Love Thursday

Today I'm lovin':

Being chosen as the leader for the State of Illinois Republicans for Obama organization. I'm so super psyched for this.

My bestest friend ever from High School, Crystal. We got to visit with her for a few hours today and it was so nice! She now lives about an hour and a half away from me, so visits are rare treats.

My signature lipstick, MAC Kinda Sexy. I love having a color that looks perfect on me no matter what. It's been my color since that long, intense search for "the color" last year - and a year later I'm through a whole tube of it, and not anywhere near sick of the shade. That's pretty something for someone who has never "finished" a whole product, ever.

Being the Change

I see you lookin' at me
Like I'm some kind of freak
Get up out of your seat
Why don't you do somethin'?
-- B. Spears

Are you sick of keeping the status quo? Tired of, like John Mayer so eloquently put it, "waiting on the world to change?"

Well, Darlings - so am I. And so I signed up to do something. I am officially volunteering for the Obama campaign. Illinois now has a Republicans For Obama organization, and I'm in it. I actually submitted to LEAD it. I'm kind of excited. I am sick to death of casting my vote and hoping others do the same. I am shocked and appalled that more people vote for American Idol than vote for our President!!!

It is time.

It is time for a change, and I for one believe that Mahatma Ghandi had it right. "You must BE the change you wish to see in the world."

It's time for me to be the change.

Now don't get me wrong, I don't think that Barack Obama is perfect. However, his major issues are my major issues and we share the same viewpoint. Yes, he's fresh to Washington and I welcome that like a breath of fresh air. Give me someone who has not been mired in the political corruption for so long that their character is dead.

I'm sick of waiting. I'm ready to start doing. I urge you to do the same. Even if you support Giuliani or Edwards or Huckabee or Romney or God forbid Clinton Episode II, Attack of the Clones. Here's a list of all the people you can pick from. Find one whose beliefs resonate with your own, and then get behind them! Years of complacency have saddled us with this MESS - bad schools, Americans without healthcare, a war with no end in sight, global warming, fractured families and a Godless nation.

If you choose to just sit on your duff and wait and see what unfolds, remember: those who refuse to make their voice heard during an election don't get to complain at the outcome.

My water baby

See my profile picture? Homegirl lives to frolic in the water.

The apple doesn't fall far, people...

Dogs can lock sliding glass doors

Yes, yes they can. I went out and got a small plastic splash pool for Jackson and I today then we came home and set it up. After putting some water in it, we went upstairs to change into swimsuits and to sunscreen up.

We were outside splish-splashing and the dogs were going crazy with splash envy. Katie jumped up on the sliding glass door against the handle and managed to flip the lock latch closed. So Jackson and I were locked out of the house with nothing but two towels and a tube of sunscreen.

I was so panicked that I didn't even have time to be MAD. The kid down the street showed me how to break and enter into my own home by disassembling the screen on an unlocked window.

Note to self: lock windows each night. That kid knows how to break in.

Not Good Enough For My Baby

No single event in my life has brought with it a better understanding of God's Father heart than becoming a parent. There is no greater joy to me than seeing my son happy after achieving a new milestone. There is no greater panic or heartbreak than seeing him cry out in pain after a fall. I don't believe I quite grasped God's unconditional love until I had a little love of my own to love unconditionally. I didn't "get" it.

And like God's love for us, I love Jack and want only the best of everything for him. To that ends, I make 90% of Jackson's baby food from fresh, organic fruits and vegetables. I buy a few jars for when we are out and about. It's easier to keep a jar fresh. :) This morning, I sat Jack in his exersaucer as I pitted, peeled and pureed a few ripe mangoes. Jackson LOVES mangoes. As I judiciously pared away any slightly brownish spots, Jackson hopped and begged for a scrap. "No, honey" I said, "these parts aren't good enough for my baby."

Which made me think of how many times I hopped and begged and cried out for something God was trying to keep me away from. How many times He said it wasn't good enough for me, but I insisted.

When I had finally had enough of my little monkey begging for bad fruit, I gave in. I gave him a tiny bite of the discarded pieces he was begging for. I thought maybe he would finally learn to trust my discernment when it came to what was and wasn't good for him. He greedily sucked in the fruit. The corners of his mouth turned down and his eyes held a look of shock. Tears of disbelief welled in his eyes, as he couldn't believe his mother would feed him something so distasteful. He didn't know what to do! He let the piece of fruit fall out of his mouth, down his shirt, and into the seat of his exersaucer somewhere.

