If I don't get around to the jam today, I'll definitely put on some trashy TV and get this easy dress cut out. If you've ever sewn from a pattern, you appreciate that this is made out of 4 pieces. I'm making the blue dress, but taking it in a bit on the sides, so it'll be easy to wear with a belt. I scored a vintage tweedy looking piece 'o polyester from value village that I'm hoping will be easy to sew. If you haven't picked up Adorn Magazine yet, pick it up, it's so great. They've got this same pattern all made up and altered with some cutsie little ruffles and buttons.

Also to be found in the lovely Adorn is this great idea for reupholstering an ottoman. I think it's adorable.

So yeah, this is essentially my last week of freedom before school starts again! Part of me is bummed, but I also feel pretty lucky to truly enjoy teaching, AND to have the summers off. Today I'm searching for easy strawberry jam recipes. Preferably something that doesn't have a ton of sugar and most certainly something that I can freeze. Any suggestions?

My aunt Ailene and uncle Ed have been sweethearts in Plattsmouth, Nebraska for lots and lots of years now. Their family is etched into my childhood memories. They ran the town movie theater for a while and that's where I saw Every Which Way but Loose. They raised chickens in their back yard and that has since made me wonder about my future as an urban chicken farmer. In my mind I can hear how Ailene's voice sounded when she called her kids to dinner. I call hear exactly how she called me Joolie Doolie. She died this Saturday. It was so, so unexpected. Here's her simple recipe for the best cucumbers ever.
4 cucumbers sliced thin
1 onion (that I hate, so I don't use them)
1 cup of Miracle Whip
1/2 cup of sugar
4 T of vinegar
Mix. Cover. Refrigerate. Let them sit for at least 1 hour before serving.

Happy Birthday Betsy!

To my funny, smart, happy, strong, full of love and kisses mother-in-law: Happy, happy birthday!

forgotten cars

My first car was part Ford Escort EXP, and part something else that I can't remember. My uncle Frank bought it for me from my uncle Ray (who welded the two cars together), and my cousin Russ taught me how to drive its stick shift in downtown Plattsmouth, Nebraska. I learned lots of car care and often life lessons with that car. 1. If you write stuff with your finger on frosted windows, you'll be able to read it everytime your windows frost up again. So write nice things, and keep your pictures PG. 2. If you have a bad alternator/battery/starter, that's really OK because all you really need to know is how to always park facing down a hill, and also how to pop the clutch. And really, if you are worrying about these things, you have no business being in the Dayton's or Marshall Field's or Macy's parking garages. 3. If your radiator is not working, it'll cool the engine fastest if you drive with the heat on full blast. I'm thinking that facial sweat probably has some huge medicinal benefit that I'm too lazy to google right now. 4. If it's second semester already and tuition and books are due, along side your license tabs, don't worry about buying your tabs. If they are due in the winter time, a little strategic snow packing works wonders. ***If they are due in the summer time and you are 35 1/2 years old, and you've got the $40 in your pocket, pay for them early, or if you must, just barely on time. It will make you feel like an incompetent jerk to have advanced degrees and good credit and nice manners and and a sweet husband, while you are skiddishly avoiding the police to prevent that inevitable ticket. Ugh. I just need to make it until Monday... Does anyone have one of those "I heart cops" stickers lying around?

Money Rant

I have two beautiful paint by numbers of roses done by my sister's mother-in-law. I thought that was the perfect size for a mini-collection until I saw this autumn scene for $2.99 at the Goodwill. I love it and think I might be hooked on paint by number. No, I don't want to paint any, but if you see any finished ones lying around, let me know, and I'll take them off your hands. I think they're so sweet.

