all start again the week of the ice storm, when we were all stuck in the house for 2 straight days, making it a 4 day weekend. I could feel my shoulder tightening up more and more each day, despite my faithful exercises. From then on, for about 2 more weeks, it was like a rubber band-- draconian therapy methods would "loosen it up" but within hours of returning leaving there, it would snap back into a tight knot. Ouch! I finally reached the point where it was loosened up enough th where I was no longer freaking out every other hour about it, and then I started feeling shooting pains up and down my entire arm, all the way to my finger tips. Now THAT really freaked me out as my right hand is my cake decorating hand! No messing around with that! I was very fortunate that 2 wks after the surgery, I was able to start decorating cakes again, with no effect on my shoulder at all. Now everything I did with my right arm was hurting like crazy! Like turning a doorknob, picking up a paring knife, driving my car, etc. Well, wouldn't you know it, my doctor says that too is normal; I've been 'deconditioned' and will have to endure all this until my arm strength is built up again. So all this and the rather unattractive weight gain in my arm (and everywhere else, really) has brought me down in the dumps of late. I feel like a page out of Dr. Seuss's My Many Colored Days. I mean, I knew having voluntary surgery wasn't going to be a walk in the park, but it has still exceeded my expectations of how long it would take to bounce back to the old me.

At the same time, Carys has been going to 5-day-a-week preschool at the JCC instead of just 2 days to accomodate my rigid therapy schedule, and she has really thrived since we switched her! Perhaps it's just a coincidence and being 2 3/4 yrs old now instead of a mere 24 months has something to do with it too. Her teachers have marveled at the transformation, and they are so loving towards her. Prior to the switch, she was always a little clingy in the mornings at the drop-off and was becoming very difficult in the 2-year-old way at home, but now she has really embraced having a predictable schedule surrounded by the same teachers and friends each day. I am a bit of a wreck about it emotionally-- I'm thrilled that she's thriving out there without me, but I'm sad as well not to have a 'baby' in the house with me every day, or at least part of the week. Knowing this is my last go-round with babyhood, it's even sadder for me when I see her toddle off confidently into the 2 yr old class each day.

I am 3 days into my 'new year', having celebrated my 36th birthday on March 8! Wow! I am officially 'old enough' to have a mammogram! Instead of a birthday card, I received written orders for a breast-squishing x-ray from my doctor! hahaha It made me laugh because Thalia is always asking, "When will be old enough to (walk to school by myself/drive a car/wear real jewels/etc.)?" Guess what I'm old enough for?! Cancer screenings! My actual birthday was nice, especially for a Thursday which is my busiest day usually. I had a manicure and pedicure in the morning, and my friend Anjali and her kids took me out to lunch at a charming Alamo Heights restaurant, Paloma Blanca, that I had not been to yet. I had a yummy mole, which I love. I even squeezed in 1 hour of shopping at the mall, where I picked up some shoes and makeup. There were lots of phone calls and emails and cards and even some gifts in the mail. Thalia's gift was probably the cutest-- she wrapped up a ball-point pen she found somewhere in the house during breakfast and presented it to me in bed. She was SO proud of herself! I sleepily told her I would save it for later (it may very well have been my only present from my family!), and when she got home from school, was very keen on my opening it, so I did, and she was just bursting with excitement! Oddly enough, I hadn't seen this particular purple pen in some time, so it really was a surprise! Dylan got me a card, which he wrote in while I was in the bathroom at the pizza place, next to Thalia's dance class, where we had dinner. No gift, but really, was I expecting one from him?! After all, I had bought a new pair of shoes that day, so that will be from him . . . ! Actually, he shocked me a bit at Valentine's Day by buying me a gift from Neiman-Marcus, not a store that he frequents. I don't know which was more surprising, the fact that he got me a gift, or that it came from NM!

I am going to try something new in future posts. This is all a huge experiment anyway, so look for something different coming up . . . !!!

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Comes the Dawn

comes the dawn

after a while you learn the subtle difference
between holding a hand and chaining a soul
and you learn that love doesn’t mean security
and you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts
and presents aren’t promises
and you begin to accept your defeats
with your head up and your eyes open
with the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child
and you learn to build all your roads on today
because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans
and futures have a way of falling down in mid-flight
after a while you learn
that even sunshine burns if you get too much
so you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul
instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers
and you learn that you really can endure . . .
that you really are strong
and you learn that you really do have worth
and you learn and learn . . .
with every goodbye you learn

authoress unknown

I first received a copy of this poem in college, from my advisor at the UT Texas Union, named Carol. She herself had gone through a divorce and, although we didn’t know it, was involved in a relationship with another advisor in our office that had to be kept secret. This was a poem that spoke volumes about Carol's own experiences. In either fall 1990 or spring 1991, she started an informal “women’s group” at the office for whoever wanted to join in and just talk about “woman’s stuff.” It was a great time to be a woman in Austin and UT—Ann Richards was in office and inspired all of us, young and old, to be ourselves, find ourselves, explore all the possibilities available to us because of and in spite of being women. She read this out loud at our first meeting, held on the upstairs patio at the Union. I can’t even remember if I ever went to another meeting, but I’ve had a copy of this poem in my possession ever since then. It has spoken to me at my saddest and lowest points in my relationship, and I have given copies to friends and women I’ve just met when I’ve thought they might need it. Today, I was “cleaning up” some files on my computer and found this poem aga