And how many times has God finally thrown up His hands and let me have that which I clamored for even though He had tried to warn me about it? And how many times in life have I sat there, eyes wide with shock and filled with tears, mouth agape...wondering WHY God had given me this struggle/bad marriage/poor health/car trouble/whatever?

How many times have I insisted on having that which God had deemed was not good enough for His baby?

Thank you God, for giving me a new perspective to help me learn more about You today. Help us all to trust You more. Nobody wants to eat rotten mangoes.

Grown Up Grilled Cheese

For lunch today:

Whole grain bread slices, buttered on the outside and filled with apple butter and brie. Grill until golden and crisp on each side, then enjoy the perfect marriage of salt and sweet and fruit and cream.

Love Thursday

What the world needs now is love, sweet love. It's the only thing that there's just too little of. So here is what I'm loving today:

1) Acupuncture. Have I sung its praises to you before? Yesterday, couldn't breathe through my nose. Today I went to see Hot Doctor (more on this later) and then had an acupuncture session with the chiro/acu/massage therapist. The second the last needle went in (it totally doesn't hurt, don't be such a wussy), down came the rain. Everything started draining and congestion just melted away. I could feel the energy flowing. I don't know how it works. All I know is that it does work, for all kinds of ailments, and that is enough for me.

2) Hot Doctor. My doctor is awesome. He's young, vibrant, well dressed and impeccably coiffed. He's brilliant and open minded. He listens. He takes my ideas into consideration and lets me feel in control of my treatment. He respects that I know my body. And, he's incredibly cute with a very darling socially awkward constantly blushing thing going on that just makes him so stinking adorable to me.

3) My Girls. We're still working on our reunion and despite the miles between us (one in Colorado, one in Florida and two of us here) we have managed to communicate regularly in order to get things done. Last night we set up a private chat room to hash out some ideas and it was so fun. It was like hanging out together, but different.

4) My hankies and eucalyptus essential oil. I gave up Kleenex for hankies last month. Paper waste is for suckas, y'all. I dabbed a touch of eucalyptus on the hankie in my bra yesterday, it was like wearing a personal Vicks vaporizer all day.

5) Blake Lewis and Doug E. Fresh on AI last night. Did you see that? It was awesome. They used all the colloquialisms of old skool rap - "Say ho!" "Put your hands up!" "Somebody scream!". In case you missed it:



What are you loving today?

How big is your God?

My HS posse and I are all busy planning our 15 year class reunion. It's some very exciting stuff. It also requires seeking out each classmate (thank goodness it was a very small private school) to invite them, which has been a challenge because some of them kind of dropped off the face of the earth.

Anyways, in our searching I ended up getting lost in the internets after a click lead to a click lead to another click and then before I knew it, I had found a classmate's brother. He graduated before us, but I went to the same college as he and his wife. I was happy to have found them, because they were supercool people. Very grounded and genuine. So it came as no surprise to me to find his blog entitled "Tangible Theology". Rob's theology is tangible, it always has been. It's part of why I've always had such great respect for him. I'm not saying he's perfect - nobody is! But he accepted his imperfectness and ran with it instead of wallowing in it.

His idea of a faith that is real, livable, and every day resonated with me. Where does your God live? (A hint: it's not in the building that you may or may not go to on Sunday mornings). Since having the idea of a tangible faith at the forefront of my mind, I've been blessed to see God's hand in my days.

On Saturday, I helped with a friend's baby shower. There was a guest who was delayed because she had to turn around and go home to fetch something for her husband. When she then turned back around to return to her route to the party, her path was blocked by a huge accident. The lifeflight helicopter landed on the expressway yards away from her car. She missed being in that accident by minutes. See His hand?

My son has come down today with his first ever baby cold. The child is going to be eight months old next week, and for all his health challenges earlier in life he has never gotten a cold yet. If he had gotten sick last week, it would have been disaster for me - and the shower. If he had gotten sick just a month ago, I probably would have lost it. Moving with a teething baby was a nightmare enough. A teething sick baby would have been unbearable. See His hand?