Speaking of sweet, my sneezeweed is now taller than I am. I love how old fashioned it looks. I have a couple things that I'm ripping right out of the garden for next year, but these guys are staying.
Now, onto the crabiness... Let me preface my money rant by saying that I love our house. I love that it's cozy and has character, and mostly I love that it ours and that it even looks like Zander and Julie live here. That being said, it is really pissing me off. Our shower upstairs is so clogged that 2 bottles of DRAINO did nothing but make our bathroom smell toxic. I really started to notice the problem last week when Zander's cousins joked about "breaking" our shower. Upon investigation, I realized that not only was water not draining, but gunk was floating up and out of the drain. UGH. They drove across the country to see us and were given the opportunity to shower in our filth. So I called the plumber and he came over today to fix the drain and also to turn off the gas on our stove so I can pull out the sub floor and linoleum underneath. After spending about 45 minutes with our very nice plumber, he told me that he wouldn't touch our stove unless we agreed to let him bring the connection up to code. Yep, that's right, our gas stove was basically attached to the source with gum and duct tape. And maybe a wing and a prayer. And instead of using an anti-tip part to keep the stove from tipping forward, the previous owners stacked up pieces of plywood and hoped for the best. With the stove pulled out we saw where they started the counter top on fire before they fashioned their very own anti-tip device. I'm thinking that maybe our inspector should have noticed a bit more before we purchased this house. The longer we live here, the more we find that's not up to code. So $900 dollars later on the drain and the gas, I'm a bit frustrated. My mom thinks we could have prevented a tragedy by taking up the linoleum and discovering the faulty hook up, so as least that makes me feel a little bit better. I did call Centerpoint energy to see if our service plan ($14.95 per month on all major appliances including the stove) would cover sending someone out to turn off the gas for 15 minutes. I was shocked to find out that it's not covered and they'd charge an arm and a leg for the first 30 minutes, and just a hand for each additional 30 minutes. I've used the service once in almost 3 years when we had a bird stuck in the furnace. I'm wondering if it's worth it to keep paying them each month when we don't really get much out of it?

Night Out

Well it's an hour and eight minutes before National Night Out starts and I'm procrastinating. I should be stirring stuff together, or at least taking a shower, but I'm having a hard time getting moving today. Oh summer laziness, how I love you so. Anyway, these tomatoes are the tastiest of our three different kinds from this year. I try to not get the same kinds from year to year, so I should probably start writing it down. Speaking of summer foods... I found a recipe for Key Lime Bars in Cooks Illustrated last summer, and I've made them at least fifteen times since then. I don't subscribe to the magazine, but I love browsing at the library, and then I sometimes end up buying the really good issues.

filling:
2 ounces of cream cheese (room temp)
1 T lime zest
1 14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
1 large egg yolk
1/2 C of lime juice (don't use the bottled kind--it tastes bad in this recipe)

crust:
5 oz animal crackers (I don't have a food scale so I just look at the total oz on the bag and then eyeball it)
Pinch of salt
4 T of melted and slightly cooled butter

(I use my food processor for the crust)

For about 20 minutes, bake the crust at 325 in a 8 x 8 pan that has foil in the bottom (but hanging over the edge) and has been sprayed with Pam. While that's cooling, make the filling.

Spread the filling in the semi-cooled crust and then bake it for 20 minutes. Let it cool and then cover and refrigerate for about 2 hours before serving.
**Fat Free sweetened condensed milk tasted too sweet, instead of tart--I even added more lime juice and that didn't really help. I think it's worth the fat to use the real deal.**

The Proverbial Elephant in the Room

Lately I'm thinking about babies. And other people having babies. And how much pain we felt with the miscarriages. ***And how far we've come since then.*** And how it's difficult to casually mention in some friendships how much healing has already come to us... That I'm not fragile. I'm more than OK... Even happy. And in an effort to be considerate and sensitive, so many kind people downplay their new pregnancy or pretend that babies are no big deal. ***They are a big deal.*** I don't want anyone to feel like they should suppress their happiness around me! When I see my friends and family and co-workers having babies and getting pregnant, it doesn't make me sad. It makes me happy for you! It lets me live vicariously through your life while we wait for our little one to come to us. I want to be involved! I want to sew little bibs and blankies for you. But I can't do that if you keep me at a safe distance, in order to protect my feelings. Just like you, I want to be sensitive and considerate and I don't want you to feel weird, so I dance around and try really hard to let you know that I'm OK, and I end up exhausted and looking very much like crazy. I can think of about 10 or so people that are going to think that I'm pointing directly at them with this entry. I'm not. But I am ready to move forward from this fragile, bruised, and sad role that sometimes people assume I must be feeling. I'm happy. I'm not afraid to talk about you, your baby, your pregnancy or your happiness. I love it!

