It's true

Have you seen Sicko? Go rent it tonight if you haven’t. It is an incredible film. Last night Wade told me that it changed his life…and I think we’re moving to Canada ;)

But seriously, check it out…good stuff.

{well, actually it is not good stuff, it is terrible stuff, but it is good to know about so rent it. Or come to my house and watch it. We have it on movies on demand until tomorrow night.}

The Jar

Well, I finally got an exam grade that I deserve in my Developmental Biology class: 68%
Can't really complain, I spent all of 3 hours studying for it and only attended 2 classes since the last exam.
The final is going to suck.

My body's latest response to stress is all of my muscles become sore and weak. Mostly it is my hands, arms and thigh muscles that are weak, but my whole body aches right now. I couldn't open the peanut butter jar yesterday.

More with the funk

I spent my day trying to study for my test off and on while doing my job. I have no patience for the fact that I have to spend all of my free time over the next two weeks deciphering these notes. It seems insane to spend my few hours of free time each week doing that. I will never use this information. The older I get the less tolerant I am of my time being wasted. For the first time in my life I am very much aware of time-how quickly it is passing, how we only have a limited amount of it....Sometimes I wish I didn't have this awareness, it seems much nicer to just go through the day with no thought of time, just going through the motions unaware of my hair turning greyer or the fact that 2007 passed in the blink of an eye. Does time move faster as we get older? It seems to. At any rate, I have to find a way to end this school situation. I think that means taking more classes and just really suffering for a few months to have it completed in a shorter time. I am enrolling in another class for the spring. Hopefully this way I can be finished a year from now. I don't want to be in school at all but I want to graduate. I wish my Grandpa was still alive. I would say screw Biology and go work with him in his workshop and he could show me how to be a carpenter. I think I would like to be paid to make things with my hands everyday.

The start of a funk

I twisted my ankle and fell on my ass while getting out of my car this morning. No one was around to see it. I had to sit there for a couple of minutes because my ankle was throbbing and I dropped my lunch bag and half of my belongings fell out of my purse and scattered on the ground. I tried not to cry. In that moment I decided that I am totally miserable, its funny how that can happen, one little thing can set you off. I wanted to just stay sitting there for hours. I imagined walking to my desk and putting my headphones on immediately so I didn’t have to talk to anyone and sitting all day at my desk with all this activity going on around me but no one needing anything from me or asking me any questions or getting any phone calls or listening to any stories. Just sneaking in and sitting at my desk and being invisible.
I know the sources of my funk. This week it is an exam on Thursday and a final on next Thursday and I am starting my period and I am still not over this cold and Henry just does not sleep through the night anymore and I really don’t like my job and I can’t believe that I am about to end another semester and start another one and I don’t feel any closer to graduation and we should be saving money for our vacation and my transmission is starting to slip.
I was only at work for 10 minutes before I had to turn around and go to class. I sat in class confused and bored, wishing I had just stayed at work and saved my $1.75 for parking. This is an example of one page of notes I took in class. I typed them out when I got back to work hoping that they would make more sense after I looked at them again. They don’t.

4) Ureteric bud secretes Wnt9B and
Wnt6.
-Induces MNGM differentiation into epithelial tubule.
-mesenchymal to epithelial transition.
-regulates ECM, CAM and cytoskeletal genes.
-Pax2 txn factor involved.
5) MNGM secrete Wnt4 wich acts in an autocrine way to
consolidate mesencymal to epithelial transition.
-LIM-1 Txn factor mediates this transition to epithelial tubule.
6) MNGM induces ureteric bud to branch
Both “pulls” and “pushes”
GDNF: induces branching.
TGFβ-1: inhibits branching (restricts branching to correct area).
BMP4: restricts branching.

Time

The practicalities of everyday life are really taking it out of me today. I am discouraged. I wonder how an “Average Joe” can live his life without feeling as though he has compromised.

Seriously! Seriously?

What is up with the pre-lit Christmas trees? I mean it's bad enough that I have to buy a fake one (curse you cats!) but now I don't even get to put my own lights on it? And whose idea was this? What, putting up the lights give someone an arm cramp or something?