Try something with me today. Just for today, ditch "religion" and get faith. Real faith. Living faith. Faith you can feel like sand between your toes on the beach. See all the ways God is amazing in your life.

I am so guilty of making my God small. I do it all the time without even thinking about it! I put him in a little box and place it on a shelf marked "faith" and leave Him there. I pull him out before heading to church and then return home to put Him away again. This week, I'm taking God out of the box.

My God is too big for this box.

I'm it! I've been tagged by Sam

"Rules"

After posting these rules, each player proceeds to list 8 relatively random facts/habits about himself/herself. At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names, leaving them a comment on their blogs to let them know.

1. I really hate talking on the phone. If you ever call me and I don't call you back, please don't take it personally. I just REALLY hate the phone. I used to like the phone. Never as much as my gab-a-lot mother, but it was OK. Ever since getting pregnant, I've had an aversion to telephone conversations. It gets annoying when everybody calls every day to see how you're feeling after you've spent far too long puking your guts out (I had "morning" sickness well into my 2nd tri). Then after the baby came, I found I had neither time nor hands for the phone. So I hate the phone. Except for texting, because that doesn't require talking and I can reply in my own time.

2. I don't have a favorite food. This is odd, because I am a Fat Chick. But that's also WHY I'm a Fat Chick. I love ALL food. There are few foods I hate - one of them is anchovies. They taste hairy.

3. When I turned 30 I vowed that I would never again ever leave the house barefaced, because I was getting old. And I never have since. Even if it was just tinted moisturizer with SPF and lip balm, not a single one of you has ever seen me 100% without makeup. Trust me, this is a good thing for you.

4. I have anxiety disorder. When something stresses me out, I get physically ill and I have trouble breathing. I have fainted from freakouts. I'm so lame.

5. I never had coffee until after my son was born. I still don't care for the aroma or the taste, really. I dress it up with flavored syrups and lots of Silk creamer. It's not about the taste. It's about the lack of sleep and therapeutic caffeine.

6. Dora the Explorer annoys the puppy piss out of me. Yes, I know my child is part Latino. No, I don't think that means he should have to try to figure out what her Spanglish is.

7. I get just the tiniest bit happy when I get sick and have to go to the doctor, because I think my doctor is the cutest doctor ever. He's so yummy.

8. When my husband goes somewhere just him and the baby, I panic the whole time they're gone because everybody I love most in the world and live for are all in one car and something bad might happen to them. This fear doesn't play nice with #4. Also, I am somewhat upset that my husband doesn't share the same ridiculous fear when I leave with the baby.

I do hereby tag Michelle, Robyn and Suzi, since they are my only other blogger friends who remain untagged.

Buffalofu Sandwiches

I love the versatility of tofu. You can make it taste like almost anything. As I pondered this fact, I thought about how much we missed buffalo wings. And then I thought - chicken tastes like nothing. Tofu tastes like nothing. I'll bet I can make tofu taste like buffalo chicken. I made buffalo tofu sandwiches for dinner tonight.

The key to making tofu marinate well is boiling it first. Cut it how you want to serve it, in small cubes, big cubes or like I did tonight, slices. Boil a pot of water and add your cut tofu and boil it for 5 minutes. Take the tofu out of the water with a slotted spoon and place it on a stack of paper towels on top of a plate (or if you're in my house, a stack of clean cotton wash cloths) then stack more towels on top and weigh down the top with a few more plates. This pushes all the water out of the tofu and gets it ready to soak in whatever marinade you put it in next.

You may think this process sounds cumbersome, but I guarantee it's far less gory than defrosting a piece of cow, then trimming the fat off, then marinating it.

Anyways, so I boiled and squeezed out the water from the tofu then marinated it in wing sauce. After about an hour of marinating, I heated a skillet then added a swish of butter (benefit of being ovo-lacto-pescatarian: you can still have butter) and placed 2 of the marinated slices in the skillet to brown.

Meanwhile, I added some blue cheese crumbles to some light blue cheese dressing. Because there is no such thing as too much stinky cheese.

After browning both sides, I put a slice of buffalofu on a whole grain bun, adding a fwap of enhanced blue cheese dressing and a few baby spinach leaves (to serve as "lettuce").