I've heard it said that journaling can be like therapy for the soul. I hope blogging counts. I could use a little therapy today. Zander is at the San Diego Comic Con, and that means it's my time to rip something up around the house. Last year the rip-something-up-tradition began when the cheesy pergo floor in the kitchen needed to come out. Underneath it was a semi-ugly linoleum that I considered an upgrade. Well, I've lived with that linoleum for a year now, and it's days are done. I ripped most of it out to expose the hard wood floor underneath. Writing it down makes it sound so easy. It wasn't. I'm sore all over. And I've got splinters. And bruises from whacking myself in the shin with a crowbar that I was trying to pry nails out with. This project has helped me see that I could do more construction like things around the house, it's not that hard, but I need to have more tools than a crowbar, a screwdriver and a hammer that's head keeps flying off. Now that I've got the linoleum and the subfloor removed, I've still got to get the screws whose heads have popped off out of the floor somehow. And, I've got to clean the papery glue off the wood. Then there are the gaping holes that are going to require a more substantial molding to cover them up. I'm frazzled. I don't want to spend a dime on this project and I want to have it all done and prettied up by midnight on Monday when Zander gets home. Bleh.

In other news, I'll write more about our trip to Provence one of these days! I've got loads of great pictures, but I need lots of time to just sit down and do it.

Bonjour!

Wow, long time no post. You'll be happy to know that I'm having SO MUCH FUN. Provence is lovely. We've seen lots of little towns, loads of beautiful churches, adorable doorways, the best flowers I've seen, and loads more... So happy seeing new things, but thinking about you loved ones at home and excited to tell you all the details!

Here are a few of the Proex shots being sent off to the orphanage in Colombia. I don't think the top one is too awfully bad, but the other two are the worst! Full body shots... Not since my senior pictures in high school.

Just 2 more (half) days!

Just a little bit farther is all I have to go... The last two days are 1/2 days, and really, it'll be lots of grading/cleaning/and summer well-wishing. I'm pooped. Last night was graduation and I got awfully teary watching some of the dear ones start off on their way to big, big things.
About a month ago, I brought a picture of my Grandma to one of my painting students and commissioned an oil painting. She (Janet) delivered it this week, and I'm absolutely loving it. I keep thinking about the parts that she got exactly right... The way my Grandma's hair curls and the exact spot it touches her neck feel like such intimate details for such a young artist to capture. It's 18"x24", any great bargains out there for nice framing in the cities?

Oh yeah, our home study went really well yesterday! We've got more than a bit of paperwork to do, but things are good. Boo the cat was a bit overly friendly with our very nice social worker, but I don't think she really minded. That is, until we spanked him raw. Anyway, the orphanages in Colombia require formal portraits, so we got some taken at Proex last night. Full body shots, together and separately. Same goes for the 3/4 shots and the extreme close ups! Oh my gosh, I felt like a huge dork. Especially because I think I might possibly appear slightly more motherly without my glasses on, so I had Zander keep mine in his pocket, and now I'm wondering if I just look like I can't really see anything. Oh vanity.

Recent Thrifty Finds

Memorial Day found me in the local Value Village. No, it wasn't the entire day, thank you very much... More like a very respectable hour or two. I got a fantastic vintage black suit. It's adorable, but I'm not sure when I'll get the chance to wear it. However, these little honeys I'll use. The little bird will hold my brooch/pin collection, or at least part of it. AND, I've been looking for a ring holder for a long time now. 1/2 price on 69 cents, and the price is right!


Side bar: I did not think us to be capable of getting PBS television. I've heard about it, but just thought that it must be part of a cable package. Oh no. It's available to us all, and so far, it's a bit like NPR for the eyes. I watched 2 episodes of Craft in America before I felt like the shiny box with flashing pictures was rotting my brain.

spring flowers

What a weekend... We hung out with good friends, ate good food, and got a TON done around the house. I even made it out to the Value Village 50% off sale early this morning. I'm happy. Content even. Think happy thoughts for us tomorrow, we're meeting with the social worker at our house. I gave the poison hatch under the sink an extra good cleaning. I'm picturing her looking through that kind of stuff. I'm imagining her writing in her notes something about how I should use something all the way up before I open a new bottle of tough on grease cleanser.
Since I'm a little bit nervous about our meeting tomorrow, I'm going to need to go on
a really boring rant about my garden. I'm loving working in the garden these days. My prettiest stuff doesn't even need any of my help. It just does what it's supposed to do.



I don't know exactly what kind of bush this is, but I think that I've heard it called an orange bush. It's huge and overbearing, but these little blooms smell divine. Ahhhh.



Last year I planted poppies and they kind of flopped. I was completely surprised to see them bud out this year. I love how they look like phalic looking aliens.



Here're my climbing roses. Can't wait for them to bloom.

