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.

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!

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!

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?!

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 . . . !!!