Hubby says it was so good he would even REQUEST it again! We give Buffalofu Sandwiches two thumbs up. :)

...and Mothers In Law everywhere rejoice...

Please make sure my darling husband's mother never finds out about this.

His Mother's Son

I love sour and salty things. I love lemons, olives, and pickles. If I'm eating potato chips, they're salt & vinegar or dill pickle chips.

When I was pregnant, I ate a LOT of pickles. I couldn't get enough pickles. So, it should come as no surprise to see that my child has inherited a great love for a quality dill pickle.



His baby hair is starting to break out into wavy curls, he's inherited Mommy's hair texture. Every day with him is so fun, he grows up a little each day and I love watching his little personality blossom. He is a full time job, he's exhausting and awesome. Being a Mommy is the only job I've ever been really good at. He makes every day an adventure, and I love seeing how exciting, big, fresh and new the world is through his eyes. He loves his puppies, he hates bright sunshine in his face, he despises diaper changes and adores baths.

And he loves pickles. All his pickley pickles.

Happy Love Thursday!

This week I love:

The healing pedi I indulged in last night at Mario Tricoci's. DAMN. I was skeptical about a pedicure that costs more than most of my shoes. It was so worth it. And honestly, I only buy cheap shoes. Seriously, I live in Crocs and Reefs. Anyways, everyone should experience an amazing pedi like this at least once in their lives before they die. I think I know what a certain daddy is getting for Father's Day!

Bella and Kate's new Bamboo Quick Control Collars with Built in Leashes. Bella loves to dash out the door and be an escape artist. It's so nice to just be able to reach down and have an instant leash to corral her in with.

My poo guy. Of course, I'd rather have a POOL guy, but we don't have a pool. Yet. In the meantime, a dude who comes to scoop up doggie doo so we don't have to is such a lovely luxury. When we moved in, I told Tim that we would take turns doing it until we fought over whose turn it was, then we'd hire a poo guy. That took all of two weeks!

Homemade iced lattes. My coffee habit is now completely out of control, 6 oz. of beans lasts me, um, about a day and a half. I've been brewing a whole push pot at a time and chilling it in the fridge for iced lattes. Sometimes with a swirl of chocolate syrup for iced mocha lattes. I really need to up the sleep or cut back on the coffee. Unfortunately, it's easier to find coffee than it is sleep!

Everyone call my cell phone

My new ringback tone is hy-sterical!

Midnight Rendevous

I saunter up next to him and slide my fingers up his neck. "Hello, Darling" I say. "I've waited all week for this. I couldn't wait to see you. Tim and the baby have finally gone to bed - we can be alone together, at last." I slowly undo his top. He turns to me, glistening blonde in the moonlight. I can wait no longer. As I slowly caress him with my lips, my heart races with anticipation. I swoon over his taste. I must have more.

No, it's not what you think. I'm talking about the delectable bottle of Muscat I've had chilling for myself all week long. By the way, do you think Harlequin is hiring? I'm pretty good at this smack.

It's just me, the Muscat, and SNL on the Tivo while my Root Veggie Medley roasts for the next hour. Now if you'll pardon me, I have a previous engagement. :)

I can't believe I just burnt freaking butter.

This probably wouldn't be a big deal to any mere mortal. But I am a Cooking Goddess! I BURNT BUTTER! The outrage! Oh, the humanity! (OK it's actually "oh the bovinity" but humanity sounds much more serious and dreadful).

I went to college for this crap, and I just burnt butter. (I was a Secondary Education, Home Economics Major. YES, Home Ec is a major!)

My cooking ego is deflated.

My husband just laughed at me, recounting the very first time I ever burnt anything two years ago. He says "Remember that one time you burned toast and you cried?" Oh, yeah. I remember that, Pal. Thank you for reminding me though. Why don't you just give me a bunch of paper cuts and pour lemon juice and salt on them? (For the record, it was French Toast and I was upset because I had gone out of my way to get fabulous bread for it. I was just learning our old electric stove and without a visual of how high the flame was I cranked it up too high.)