Truck Lust

Yep, I've got a bad case of truck lust. How freaking cool would it be to do this to our Subaru? (The image is from Extreme Craft)

Art-a-whirl

This year for art-a-whirl, I decided that I wanted to get some stuff. I love things made by real artist type people, but darn it, they're always so much more expensive than the crap I can buy at Target. So I sewed myself up a bunch of reversible/expandable headbands, and sold them to the crowds. I made enough to snag some of the art work below (although the Puny Bunny was a gift), a cute ring that I'm too dumb to photograph without it being blurry, and cover my costs plus a tank of gas. Not too bad. The novelty of selling something I made was fun. I especially loved seeing little girls dancing in the hall while wearing my headbands. Art-a-whirl is fueled by lots of people who are passionate about their art, and the selling part just buys them the time to make more of it... Their art seems to define who they are. I felt really out of place in that aspect. I don't have a strong political or spiritual belief tied to my little headbands. Indeed, they are not meaningful, and are even less practical than say, a baseball cap. But it's the making itself, not even the product that excites me. Anyway, blah, blah, blah! I had fun.

Here's a bunny print by the talented Puny people. I can't wait to pop it up on the wall.

This sassy gal was printed by AmyJo. I've been a fan of hers for a while now, so it's kinda great to have a piece of her work. It was also pretty great to meet her. What a nice, nice person.

I can't remember the name of the person I got this from, but I LOVE it. It makes me feel very punk rock meets punky brewster.

On a side note, we got together with some friends on Saturday night and played Times Up. If you're into playing games, this is so fun. There's a bit of trivia involved which inevitably makes this big-picture girl feel like a dipshit, but not true this time... so, so, fun.

Bit of a bummer... The adoption home study with our social worker that was supposed to be tomorrow afternoon is postphoned until next Tuesday! So tonight we'll be watching Lost in our very clean and child-friendly home.

Iced Coffee

PRODUCT ALERT! I love iced coffee, and for a long time now, I've been trying out different ways to make it at home. Brewing it in the pot and popping it in the fridge tastes funny to me, even when I add lots of ice! One time I even made ice cubes from coffee, and that even tasted funny. Based on a recommendation from Treehugger, I ordered the toddy. This little system makes the best iced coffee ever, and it's so concentrated that it lasts me at least a week. It's not a fast process... You get 1 lb of coarse coffee grounds wet and let them sit and stew for 12 hours. Then you let them filter into your container for another couple of hours, and voolah, it's done. It's definitely cheaper than hitting Starbucks everytime the urge hits me, but more expensive than brewing hot coffee everyday.

Dear Alexander and Julia,

Welcome! Thank you for putting your trust in us to help you build your family through adoption. We look forward to working with you during this very exciting journey.

We received your adoption application and have officially opened your case file. LZ in our Minneapolis Area Office will be your adoption worker. She will be calling you in the next day or two to schedule your first home study appointment.

Again, we welcome you to our adoption program and wish you the best as you work to complete your adoption.

With warm regards,

The International Adoption Staff of
Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota

***We're official. It's happy and exciting and getting-to-be-very-real news. Now we just have to hurry up and wait for the next 10 or so months!***

This is another busy week at work, with a district-wide art show going up on Monday. Unfortunately, I'm so over being stressed, that I can't seem to get my butt in gear for the next big thing. Alas, I'm on my break, and blogging about nothing instead of getting something done. Oh procrastination, how you vex me so.
When I do get a little time in my grubby little hands, I want to try out this cool project. I've done the freezer paper stencils so many times, that I can't wait to try this cool little twist.
I'd also like to sew this dress.
Again, these are both forms of procrastination, because what I really need to do is go out and give our yard some attention. In the fall, I prefer the do-nothing approach to gardening because I'm sick of it all. That means in the spring the new stuff is trying its best to grow with all the old dead stuff lying on top of it.
More procrastination? My new Blueprint magazine came in the mail yesterday. I've been pouring over it non-stop, and this is my least favorite issue so far.
As a side note, I got my hair cut at Moxie on Monday. It's my second time there with Angela and she's awesome. Anyway, she dried my hair with a diffuser and it seemed managable to do that myself. Especially, ahem, because it would only need to be done once or twice a week. Which brings me to my question... Do any of you Minneapolis people have a diffuser cluttering up your life? If so, I'd love to take it off your hands in exchange for some of my own clutter that might make you happy. Let me know.

Why having today OFF totally rules...