Gosh Gene, I would love to put up our ornaments this year but the 10 minutes it took me to string the lights really took it out of me. Maybe after I take a nap. Anyone got a Gatorade?

Give me a break!

Random facts

Coming up with my Friday 5 today got me in the mood to makes lists. This started out as next weeks F5 exploded into a Friday 20 (and an hour long distraction from work), which just will not do...so here it is.

1. I take super hot showers
2. My Nana-in-Law (ha!) calls herself a counter-she counts everything (when she is walking she counts her steps, when she is eating she counts her peas, etc) well I am a singer. I sing everything. Sometimes outloud but most of the time just in my head because when I do it outloud I almost always get caught.
3. I really want to be into yoga and poetry, but both of them bore the bee geezers out of me.
4. I am a terrible napper and cannot sleep past sunrise without medication
5. I can’t figure out God/Religion. I am mostly on board with God, but so far religion has just let me down. I hope I have enough time in my life to figure that one out.
6. I have a lot of bad dreams, sometimes they make me scream in my sleep (good times for Wade)
7. I have 4 extreme fears- flying, getting really sick, grasshoppers and public speaking
8. Most of the time I am pretty sure that I am not smart enough to finish college, but I am just going along with it because I have been wrong a lot
9. I would love to live in New York City although the idea of it scares me a little
10. Each of my sisters (I have 3) have at least one quality that I envy, just a little…
11. My sister Susie is the most like my Mom. Sometimes I hear myself saying things exactly like my Dad (especially when I am being silly) but other than that I don’t think I am much like my parents at all.
12. If I won a million dollars I would quit my job, graduate from college and travel the world with my husband and Bean.
13. I think we will have one more baby in the next year or so and then I think we will adopt in the next couple of years and then our family will be complete. Although when I fantasize about my family there are 3 biological children and 3 adopted children.
14. I am getting a LOT more grey hair.
15. I love Hip-Hop and would totally blast it in my car if it didn’t annoy me so much when other people do it.
16. My high school boyfriend treated me like crap and was a totally druggy. Since then I've decided that drugs are for posers.
17. During the eulogy at my Aunt Cindy’s funeral my little sister Susie leaned over and said “That sounds like you Laurie.” It was the greatest compliment I have ever gotten.
18. I only like salads with croutons
19. I think my husband is the funniest person I know
20. I am pretty sure I have ADD because I space out during conversations and can't sit still for an entire movie.

Friday Five

Five favorite moments of the holiday weekend

1) Throwing a party for Henry in MY house!!! YAY!
2) Decorating Henry’s birthday cake with my sisters
3) Watching my sisters interact with Henry for the first time in months
4) Drawing names for Christmas gift-giving
5) Stopping for a moment to be thankful for my fantastic family, my beautiful friends and all the blessings of 2007

What were your favorite moments this holiday weekend?

this time of year

because I love lists. and fresh starts. and seeing my breath in the morning. and scarves. and hot chocolate with peppermint marshmallows. and the grass sparkling in the morning sunlight. the smell of evergreen trees and pine cones. over sized sweaters. homemade snowflakes on the window. lights and nat king cole and talk of reindeer and santa claus. red and green and red and green. decorating cookies. henry crawling under our blankets at night. fuzzy slippers. pink noses and cheeks. how the grinch stole christmas and all the claymation christmas shows from when i was a kid. the sound of the furnace running. visits from loved ones. christmas trees strapped to the tops of cars. an excuse to make homemade gifts out of gumdrops and to snuggle under the blanket with my hubby. henry’s cold nose on my cheek when I get a kiss. the stars seem brighter. the air seems fresher. people seem happier.