Thankfully, Hubby also fondly remembers my MacGyver-like dinner concoction back in the day when we first started dating. He had worked late and we were hungry, but neither one of us was in any mood to go get food. We were at his place which = he had no groceries. I poked around the fridge and pantry and found sufficient ingredients to make a pasta with veggies and cheese sauce. (Dry vermicelli, frozen California blend veggies, a dab of cream cheese, a splash of milk, some grated parmesan, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.) The dinner ranks as one of my Greatest Hits because his fridge shelves housed only: a leftover smattering of cream cheese in a tub, one last swig of milk and some wine. I walked into an "empty" kitchen and walked out with two plates piled high, and it wasn't at all horrible. I think it was then that he recognized my phat mad kitchen skillz.

Yet, for all my skillz I still burnt butter this morning. Apparently, I had let my skillet heat a little too high for a little too long. Lesson learned.

I think this will help get me off kitchen duty for tomorrow though, as I bask in the warmth of my very first Mothers Day. :)

Aw, crap. It's Love Thursday again.

Today I love:

Sunny days. It was awesome out today, and I thoroughly enjoyed cruising around with the windows down.

My girlfriends. After a very long dry spell of no social hours, I was finally able to get together with my mommy friend today for a nice walk with our boys. It was awesome. I had really missed her company while we dealt with the move. It's nice to get back to a sense of normalcy, finally.

My new town. I spent some of that cruising with the windows down time investigating the city we now call "home". Um, it's a pretty awesome town! The downtown area is bustling and full of some super prime looking restaurants. I have nearly all the shopping I will ever need within a brief drive. I kind of love it here, and I'm really surprised. Our last place was in my hometown, where I grew up. I knew it like the back of my hand. I am more than happy to learn this town inside and out. It rocks.

Who moved my cheese?

Our house is the Land of Boxes. Unpacking is hard with a baby. He really isn't a fan of being anywhere except Mom's lap lately. So I get very little unpacking done during the day. Then Daddy comes home, and it's time for dinner, and then there's dishes, and then I have to fold that one last load of laundry that I managed to get done earlier in the day...and before you know it, it's bedtime. And then tomorrow, it starts all over again.

So right now, we still have boxes all over the place. Most of them have now been arranged in a rat-maze like configuration so we can get from point A to point B. Here's my problem: I never find my cheese at the end of the maze! Poop.

This is what I do with time to myself

I just downloaded some mp3's.

1) Wonder Pets "The Phone is Ringing" song - to use as the ringtone on my cell. I am sickeningly super geeked out for this.

2) Blue's Clues "Mail Song" and "We Just Got a Letter". I will use "Mail Song" as the .wav for when I get new email in Outlook. I think I'll use "We Just Got a Letter" as the notification sound for when I get a new text on my cellie.

Shibby! More wine! I need more wine!

S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night!

Ah, blessed Saturday night. Last month, I reached a point of utter exhaustion and Mommy burnout. Six and a half months of being up all night had worn me down to the point that I couldn't take it any more. We agreed that during the week, I would continue to manage all the nighttime parenting so Tim could be fresh for work the next day but I would get Saturday nights off. One night a week, I can go to bed and sleep all night, baby-free.

I opened up a bottle of merlot with dinner. None for hubby, all for me. Parents who co-sleep are wise to not drink. I'll be crashing my drunk ass out in the guest room. :)

I think I'll take the rest of this bottle of wine with me to a nice bubble bath. And then beddy bye I go...

I'm so lame. I used to look forward to Saturday nights to go out clubbing and have a good time. Now I look forward to Saturday nights so I can sleep. I feel so old!

Jackson has inherited his Mom's love for music.

I am an audiophile. I love music of all kinds. My CD collection ranges from classical to R&B, some Metal, some Rap, some Pop, some Funk, some Soul, you name it.

I Tivo'd this great concert in HD on the MTVHD channel. It was filmed in IMAX so you get the whole surround sound concert experience. It opened with Sting performing "Desert Rose", then George Clinton with his Parliament Funkadelic and Mary J. Blige did "One Nation Under a Groove" and "Atomic Dog". Kid Rock brought it with "Bawitdaba", Sheryl Crow did a very lame acoustic set, Roots performed with B.B. King, Macy Gray did "I Can't Wait to Meetchu", Carlos Santana and Rob Thomas did "Smooth", and Al Green sang "Take Me To the River" with Dave Matthews Band. The whole concert was filmed at Chicago's Soldier Field. There might be more to the show, but we're watching the Reverend Al and I'm not fast forwarding to find out. I LOVE Al Green.