There are lots of reasons why having today off is so great, but here are just a few...
1. I like my coffee in a ceramic mug, not a travel mug. Travel mugs don't feel good on my upper lip, and during the winter time the heater makes the outside of my traveler so hot that it burns my lower lip. Today I drank lots of coffee in a Minnie Mouse mug that my sister brought me from her honeymoon.
2. Last night I did not experience Sunday-night-get-ready-for-work-panic. Instead, I surfed the web and kept thinking about how great it will be to have Monday off.
3. This morning I woke up before the alarm clock went off, and it was already light out.
4. Today the city of Minneapolis replaced the tree they took down. While I'm sure it we paid for it good and plenty, we did not receive a bill and we did receive a very nice little DVD explaining how to take care of a new baby tree.

5. Because I have time to stop and smell the flowers today, I noticed that we have our first bloom of the season.

6. This morning I had time to adjust the duvet cover I made a few weeks ago. I cut up a too small and too shoddy old quilt and sewed it onto a sheet. Then I turned it inside out and sewed three sides of it shut. When I turned it right-side-out, it was a duvet. As a bonus, I found a bag of crocheted flowers at an estate sale and appliqued those on too. I have a lot of those left, if anyone wants some. I should probably put some ties on it to finish it off, but for now, it's fine. I thought I was being so smart and using sheets to make this because I have such a hard time working with large pieces of fabric, that I thought I'd save myself some cutting hassle. Not the case. The sheets weren't the exact same size, and they weren't even truly square. I'll totally make more duvets in the future, but I'll sew panels together instead.

Prom was fun. It was a lot of work, but so worth it to see how much fun the students were having. Oh yeah, the sweet hubbie and Tim worked their hienies off at the coat check. Thanks guys. Here's just a small smattering of Prom 2007, The Allure of Arabia...

Here's a quickie little post, just to stay in touch during this ultra-freaking busy time of year! Prom is tomorrow night. I made 25 gallons of punch this afternoon. My glasses will never be the same after falling into one of my mixing buckets. Along those same lines, the punch might also never by quite the same again. With my grubby hands digging around in there, trying to find my glasses. In my hot and hurried frustration, my only coping skill was to eat the tops off of three of the pumpkins bars that my mom made for the prom chaperones. Sorry Mom, I couldn't help it. There are plenty of snacks left over for them. Anyway, tonight we're seeing Hot Fuzz and I'm quite excited because Shaun of the Dead was so awesome. I'm also excited because I'm on people-overload due to all the drama that surrounds a high-school prom, and I need to do some quiet fantasy land re-charging before tomorrow. Oh yeah, I'm taking Monday off. I can't wait. I'll make sure and post some pictures of the big day real soon.

NEW LINKS PAGE

On this beautifully sunny day, I've been inside, drinking coffee, and updating my links page. I'm heading outside in 5 short minutes, but thought I'd tell you to check out da links. I'm planning on adding some more in the next week or so. Kind of speaking of links, I've been listening to the podcasts for Fresh Air and This American Life while I'm running. Any other regular podcasts I should be checking out? ALSO, I keep hearing how many amazing audio files can be checked out/downloaded on-line from the Minneapolis Public Library. But their website says those files aren't compatible with i-pods. Anyone got a way around this quandary?

Happy Birthday Mom!

Look who just turned 50-ish...

Vertical Endeavors. Oh my gosh, fun and scary and oh-so really, really hard to do. My girlfriend Katie (who has no website to link to) was an excellent instructor and made it look easy and very graceful. I can only wish that I could look that graceful... Especially with the harness framing and emphasizing my slightly robust BUTT. Lovely. Word has it that we're getting a Vertical Endeavors in Minneapolis sometime in the next couple of years.

In other news, adoption stuff is really coming together. We need to get a couple things notarized on Monday, but otherwise the paperwork is D-O-N-E. I'm spreading the word at work, which has been a little bit bittersweet. Just like you'd expect, I've gotten lots of encouragement and support. Lot's of people wanting to set us up with people who've gone through it. But unexpectantly, one woman that pulled me aside and wanted to know how I could look to "save" a child from another country when people in our own country are throwing their children into rivers. Because I didn't expect that kind of criticism, I didn't respond how I wish I would of. Wouldn't it have been cool if I punched her? Or bit her on the arm? And then said something mean and nasty about her breath? My typical response to conflict is to shy away and let it fester. Not with this one. It's nice to just accept that some people say stupid things. End of story.

Hmmm. What else? Have I mentioned that I'm the advisor for the prom this year? It's coming up in three weeks and I'm absolutely s p r e a d thin. I've been waking up in the middle of the night wondering how to go about making punch for 500. My budget for the affair is shocking. $12,000. Way more than our wedding! Wowza!



