Archive for July, 2008
By sick people, that is!
A few days ago, Meredith threw up a couple of times in our kitchen. I didn’t think much of it; she had been chewing on the edge of a sticker sheet, and I assumed that she had just stuck the sheet back into her mouth too far and gagged. She seemed absolutely fine afterward. Well, early Wednesday morning (around 4:45 a.m.), I woke up to the sounds of Jeff getting sick in our bathroom. I went in to check on him, and he wondered whether it was food poisoning. He went back to bed and got some rest, and then when Lucas woke up, he started getting sick, too. Fun times. :( Poor Luke couldn’t hold much of anything down, but somehow last night he was able to eat a package of fruit snacks just fine. Strange! So, obviously, a tummy bug hit our household ~ and we have *no* idea where it came from.
Everyone’s feeling *much* better now, though. Jeff went back to work today (and even drove to Buffalo, NY, this afternoon for an overnight trip!). Meredith still feels a little warm, but she’s *always* warm. Lucas fell asleep very quickly this evening … he’s probably still not totally 100 percent. He’s eating more, though, which is good. And terrorizing his little sister is always a sign that he’s back to his normal self! :)
Me? A situation like this is pretty much my own personal nightmare. :( It’s awfully difficult for someone who’s emetophobic, and I’ve been hoping and praying with all my might that I don’t come down with what everyone else had. I woke up this morning feeling achy all over and quite “blah,” but after I laid down for a while, I seemed to feel better. Not sure whether I’m “out of the woods” yet. Ahh, I need an ocean vacation to the Outer Banks or something! LOL! :) Surprisingly, I think that I’ve handled this entire situation a *lot* better than I would have in the past, now that I’m taking this anxiety medication. But when I think about what Laura and her family are going through right now with their eldest daughter, Rebecca, it pales in comparison. I was *so* happy to hear positive news in her blog today. And I’m relieved to hear that Chas over at Sugar and Ice is feeling *much* better now, too, and that her precious babies are OK.
Here’s hoping that everyone out there who is reading this is feeling 100 percent healthy and well!
So last night, I had a terrible dream that all of my teeth fell out, one by one. And let me tell you how *very* glad I was, when I woke up, to discover that it was just a dream! Has anyone ever had that same nightmare before? Besides needing a trip to the dentist, I thought that I would search online to see what this dream symbolism could possibly mean. Here’s a page that describes various interpretations, from being anxious about your appearance to a fear of getting old to a fear of being embarrassed in some specific situation to a sense of powerlessness. Yeah, I guess that I’ve been feeling all of those things, to a certain degree! Interesting. But seriously … I’m going to make a dentist appointment here soon. I could have also dreamed about my teeth because my husband casually told me this weekend, “Oh yeah … I have a root canal on Tuesday.” What?!? OMG … I hope that it goes well for him and that it isn’t too painful.
Our power went out yesterday for quite a while. Most of the afternoon, in fact. Made me incredibly behind on my freelance projects, but at least today I’m making some good progress. I love when the power goes out, actually. Jeff and I sat down in the living room by candlelight, each with a good book to read. We don’t do that enough. When the power goes out, it kind of forces us to take time out from the daily grind and just “be.” It’s always weird not to hear the hum of our various computers. But silly me … I thought to myself, “Oh! While the power’s out, I’m going to vacuum real fast while I have the chance.” Duh! That kind of requires electricity.
Oh, and last night I came up with some menu ideas for this upcoming week. Thought that I would participate in “Menu Plan Monday” for the first time! Here are my ideas … just loose guidelines …
-fettuccine alfredo with shrimp (Jeff actually requested this); garlic bread
-taco salad (inspired by Christina!)
-Italian pepperoni pasta salad; fried or grilled zucchini on the side
-breakfast for dinner: zesty brunch quiche; probably some fruit salad to go with it
-soup and sandwich night: some kind of deli meat sandwich; carrot-dill soup
-Fridays are homemade pizza night (Jeff wants pineapple/apple/pepperoni, but that sounds disgusting!)
And … some very exciting news around our household … the other day, Lucas went to the potty standing up! He was *so* excited and said, “Just like Daddy!” Meredith is also showing interest in sitting on the potty seat. I think that we might be potty training two at the same time!