A funny thing happened on the way over here

I don’t intend to be preachy, ever, and I certainly don’t want offend anyone and I feel like I have to say this because I have learned over the past few months that food IS an issue for people. The responses I have gotten to- I don’t eat meat or I am on a plant based diet…etc have been extreme, aggressive, rude, and most of the time totally lame. Here are a few, just for kicks-

It’s too bad that you don’t eat meat. Cows are stupid.
Oh, that’s sad.
So, then you must really like salads.
I wonder how long it will take of kids making fun of Henry before he begs you to go to McDonalds
Not eating meat causes diabetes
But what about killing all those plants?
Eat meat, have a vegetarian
But we are carnivores.
How do you live without protein?
All the vegans I know are angry and tired
And my favorite-
Jesus said we should eat animals.

I have responses to each of these comments, although I have to admit, some of them caught me so off guard that I came up with the response long after the comment was made...probably in the car on the way home while talking to myself...but whatever....I won’t bore you with replaying the entire conversation on my blog. What upsets me the most about all of it is that these comments are that they are not an invitation for a conversation. I would love to have an engaging conversation about why I disagree with the statement “We are carnivores”. Or talk about all the great food there is available to a vegan besides a salad. Or introduce protein sources like legumes and grains to someone that has never really tried them. I love talking about being vegan. I am excited and energized by it. I feel proud of myself and my husband for taking the steps to living in accordance with our beliefs and I think what I have learned and am learning about the typical American diet is not only fascinating but also life changing and in many ways life saving. And sometimes I do feel a little sad that I can't share what I am learning with some people for fear that they will get defensive. But I know it is touchy, oh so touchy….

With those disclaimers out of the way, I would like to mention something that has happened to me over the past few months that I think would be interesting to anyone trying to make a change in their diet, even people who are just planning to shed a few pounds come Jan. 2. And that is that- Given time your taste buds will change. I didn’t believe it, but it’s true. For example, I used to love Sheridan’s Pumpkin Pie Concretes. Mashed up pumpkin pie blended with custard and topped with whipped cream and cinnamon sugar (but it’s eating plants that gives people diabetes, right ? ). They only come around in the fall/winter so I decided that it was okay for me to have one this year and a couple of weeks ago we went. I sat in the back seat so I could share it with Henry. I couldn’t eat it. I used to love it but now the flavor of the milk was WAY too strong. I don’t remember even tasting it before and now all I could taste was whole milk. It was crazy. I have also noticed it with cupcakes made with egg-I can taste the egg now which I couldn’t before and with milk chocolate-the milk taste is so strong I can’t stomach it. Also, I can’t do pizza with lots of cheese on it, it’s too rich and milky tasting. This is huge for me because I used to say “There is no such thing as too much cheese.” SO….what I am saying is that if you are trying to get to a point where you don’t crave that large pepperoni pizza or you are going to try loose a few pounds by giving up sweets, you can do it. Cut yourself off for a couple of months and then try it again. I guarantee your taste buds will change.

New research shows

that I am a freakin genius.

I like the stripes

Is it irresponsible to spend $40.00 on baby leg warmers? His legs will get cold this winter. And after $40 I get free shipping....aw-yeaher... Besides, my friends daughter wears them on her arms which I think is downright adorable. Of course, leg warmers are more of a girl thing. humm.

Is it irresponsible to spend $40.00 on baby leg warmers to save just in case some day I have a girl?

I bought stamps

Alright, all of you cute girls that I love. It's that time again to send me your address. I intend to send holiday cards out in a timely manner this year and I have a really cute idea so I might even make them (ah big dreams...)

Yes, I know that many of you have lived in the same house for years and I know that I have probably already mailed a birthday card or something like that to your current address at some point...but send me your address anyway because I am totally unorganized and because you love me. Email is best, I don't want all the hundreds of people that read my blog to get your information....What? No one looks at this blog? You are only looking at it because you accidentally clicked on it while you were dragging it to your recycling bin? Well, then I should probably send out an email...thanks for letting me know ;)

My Mother in Law sent me this as an email and I thought it was so interesting. Especially with the pictures. We spend about $120.00 a week on groceries and I was surprised to see where that number fits in- right between Poland and Egypt. It is from the blog What People Eat Around the World