Oh yeah, I just finished my quilting class at crafty planet. I took it with Rebecca, and it was so much fun. This was taken when I was tying it off, before I put the binding on. I hadn't done binding before and it's so easy.





Speaking of crafy, here are a couple of presents that Zander and I whipped together. Isn't it kind of amazing and funny to think of him cross stitching?

By the way, this post will be labeled that it's posted by Zander. It's not. I just forgot that he was signed in and now it's time for dinner and I don't feel like fixing it. Have a great weekend!

Get over to the Groveland Gallery in the next couple of weeks to see Stella Ebner's work. She gave a wonderful demonstration this weekend on japanese woodblock printing. It was great. Her work focuses on really seeing the ordinary and sometimes mundane stuff in everyday life. She's one of those people I felt like I know from somewhere, and would like to hang out with.

Ride On

Here's one of the oh-so-many awesome finds at the thrift stores I hit this week. One of these days, I want to make her a saddle.

Sweetie Campbell

Look who we met over spring break! The girl is CUTE. She sits up now, and she also roars. We're in love.

Are you all doing your let-it-snow-lots-and-lots-so-school-or-work-gets-cancelled-dance? I'm bargaining with fate already. If I make it through this stop light, we'll have a snow day. If someone says f*** in the hallway in the next couple of minutes, we'll have a snow day. If I don't eat any junk food today, we'll have a snow day. So far, I'm winning.

I wish I had some cool pictures to post today. I'm taking a quilting class with my friend Rebecca, so maybe I'll take some pictures of our quilts this weekend. The class is at Crafty Planet, which is also called Crafty Ways of Getting All of Julie's Spending Money. I really do love that place. I wondered if I was crossing a boundary during the last class when I asked if it was alright for me to bring wine to the next class. I'm making a quilt for our baby. It feels wonderful to not worry about planning too much because I might "jinx" it. We just need to worry about finishing the paperwork, at right now we're just barely crawling through it. It's so hard because it's filled with questions that we haven't even thought of yet! Who gets your baby if you unexpectedly die? Exactly how will you work out day care? Tell us all about your childhood...

This is probably a boring thing to write about, but I just rediscovered the public library. I love it. It feels like I'm stealing books and then bringing them back when I don't need them anymore. Here's what I've got checked out:
A love like no other : stories from adoptive parents
/ edited by Pamela Kruger and Jill Smolowe.
By the way, I hate the title of this book. It feels so gushy and superior.
Traveling mercies: some thoughts on faith/ / Anne Lamott.
I'm not religious, but a friend mentioned that she Loves Anne Lamott and it peaked my interest. I did really like Crooked Little Heart and liked the one that was something about a Blue Shoe. It was slightly churchy though.
All new people : a novel / by Anne Lamott.
Simply pottery : a practical course in basic pottery techniques / Sara Pearch ; with text by Geraldi
Fodor's France. Have I mentioned that we're going to Provence in July? I'm incredibly excited.
Fodor's Paris.
Sew vintage : new creations from found fabrics / Jennie Archer Atwood
This is the worst sewing book ever. Boring and ugly. Barf.
Gee's Bend : the architecture of the quilt / contributions by William Arnett
This book, however, makes we quiver.

Well, today is the last day of February. Can you guess where I'm going tomorrow? Target. I haven't even looked at their Sunday circulars, much less set foot in the stores. I'm very excited to stop at our local Super Target tomorrow. (Lame, I know) March's challenge: No sugar whatsoever. Youch.

I call this painting "Scary Bonnet Girl". I picked it up at the northeast Unique Thrift store for under $2. You're thinking I was robbed, aren't you? I purchased it for the glamorous frame, but I'm starting to like the scary little girl. It's like I want to get to know her. She's so cute, and yet she looks like she could turn on you at any moment. Maybe she has fangs beneath that closed mouth grin. And why is she wearing those black little things on her wrists? My dark side assumes that she's a cutter. Zander thinks it's a tribute to those who have suffered from carpal tunnel syndrome. IF, and that's a big IF, we get rid of the picture (and keep the frame) who would like to be the first to claim it as their very own?

Happy Valentine's Day!