It’s approaching 10:30 p.m., and I should probably head to bed soon. But I’m not quite ready yet, so … why not blog? :) Just a while ago, I posted an entry over at Wellness Journey with some cool links to Internet sites that I’ve come across recently. (Did you know that I have a second blog?) I think that blogging began as a way of sharing interesting webpages, so I’m just trying to go back to my blogging roots. :)
Went to our town’s beach today with the kids. Had a blast. The water was freezing, but after a while I got used to it and was swimming around like crazy. Got a little bit of sun, too. We tried to give the kids a little mini swimming lesson, and Meri did *really* well with kicking her legs and letting me hold her while she tried to float on her back. I think that I gave birth to two fish. :) I’m definitely going to take them there again sometime this next week ~ probably Wednesday after I finish this freelance assignment.
I sat down this evening and printed out a “schedule” for the next few weeks. I listed all of our appointments, birthdays, anniversaries, get-togethers, parties ~ you name it. I love being organized like that. I’ve just felt overwhelmed lately, like there’s *so* much to do. But today at the beach was *such* a nice break. I didn’t bring our camera, either … I just relaxed and had fun. Tomorrow, though, it’s buckling down to work on more freelance stuff.
And now, I think that it’s almost bedtime. Hope you’re all enjoying your weekend so far!
If you wouldn’t mind, please keep my friend Laura over at Synchronization of Us in your thoughts and prayers. Her daughter, Rebecca (who is only a few months younger than Lucas), is pretty sick right now. She’s scheduled to have surgery soon ~ a reconstruction of her vocal cords by taking some cartilage from her ribs and using them to hold her vocal cords apart. The surgery is performed through her throat, and she actually had the very same surgery when she was a newborn. Thing is, she recently came down with pneumonia, and the doctors can’t perform the surgery until that illness is cleared up. I just can’t imagine what Laura, Rebecca, and their family are going through right now. Seeing your child on a ventilator … seeing her feeling *so* incredibly miserable … it’s just awful. :( Plus, Laura is pregnant with their third child ~ a baby boy ~ due in September. Thanks so much for any good wishes that you could send their way. Laura’s second child was born just a few weeks after Meredith, so with our children being *so* close in ages, I feel such a special bond with her ~ even though she lives all the way over in Scotland! She’s a really terrific mom, and I hope that Rebecca feels better quickly and gets to come home soon.
But unfortunately, there’s no one here named Billy to help me peel the label off my bottle of Bud! LOL! :) I popped a few mini loaves of Dill & Cheddar Beer Bread into the oven this morning (thanks to Farmgirl Fare for the recipe). Some of them will be sold at our town’s farmers’ market tomorrow; the rest will be enjoyed here at home. I *love* the smell and flavor of beer, but I’m just not a huge fan of the taste (if that makes sense). I did drink a bottle of Bud Light Lime a few nights ago and actually enjoyed it, and I can see why some of my friends totally rave about an ice-cold beer and a hot, relaxing bubble bath! :) Anyway, this particular beer bread recipe has a pretty strong beer taste. I’d probably add one more cup of cheddar cheese (just because I’m *so* cheesy, LOL!). I used sharp Wisconsin cheddar and fresh dill. Delicious.
I also baked Martha Stewart’s Cherry Streusel Coffee Cake (again, for our farmers’ market) but substituted frozen mixed berries (because I couldn’t find frozen sour cherries). Of course I had to sample a piece to make sure that it tasted OK. Scrumptious! What an awesome recipe to include in a brunch menu. I’m definitely going to make this cake for one of our moms’ group meetings in the future. With the leftover berries and streusel topping, I then baked some mixed berry streusel muffins (with Splenda and white whole-wheat flour). They didn’t get all puffy like regular muffins do, but they’re still good.
By the way, I’m just *loving* all of this rainy weather. I know that sounds weird, but rain rocks. :) It’s pouring right now. We’re going to meet Daddy this afternoon after he gets off work to go swimming in a town pool, but I’m not sure whether it’s inside or outside. I haven’t worn a swimsuit in *so* freaking long. Wish that I could airbrush myself and look like a sexy swimsuit model, but that’s just *not* gonna happen! Lucas wants to go outside and run in the rain, but right now there’s lightning ~ I don’t think so!