1. Germany - $500 a week for food

2. North Carolina, USA - $341.98 a week for food

3. Japan - $317.25 a week for food

4. Italy - $260 a week for food

5. Great Britain - $253 a week for food

6. Kuwait - $221.45 a week for food

7. Mexico - $189.09 a week for food

8. California, USA - $160 a week for food
9. Beijing, China - $155.06 a week for food
10. Poland - $151 a week for food

11. Egypt - $68.53 a week for food
12. Mongolia - $40 a week for food

13. Ecuador - $31.55 a week for food
14. Bhutan - $5 a week for food
15. Breidjing Camp - $1.23 a week for food!!! {Sudanese refugees in Chad}

Background

I turned on Wade's computer this evening and found this picture as his background. I think it is so cute and also slightly funny that he has this tiny bunny as his background.

Getting off the juice

I have developed a bad habit recently: Coke Zero

Not only that but my coffee intake has tripled over the past few months. I need to get more sleep, drinking tons of caffeine is not the solution to being tired all the time. Besides, it freaks me out that I can only recognize 3 ingredients on the label (water, carmel color, and caffeine) and I have taken 2 years of chemistry, including organic chemistry (one would think that something like a beverage would not contain any inorganic (in the chemistry sense not the food production sense) ingredients, not true for Coke Zero).

I was going to wait until New Year's to cut the soda out of my diet, but the secret stash under my desk is dwindling and I think it is time.

I also was sick all weekend and drank a lot of tea which rekindled my love of tea. How did I forget about tea? Last night I sat on my sofa with my super warm and super huge sweater from my Aunt Donna (which is actually more like a blanket with sleeves and which I really wanted to hate because it is really meant for a 400 lb person and I was having trouble getting over the fact that she thought it would fit me) and a book and a cup of chamomile tea and it was wonderful. Reminded me why it is that I love winter. But I'll stop for now because I don't want to spill all the goodies I have saved up for Things That Make Me Happy Thursday.

By the way, Henry's birthday was so perfect I really couldn't have asked for more, execpt maybe no sore throat and a few more chairs. Throwing a party for your child is WAY more fun than throwing a party for yourself. I have a feeling that Christmas is going to be way more fun now that Henry is here as well. JOY: I feel it this season.

LUCK FOU PERKINS

And another thing

I am so tired of being fat. This morning I spent 20 minutes trying to find something to wear that would properly cover my gut, butt and boobs. I want to wear a huge sweat suit every day. Something 2 sizes too big that I can hide in. Wade told me last night that he heard about a study done proving a relationship between sleep deprivation for new mom’s and loosing the baby weight. Pretty much confirming what we already knew, Mom’s that don’t sleep don’t loose the baby weight. I haven’t slept for 2 years. I have gained back all 26 lbs from my pregnancy…only I am no longer carrying around a 7 lb baby…now it is a 7 lbs gut. I am thinking about not taking any classes next semester just so that I can go to the gym. Otherwise I am not sure that I will be able to find any time to do it and I HAVE to exercise. I can’t be a healthy person without some physical activity. But good lord, I need to finish school already....this is just ridiculous.

My coworker baby talks to her husband. She has to be almost 60 years old and I am pretty sure he is even older than she is. Just now I heard her say "Oh I know but you have to eat something. If you wait until I get home then it is going to be almost 4 and then you won't want to eat because you'll spoil your dinner. Can you make a peanut butter and jelly? You can toast it if you want? Okay. Love you." Now read that again only remember that it is all in baby talk to a grown man. Annoying huh? I get to listen to that stuff all day.

I hate it when people walk by, make eye contact and then nod. A nod is not a smile. It doesn't count. Just smile. It is much easier and friendlier.

The no-food grumpiness is really starting to set in now. I have eaten all the nuts I have stockpiled in my desk for a rainy day and the Ziploc bag full of stale cheerios that I put in my purse for Henry several weeks ago. I am about to eat that orange I found under a stack of paperwork yesterday. It has to be at least a month old. Come on it's the day before Thanksgiving, aren't they supposed to feed us something in appreciation for our hard work?