Life at the all-American high school where I work, on a romantic day like this is predominantly one of two things... 1)The bliss one feels when love is eternal. Of course it's eternal, you dumb old person, and here's a bouquet of carnations to prove it. 2)The crushing pain one feels when there are no carnations. Who cares if carnations are ugly? Who cares if there's not really anyone worth being interested in. I need a carnation. At least one. Please. Not everyone here fits into my two very neat emotional states. The sweetest red-haired boy came to my class early this morning to see if we'd like to hear some acoustic guitar while we were painting. Sure his girlfriend was in the classroom at the time, but while he was playing I got a little weepy thinking about how sweet life can be. How lucky we all are to have a lifetime ahead of us, how lucky we are to have people who love us, and how lucky I was to start my day thinking about it. Speaking of lucky, how lucky is it when you find someone that you love, and like, and think is funny, and creative, and kind? Very. Thank you lucky stars.

How Much is Too Much?

How much would do you in?

This weekend we met the Deets. He introduced me to the concept of a monthly challenge. This month my challenge will be not going to Target. You might think I'm setting my sights a bit low on this one. Not so. I have a bit of a Target obsession. You never know when you might need a new sports bra, or possibly a lip gloss. Oh, and spring shoes might be in and you just can never be too prepared. But to omit Target in February is especially tough. Every year I eagerly wait for their Valentine stuff to arrive, and every year I buy up a bunch of heart themed chotchkies (you get what I'm saying, but how do you spell that word? Even spell-check doesn't know!). This year I'll have to get a smidge more creative, because Target is out until March 1. Maybe they'll still have some Valentine clearance left. Sniff, right guys? What's your February challenge?

Look Who's Turning 1 Today!

Our little nephew Joey is turning 1 year old today. We had his birthday party on Superbowl Sunday, mostly to irritate his Grandpa Mike. Joey ate the cake with his fingers, walked around a lot, tried to bite the cat's tail, said "da-da," "clock," and "quack." He smiles and laughs and is SO ticklish. We love you Joey!

The Power of Broccoli

Despite the fact that I never wear aprons when I cook, I have several really cute ones. I put one on the other night while I was making dinner, and it instantly made me feel domestically competent. (Never mind that the toilet has had cat hair stuck to it for as long as I can remember) While I can't remember what I made for dinner that night with the apron on, it undoubtedly contained broccoli.

When we lived in Japan, I could eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted it because I had no choice but to bike everywhere I went. When we moved back here, I continued to eat whatever/whenever with almost no biking involved and my body has puffed out considerably. In all directions. So I started Weight Watchers online, and after a few weeks I figured something out. I can eat as many vegetables as I want and it won't make me gain weight. Also, I can add vegetables to anything and that'll make me feel fuller and less likely to reach for the tube of cookie dough in my fridge. I've quit paying the monthly fee for the program, but still stick with the veggies. So broccoli mixes in with my eggs in the morning. It also gets stirred into my microwave lunches. Yes, our dinners almost always have broccoli stirred in. It's working. I'm losing weight pretty slowly, but the scale is going down way more than it's going up. I'm half way to my goal. My last real weight loss was almost immediate: 20 pounds in a little over a month just by wrapping bacon around cheese and sausage. This way feels healthier. It feels like it's something I can do for years and not worry about clogging my arteries. It also feels slow and frustrating and quite honestly I think it's harder to lose weight in my thirties. Anyway, here's a recipe I haven't made in a while, but is REALLY good hot or cold:

Weight Watchers Broccoli and Bulgar in Spicy Peanut Sauce
1 cup of bulgar, cooked according to the directions on the box
3 cups of steamed broccoli
peanut sauce: 1/2 cup of cilantro, 3 tablespoons of peanut butter, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar, 1 packet of splenda, and some cayenne pepper.

New Laundry Room

Before: Lots of crappy looking dark wood that looks like it might have blood dripping from it.

After: Paint definitely brightens things up. Doesn't it look nice? It's not like it's elegant, or modern, or even kitschy, but it is so much better. Still, there's a LOT more painting to do before we can officially check this one off the list.

Alright, excuse the crappy concert picture, but it was dark in there, and sometimes, when I do remember to bring the camera, I just basically suck.

Mondays aren't so hard to swallow when they're the follow-up to a fantastic weekend away. We booked the tickets so we could hear Patty sing. The concert was wonderful, partially because I know every word to every song and had to try my hardest to not sing along, but also because it was such a tiny venue. I need to go see more live music... HOWEVER, that didn't really even compare to the fun, fun, fun time we spent with Zander's long-time friend Matt, and his lovely wife Brandi. We all stayed up late, slept late, talked for hours, drank loads of coffee, and even got some thrift-store time in. I can't wait to see them again!