The kids are watching “Cars” right now, on the futon in our bonus room. Just a few minutes ago, Lucas shouted, “Mom! I have to use the potty!” So, I paused the movie and put the remote control on my computer desk while I went into our guest bathroom with Lucas. After a few seconds, I heard the movie start playing again. I thought to myself, “Huh?” I went back into our bonus room to look, and here’s what I discovered. Meredith had gotten up, walked over to my computer desk, picked up the remote control, brought it back over to the TV, pointed it at the screen, pushed the play button, and climbed back up into the futon. Nothing ~ not even a potty ~ interferes with her movie watching! Looks like she’s taking after Daddy in the electronics department ~ fully mastering the remote control!
She *completely* made me melt last night. We were snuggling on the futon together, and it was almost bedtime. I gave her a bunch of kisses on her face and neck and said, “I love you!” Then, I asked her, “Can *you* say ‘I love you’?” She looked up at me with her beautiful blue eyes and sweetly said, “LOVE ooh.” It was her *very* first time saying that! I’ve been *so* looking forward to that moment. Seems like yesterday when Lucas said it for the very first time. I just wanted to scoop her up and hug her tightly and give her nonstop kisses. It was just *so* sweet. She also blows kisses now, too (which she learned from her friend Heidi in Chicago). She puts her hand up to her mouth and says, “Mmmmmuah!” And she’s saying so many more new words now, too ~ including “sippy,” “see you soon,” and “pup” (for her favorite Learning Puppy). Just the other day, she actually put together a longer string of words and said, “It is raining out.”
Isn’t she still a tiny baby? How can she be turning *two* in October?
A friend is coming over tomorrow morning to watch Lucas and Meredith while I conduct an interview for a feature story that I’m writing for our local newspaper. I said that maybe after I get back, she could stay and have lunch with us (as a way of thanking her for babysitting). But now, I need to figure out what to serve! I swear ~ despite all of the fantastic cookbooks that we own, sometimes I just can’t figure out what to make. I know that she likes quiche, but I fixed that the last time she came over. Rachael Ray’s latest magazine has lots of awesome-sounding recipes, so maybe I’ll go through and see whether anything jumps out at me.
Speaking of food … I had *oh* such a healthy lunch today: chicken nuggets dipped in honey, Lucas’s uneaten “Cars” Spaghettios, and a bunch of sugar wafers (which I needed to buy today in order to make Martha Stewart’s No-Bake Chocolate and Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars). Why do I do that to myself? I went to the grocery store hungry, so it was difficult not to pig out when I brought everything home. *sigh* If I keep this up, I’m going to need something crazy like Leptitrex, LOL! :)
Oh, here’s a funny story. I stopped at the post office this morning to mail an eBay package, and an elderly gentleman pointed out to me that I had a leaf or something on the back of my white skirt. I took a look, laughed, and said, “Oh, yes I do … thanks so much for telling me!” He left, and I turned back to the counter and said to our postmaster, “Hey ~ does that mean that he was looking at my rear end?” She laughed and said, “He’s a guy. All guys do that.” :D
As you probably know by now, I’ve *really* gotten into photography during the past year. I’ve always enjoyed it ~ ever since taking my first photography class in high school. And I continued learning about photography in college as a journalism major and when I graduated and became a newspaper reporter. But here lately, it has captured my interest as a main hobby. I don’t necessarily want to become a professional photographer (I think that I’ll leave that to the experts ~ at least for right now!), but I’ve been wanting to do something special with my photographs. Sharing them somehow (besides just Flickr). And that’s when I came up with this idea:
I found a way to combine three of my passions ~ photography, graphic design, and letter-writing ~ by having some of my best photos printed as artistic, original note cards and selling them on Etsy. (If you don’t know what Etsy is, please check it out sometime ~ all of the items listed there are handmade by talented people around the world!) I only have three note card sets up for sale right now, but I plan to expand as soon as I figure out whether anyone actually has an interest in them! :)
My grandma used to *love* writing letters, and I definitely think that I inherited that wonderful trait from her. I’ve loved to write for as long as I can remember. Sure, I adore e-mail ~ but there’s just something incredibly special about sitting down to write someone a note or a letter. The excitement of a brand-new notebook or a gorgeous piece of stationery, the feel of the pen in your hand and the way that it glides across the smooth paper, searching for exactly the right words to express your thoughts, perhaps decorating the envelope with stickers, affixing a stamp and return address label … how exciting it is to receive something fun and handwritten in your mailbox! I truly think that letter-writing is a lost art, and I want to change that!
