Surprising News

No.  I'm not pregnant.  The blog would go dark if that news was ever typed out.
Yesterday Mark came into the family room and said he was going to do the dishes forever.  He then flipped it and said, "for the next four months."  Truth be told, I could give a shit if he does it forever or for months. I just love that he's going to do it.

{I've also given up buying cheap detergent.  It doesn't work}

Other news?  I signed up for Mondo Beyondo.  A few reasons why.  One, she said it was life-changing and I listen to my friends.  Two, I'm supposed to take a class this year and I'm thinking this will give me a push to take another one. Three, they were running a buy one get one free deal.  Why not?  I'll blog about it over here.  There's a post up, so please update your feeds.

Oh yeah...  I'm having a contest!  Head over & help me out.

-Erika

A Certain Amount of Apathy

I picked the Girls up from school on Friday; finals are over, there's a week between now and graduation, and they needed a small break from the campus. Some how, on the way back on the Turnpike, we got on the topic of the Magic Bullet. Jordan commented that she wanted one for next year so that they could make sauces (cough, cough - mixed drinks) and such.

"You know, they make that now specifically marketed to people who want to make their own baby food," I said. "I kind of think making your own baby food is the way to go," Jordan said (at least I think it was Jordan . . . it's kind of hard to get the players right when you are going 75 mph on a road designed for cars in the 1950s). "I made most of your baby food because it was easier and cheaper than buying it," I added. "I think I'm too apathetic to ever have a baby," Shelby said.

When I thought about it a little bit later, I think I probably had a certain amount of apathy when they were little. Not that I ever looked at them and thought, "Whatevs . . . just sit there and do something with each other. I can't be bothered." But the whole baby-proof-your-house-within-an-inch-of-sanity was catching on, and truth be told, I couldn't be bothered with that. Outlet covers - that's about it. I've been in bathrooms before where I've had to ask people how to get their toilet seat up because it was either figure out how to use the baby-proofed lock or pee in the sink, which might have been easier.

A couple of weeks ago, their friend's mom had her second child, and that still takes me aback a little. First child: in college with them; second child: newborn. When I think about how much things have changed since the Girls were born as far as the gadgets and gizmos, I'd like to think that I wouldn't really alter how I approached motherhood . . . but I'm not sure if that would be true. Would I still sleep them on their stomachs? Yup. Would I still use an Infa-feeder? Probably not. No baby gate? Maybe. How about limiting television? Oh, my god, yes. A lot of what I did with the Girls I based on what my mom did with us. Is that pan hot? Here's a novel concept . . . teach your child that the pan is hot and will burn you. Don't want your kid to touch the shit on your table? Use the word no over and over and over again. Want your kid to read? Read to them and have books every where even if you don't like to read or consider yourself to be a reader. I know this might not work for every kid, but being slightly apathetic sure was a lot cheaper than buying the monitors that had video screens and heat sensors or covering every corner with foam rubber.

Even if your mom isn't a teacher as a profession, she was your first teacher. You probably learned all sorts of stuff that she never intended: how to let you win without making it appear so, how to cheat at cards, how to make something very mundane look incredible, how to stretch a dollar to an inch of breaking, how to make trips in a car fun, how to do a lot with a little. How do I know all this? I had a fucking brilliant teacher. If the Girls ever decide to have children, I hope they feel the same way.

Happy Mother's Day . . . to all the moms out there,
- Jill

Lego Love.

When does Lego Love die?  Really?  I have instructions lodged somewhere in every room of our house.  My feet have scars from stepping on the tiny pieces.  When I complained about it to my dad, he asked if it was my fault for not picking them up.  Has the man ever seen a Lego?  They disappear into our carpet like I'd imagine Navy Seals do in battle.  They will wait forever.  Somehow using magical forces to dodge the vacuum.  You think I've lost it because I'm giving Legos not only human qualities, but also magical ones?  You might be right.  The boys picked out the same Lego toy today.  They both wanted the beetle and I felt we had avoided a battle.  Score for all parties.  When we got home, I was talked into a race.  This is Daddy's duties.  I don't do Legos or the teeth brushing.  But today, I had to do both.  Cooper called for a race and I accepted.  I knew better than to talk shit to the 6 year-old.  Not because that would make me a horrible mother (I'm not sure I'd be joking) because I figured he'd crush my fumbling fingers.  And I can't deal his excessive celebration, so I played it cool.  He'd shout out, "I'm on step 6" while I was on step 2.  We finished and our house had two beetles, two men with a pick axe and a shot gun, two coffee mugs, two fires with two chicken legs roasting, and I had two boys that were really happy.  Coop pointed out that I screwed up one of the legs. I thought Lego made a mistake, but I was wrong.  He moved my leg and showed how it could be used to balance the bug.  I learned two things tonight: read directions carefully and I'll be wearing shoes in my house for a long time.