True to my New Year To-Do List, I'm learning how to crochet. This is my first hat, but I've already made a scarf and some little crocheted flowers. I started out with a nice looking ball of $7 wool, but it's so scratchy that I've switched over to acrylic, which is nice and cheap. The color of yarn for the above hat is officially camo. Camo with turquoise stripes. The hat is a little bit tight, but the camera angle was kind enough to not show my forehead fat actually popping through the little holes. I think I'll make another one. A bigger one. It was pretty fun, and much more relaxing for me than knitting. I really like the Happy Hooker crochet book for explaining how to do the stitches and most of the included patterns are pretty cute, too.

Man oh man. If I owe you an email, please know that it's on it's way, and that I'm more tired than I ever thought was possible. After a lovely weekend, getting to see a handful of my favorite ladies, we started back to work on our basement ceiling. This time, armed with a kind-of-crappy-for-this-kind-of-job paint sprayer. We started at 9AM and quit around 6:30. My back and neck hurt from looking up for so long, and my hand feels like a taxidermy claw. I have paint in my ears and in my hair. I've also got both pair of glasses splattered with paint, so maybe tomorrow I'll need to break out the old contacts. I also ran this morning, pre-paint, to make up for a few of the beers consumed last night at my step-dad's 50th birthday party. It's exactly 8:38PM right now, and I'm heading to bed in abour 2 minutes. I owe much of this exhaustion to my mom and my girlfriend. Without the two of them here to help, we might have quit around lunch time. We're still not done yet, but the light is definitely at the end of the tunnel. This week starts semester II at school, and there's been a bit of drama at work lately, but I'll try and post some pictures this week! Take care friends!

Check these hats out. Man, I've been wanting to make a hat for a while now, and these totally inspire me. It won't happen this weekend though. My family is giving me one of the best bday presents EVER. They're coming over to paint my oh-so-ugly and unfinished basement's ceiling. We'll all have white paint in our hair and on our glasses, but I can't wait to see how it looks when it's all one. I'll take some before and after pictures.

To do list: 7 in '07

1. Complete all of the mountains of paperwork and be not-so-patiently-waiting for an International Adoption to happen.
2. Run a half marathon.
3. Learn to crochet.
4. Drink lots of wine... In France.
5. Sell some of my stuff at a craft fair.
6. Go see Patty.
7. Keep working on my photo booth project. (Took first set of pictures on Saturday)

Some things that aren't on the list, but I still want to do: lose 15lbs, make a quilt, try out some winter sports, floss everyday, laugh lots, buy less, keep adding onto the gardens in our yard, water-proof our basement, do all the yoga salutations a couple times a week, get together more with friends, and call my sisters more often. Whew.

Photobooth Help

Attention all twin city folks! I'm looking for photobooths. I want to compile a complete list, and visit them all. Here are the ones I already know about:
1) The state fair (I'm assuming this is seasonal, but does anyone know for sure?)
2) The Kitty Kat Club
3) The Turf Club
4) Lake Street Kmart
5) Is there one in downtown Minneapolis near the shoe entrace to Macy's?

Please comment if you know of any more!

Balance

On New Years Day I was on my way to get groceries when I saw a man running off of the highway and away from his smoking truck. I pulled over and asked him if he needed help, and probably (buried deep inside) I hoped that answer was no. But yeah, he did need some help. He needed my cell phone, which I handed over, no problem. Then, he needed a ride home. At that point, a tiny little voice inside told me that it's not safe to pick up strangers off the side of the road, but an even bigger voice yelled about how much of a jerk I'd look like if I refused. So I let him in the car and started to drive him home. (Some of you are now thinking how stupid I am, and some are probably wondering what the big deal is) Anyway, I was a little bit scared, so I called Zander to let him know what I was doing and then he rode along. Of course we're safe, but I keep thinking about all the what-ifs. Crap! What if something happened to me or to Zander because I said yes to something that I really didn't want to say yes to in the first place? I've seen that movie about passing it on, and I think karma happens, and of course I want the world to be a better place, but WTF, how do ya do it all and take care of yourself, too?

Happy New Year!

This picture will be just one of 2007's many reminders to not take myself so seriously. Could I possibly look any dorkier?

Going up to Two Harbors was a great weekend getaway, and such a fun way to bring in the new year. The weather was crap, but who cares when there are fun people to hang out with.

By the way, I got to the gym tonight at 4PM for a free weight training lesson, only to find Channel 9 News there interviewing the trainer I was scheduled with. They followed us around for a while and I'm absolutely sure that I looked ridiculous, which isn't so bad, I mean I am trying not to take myself so seriously, right? It'll air tomorrow at 5PM.