I’d like to offer a little “giveaway” of sorts. On your blog (if you’d like to participate), write some kind of post related to letter-writing. Provide a link back to this particular entry, and let me know (via e-mail or in the comments section here) that you’ve submitted something. I’ll gather the names of all the contest participants in a big hat and draw one ~ and that person will win a package of six note cards created by me. (I’m not sure which design it’ll be ~ how about I surprise you?) And if you don’t have a blog, in order to enter, feel free to leave your name in a comment right here (along with a sentence or two about why you’d like to enter).
Your blog entry could be about a letter that you’ve recently written to someone, maybe a love letter that you’ve secretly kept all these years, your children excitedly writing letters to Santa, a long-time pen pal overseas ~ anything you want, as long as it relates to writing a letter. Just have fun with it! And if you have any questions, of course please let me know. The deadline for submitting a blog entry for this contest is July 31, 2008. I’ll draw the winner on August 1, 2008, and announce it on my blog that day.
Thanks so much for letting me share my excitement about this new venture! :)
Friday night, we watched “The Bucket List.” A bit depressing, but it’s definitely one of my *very* favorite movies now. (Anything starring Morgan Freeman is usually awesome!) At one point in the film, he asks two questions: “Have you found joy in your life?” and “Has your life brought joy to others?” I think that he may have nailed down the meaning of life right there. Without a doubt, that’s how I want to live my life. Just a beautiful, inspiring, and funny movie. I highly recommend it.
Today, bright and early at 9 a.m., Lucas and I walked down to our town hall and volunteered to help pull weeds and spread new mulch around the building. I thought that it would be good exercise for Luke (as well as an opportunity to be outside and enjoy the fresh humid summertime air). Lucas was a *huge* help, and he also got to take a few rides on a tractor (totally the highlight of his day!). It always makes me feel great when I can help, and I might go back sometime tomorrow for more work.
I looked at my “365 Amazing Trivia Facts” desk calendar this morning, and I thought that today’s question was incredibly fitting and appropriate for my blog. “Who brought the first bathtub into the United States?” If you’d like to know the answer, it’s in my comments section.
And then, when I opened my e-mail this morning, I saw today’s horoscope (yes, I have my daily horoscope e-mailed to me, LOL!): “Go through your desk or your closet ~ or, if you’re feeling ambitious, your attic ~ and reorganize. Better yet, you may want to clear out some of that clutter and get rid of it for good!” No need to tell me twice. That’s the mood that I’ve been in lately (and I think that Jeff is, too). I’ve been wanting to reorganize our linen closet; maybe today’s the day! :) Funny ~ the last time that closet was reorganized, I was pregnant with Meredith (talk about nesting ~ I even took a label maker and labeled each shelf, LOL!).
Inspired by another member of my photography e-mail group, I’ve recently tried taking pictures solely in Manual mode. I’m so proud of myself ~ no longer am I “hiding” behind that Auto button! :) Nothing’s wrong with Auto mode, of course, but I’m trying to learn more about photography and expand my skills. Also, I’ve been shooting in both RAW and JPG formats, then using a program that came with our camera to edit the RAW photos. I am *so* proud of this picture of Meredith. I think that it’s one of the best ones that I’ve ever taken of her. I’m completely addicted to RAW! I’m just amazed at how editable the photos are.
By the way … my husband says that my blog is really difficult to read because the font is incredibly small. And then a blog friend e-mailed me today, telling me the exact same thing. Are you guys finding it hard to read? I’ll have to try bumping up the font size a notch. You’ll have to let me know what you think.
So … what’s on tap for your weekend? This afternoon, we’re picking up our CSA share and stopping by the farmers’ market. Tomorrow, I might take Lucas to help with weeding and mulching at our town hall. Sunday, I’m volunteering to help care for the infants during our church service ~ and then there’s a church picnic afterward. Should be fun, hopefully! But right now, I’m heading outside to finish up the trimming in our yard so that mowing will be easier for Jeff when he gets home from work. Have a great Friday, everyone!