Jack has been bouncing and grooving throughout (except for the Sheryl Crow song). If there is one legacy I can leave to my child, it will be my great love for all kinds of music. It makes me smile.

Miracles never cease.

Those in my inner-inner posse are the only ones who will understand what this post is about.

For weeks now I have worried and fretted about the whereabouts of my loved one. I didn't know where they were, they weren't able to tell me either. Today is that person's birthday, and all week long I have been dreading this day because I knew I would feel their absence so acutely it would sting.

I woke up in the worst of moods after a fitful night's sleep. I went through the motions of waking up and starting my day in a zombie-like state, telling myself if I could just get through this day tomorrow would be better.

Then the phone rang. It was them. My heart caught in my throat as I answered the phone.

They are okay.

I can have a good day now, at least I know they're alive. Not knowing what was happening, or where they were or if they were all right was a special kind of hell on earth that I would never wish on anyone.

Thank you, God, for taking care of that person despite some of their poor choices and a far from ideal situation.

Announcing...total CFL conversion!

I'm just back from IKEA and Home Depot. A CFL has been procured for each lamp in the house. I have to install a few of them yet, but after that I will be DYING to see if there's any change in our electric bill.

My "No Incandescent Bulb Left Behind" program makes Bush's "No Child Left Behind" program look like a failure. Oh no wait, it IS a failure!

Which reminds me of this bit of hilarity that I MUST own sometime soon:


Oh, come ON. Don't even try to tell me you didn't laugh! Props to Coupon Chris for mentioning this specialty apparel the other night. I love it!

Happy Love Thursday!

Today I am loving my alternative cleaning products. I love that you can DRINK the stuff I clean with and not die. You'd probably get an upset stomach, but you wouldn't die! And it works just as effectively if not better than the toxic crap I used to buy. Today I whipped up several bottles of all-purpose cleaning spray (for counter tops, bathrooms, you name it.) Want to try?

You'll need:
16 to 24 oz trigger spray bottle (Wal-Mart, .98)
Borax (slightly toxic, but you barely use any)
White distilled vinegar
Dr. Bronner's Liquid Soap
Hot water
*Optional: essential oils to scent (your choice, I used lavender and peppermint. You could use a splash of vanilla if you don't have any essential oils).

Put 1 T Borax and 2 T vinegar in bottle. Add hot water to neck of bottle. (Leave head room for soap and for the offset liquid when you put the sprayer back in). Swish to fully dissolve Borax. Scent with desired oils, add 1/4 c Dr. Bronner's (you may sub 1/8 c liquid dish soap). Put sprayer on, swirl bottle around to blend ingredients. Grab a cleaning rag & away you go!!!! (I prefer a microfiber cleaning cloth, but any old rag will do).

My bathrooms are clean & smell purdy. Plus, this recipe is phosphate-free, so you're not polluting our rivers, lakes and streams when you rinse it down the sink. And here's the part that everyone (especially Coupon Chris) will love: the first bottle will cost you about the same as a bottle of 409 or Fantastik when you add in the cost of all your supplies and the empty bottle. After that, it's about $0.40 to refill it each time. Momma liiiiiiiike. ;)

I am also loving that I have just used up my very last ever paper towel. Gone are the days where I bought them because that's what everyone does and I thought you needed them to get by. Paper towels, I bid you and your wastefulness at $3 a roll, you and your stupid spindle that takes up a 6" x 6" footprint of my counter space, you and your tree killing shenanigans f*cking adieu.

My Farewell to paper towels Haiku:

Angry. Paper. Waste.
Now I use cotton wash rags
And I am happy!

Does anyone know where the Band-Aids are?

I just sliced half of my thumbnail off - not a pretty sight, let me tell you! It's bleeding (I have a piece of TP squeezed on it right now) and needs a bandage. Now, which of these boxes are the band-aids in? One my darling husband packed but neglected to label, of course...

Oh and just so ya know, those little holes on the side of the washer that the water drains out through? Those can slice off your thumbnail if you catch it at just the wrong angle. Ouch!