-Erika

There She Goes

When you go out into the workforce, they generally give you a manual or a job description or something that will get you through the day. Occasionally, they'll give you some on-the-job training, perhaps even a mentor or two. But being a parent is a whole other kettle of fish. Sure there are books, but have you ever really studied the What To Expect book series? The information in there is enough to scare a woman into crossing her legs and hoping for the best for the rest of her fucking life. But you can't cross your legs and ignore that ever growing bump because ready or not, you've got to have that baby sometime. You can read every book ever written. You can be the best baby-sitter ever. It still won't help after they hand that baby - or two - over to you.

So, twenty years ago, I was concerned about getting drugs before the contractions got any worse (yup . . . at 1cm, I was concerned about drugs). I didn't want to puke on the operating table (I did). Dave didn't want to see anything during the C-section (and saw it all). By 10:30 PM, we no longer had Baby A and Baby B. Instead, Jordan and Shelby entered our lives, and we never looked back.

"There She Goes" by the Boo Radleys

"Sweet Disposition" by Temper Trap

Happy birthday, Girls! You are the greatest . . . and I have the tattoo to prove it.

Love,
Madre

PS - When they were little, they would often sing the songs that Dave and I listened to. "There She Goes" was one of their favorite. Somehow, their other favorite didn't seem appropriate for a birthday.

Postcards!

I love a good postcard!  Who doesn't?  It's like a nugget of gold in your mailbox.  There's the electric bill.  The mortgage.  A flier for a doggy dental cleaning.  Blaaa...  And then, what's this?  Awwh a postcard from a friend that lives too far away.  The day instantly gets better when your fingers flip it over.

I've got two sets in the etsy store.  "Thank you & Hi" notes are sweet little postcards to stay in touch with family & friends.  And "Cuteness in the Mail" is a collection of my favorite images!  The 5 postcard set  is printed on high quality paper stock.  The reverse side is left open with plenty of space for you to jot down your greetings.

Send some cheer this spring!  Head over & do some shopping.

Food Time

Remember when I posted about America's Test Kitchen?  Ok good.  Let's talk.  I've been cooking like a mad woman from this magazine.  It's oil stained and crumpled with notes in the margins.  I've already made about 17 of the recipes & I can't complain about one of them.  Not one.  I beg of you to find this magazine & pick it up!  I will never make pan-seared chicken breast any other way than how it's described in this magazine.  I will always save a little bit of vodka for the empanadas' crust.  We have finally found a pizza crust that satisfies our entire house (it's super healthy & it bakes like a dream).  In the past,  I've baked sheets of spiced nuts that turn out icky or burnt. No longer, friends!  Even the recipes that didn't thrill Mark, he could still agree that they were pretty delicious.  He's not a huge crab cake fan.  But Becks and I ate them quickly.  But Mark ate the empanadas for dinner, breakfast, lunch, & as a late night snack.  If you only knew how huge that is, you'd still be smiling.  I am.

Recently, my dad said "Erika, you make the best salads".  You know, what?  I do!  But it's because of this little gem of a magazine.  I don't have a picture of this one because my Mom ate all of it.  She even apologized for it, but that's what's supposed to happen to good food.  Here is my favorite of the two salads I've already made.  The one she ate every last bite of.

Pear and Cranberry Chopped Salad
ATK Best of 2010
1 cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch dice
3T extra-virgin olive oil
3T sherry vinegar
1 red bell peper seeded and chopped
1 firm & ripe pear, diced
1/2 small red onion, diced
1/2C dried cranberries
1 romaine heart, chopped
4 oz. of blue cheese crumbled
1/2C pistachios toasted & chopped


1. Combine the cucumber and 1/2t of salt in a colander set over a bowl and drain for 15 minutes.
2. Whisk the oil and vinegar in a large bowl.  Add drained cucumber, pepper, pear, onion, and cranberries.  Toss and let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes.
3. Combine everything and toss to combine.  Season with salt and pepper.
4. Enjoy!

I'll share the pizza crust later.  Because every house should have it in their recipe file.  It's really healthy and really delicious.  I know how difficult that can be.

Don't forget to watch Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution!  Season 2 premieres tonight!

We need two hands.

Because he's six. More later because I've got a date with a handsome kid.



Happy birthday!