The stuffing

I woke up this morning feeling like shit. My head ached, my throat hurt, I wasn’t rested. Henry was yelling for me in the other room “Mama Mama Where are you Mama?” When I got into his room he told me that there was a big huge juice box over there that was spraying him with juice and he did not like it. His first nightmare? When I was a kid I had a reoccurring nightmare that Charlie Brown and his gang where chasing me but I could only run in slow motion. I would wake up panicked and be so scared that I would wake up my sister...neither one of us could ever figure out what exactly was so scary about that dream. Anyway. I put Henry down on my side of the bed covered him up with his blanket and closed my eyes hoping to get just a couple more seconds of rest. He whispered “Mama? Here go Mama.” And then shoved the corner of his blanket into my mouth (he likes to chew on his blankets until he falls asleep). Then I felt his hand on the side of my face. “Where your glasses Mama?” he whispered. I pretended to be asleep. He moved so his face was right in my face, one inch from my nose. “Where your glasses Mama? Henwe find them?” Then Wade stirred and Henry rolled over and shouted “NO WORK BAPA!” “Bapa don like work.” “Bapa stay with Henwe in house and play.” Poor Wade, Henry does this to him every morning and I know it has to be so hard for him to leave.

Getting Henry ready in the morning is such an ordeal. He hates his coat. He hates anything that limits his mobility. With his arms sticking out a little and his head surrounded by a puffy collar he told me “DON LIKE JACKET!” “Mama!” Jacket hurts” I pulled his orange/slightly too small for him hat down over his head and walked into the other room to get my coat. When I came back in he hadn’t moved from that spot. Standing there like a starfish, arms and legs sticking out and his hat down over his eyes. “Mama?” he said. “Henwe don like hat either Mama. Hat in eyes Mama.” Oops, I pulled his hat down too far. “Oh sorry baby. I didn’t mean to pull it down over your eyes. That was too far. Sorry.” The whole way to my parent’s house Henry complained about his jacket. First he went through every body part “Mama. Jacket hurts Henwe’s arms. Mama. Jacket hurts Henwe’s bottom. Mama. Jacket hurts Henwe’s tummy….” Then when that didn’t work he hit me with the guilt. “Mama pulled Henry hat down too far. Sorry Henry. In Henwe eye. Don’t like it.” Like a good Mom I tried to get him off the subject with a bribe. “Want some gum baby? It’s peppermint gum.” “Mmm-hmm Mama.” Henry said. I gave him the gum and he started singing “Peppermint gum. Peppermint gum.” I patted the beat on my leg. “Peppermint gum. Peppermint gum. Peppermint Bapa. Peppermint Bapa.” Henry sang. Then he started cracking up. “Peppermint Bapa?” he laughed. “What?” I said “Peppermint Papa? You’re so silly Henry.” We sang Peppermint Bapa the rest of the way to Gigi’s house.

I got to work an hour later than I wanted to. I didn’t eat breakfast. I have no motivation to do anything so I think I’ll go get another cup of coffee. I thought I was going to get off at noon so I didn’t bring lunch. Just found out that I have to stay until 3. I get really grumpy when I don't eat. I think it is an evolution thing...because our ancestors went days without food, hunting and gathering and all that.... At least I blame it on that. I am going to be a grumpy bear by 3:00.

Tonight we have to finish making Henry’s turkey hands, buy everything for Henry’s cake and clean the house. I am making my sisters leek and potato stew with dumplings for dinner. I feel like we have so many loose ends to tie up this weekend. Hopefully I will get to relax a little on Sunday. KU football and basketball in one day. Go Hawks!

Happy Thanksgiving.

Cookies

Took a break from the cupcakes this weekend and make some chocolate chip cookies. This was my first attempt at vegan chocolate chip cookies. I made a recipe from one of my vegan cookbooks, next time I think I will take my Mom's recipe and just subsitute the eggs and butter.

Meet Pearl

We donated our turkey money to a turkey sanctuary and saved a turkey named Pearl. I think she is pretty cute.

Friday 5

My friend Kate sent me this meme last week. It kinda fits the Friday 5 theme...so it goes up. Play along if you like...

*I give you money and send you into the grocery store to pick up 5 items. You can only pick one thing from the following departments.. what is it?
1. Produce - Avocados

2. Bakery – Rustic whole wheat loaf

3. Meat – Nah…I’ll pass

4. Frozen – Amy’s Veggie Pot Pie

5. Dry goods - Quinoa

* Let's say we're heading out for a weekend getaway. You're only allowed to bring 3 CDs for the plane. What are they?

1. Fiest The Reminder

2. Radiohead Amnesiac

3. Can I just bring my ipod? I don’t ever buy CD’s anymore…

* If I was to listen in on one of your conversations throughout the day, what 5 phrases or words would I be most likely to hear?

1. This weekend Henry said…

2. This weekend Henry did…

3. What’s for lunch?

4. I feel like an alien at my job

5. I have to pee

* So, what 3 things do you find yourself doing every single day, and if you didn't get to do, you'd probably be in a pretty irritable/bad mood?

1. Brush and floss my teeth

2. Hug the boys

3. Take a shower

* What are 3 things that you have in your room that have been with you for the longest amount of time?

1. Omega (My huge, fluffy, white comforter)

2. A necklace from my parents

3. A robe that my Grandma made for me when I was 10 years old

* You're driving down the road, and suddenly you're hit with this sense of road rage. What 3 factors probably contributed to it?

1. I’m being tailgated

2. I just got cut off

3. The music in the car next to me is so loud that it is making my car vibrate and my son is yelling “Turn off radio Mama”

* Sweet, you just scored a whole afternoon to yourself at your house. We're talking a 3 hour block with nobody around. What 5 activities might we find you doing?

1. Taking pictures

2. Cleaning the kitchen

3. Watching a movie and knitting

4. Reading

5. Making cupcakes

* We're going to the zoo. But, it looks like it could start storming, so it'll have to be a quick visit. What 3 exhibits do we have to get to?

1. Hippo

2. Elephant

3. Otters

(crying all the while)

* You're hungry for ice cream. What are your favorite 3 kinds?

1. Pumpkin spice

2. Raspberry sorbet

3. Anything containing coconut and chocolate

* Somebody stole your purse/wallet…in order to get it back, you have to name 5 things you know are inside to claim it. So, what's in there?

1. Orange wallet

2. Henry’s socks

3. 4 different kinds of Lipolicous lip-gloss

4. ipod

5. Pink sparkle toothbrush, floss and tiny Colgate toothpaste tube

I've never been one to "tag" people but I'd love to see what you got....I know it seems like a waste of time, but do it anyway ;)

Thursday Love

Here's the thing. I love Anthropologie. I want to live in the rooms in the catalogs and wear all the clothes. Also, I love mugs. I know, it's a little strange but I just do. I have a lot of mugs...so many that they wouldn't all fit in the tiny kitchen in our last house. A few years ago we went to Prince Edward Island on vacation and I came home with 5 mugs. I have never considered myself a collector of anything really, but I suppose I need to come to terms with my mug addiction.
This week my love of these two things came together and the result was me spending entirely too much money on something that I will likely break in the next 6 months. Oh well. I ordered these birdy mugs on Monday. I got the package this morning....cutest ever! Now they have plates and bowls in the same pattern....this is not good folks. Would it be irresponsible of me to get a second job to pay for my Anthropologie addiction?

Things that make me happy Thursday

Cupcakes are the most versatile food. You can dress them up or dress them down. You can bring them to a kid's birthday party or serve them at a wedding. Make um for a holiday or just for the hell of it. They are fun for grownups and kiddos. They make people happy. That is why I love them. Well, that and there is just something so very lovely about having a tiny cake in your hand that you can eat without utensils and that will most likely leave icing on your nose.
For me some days are just cupcake days...it's like people that can sense when it is going to rain, I can sense when a cupcake needs to be made. This weekend is a cupcake weekend. I am leaning towards the chocolate cake with coconut icing ones in the picture above because they are just about the most delicious cupcakes on the planet. I think this time I will add some chopped almonds on top to make them officially "Almond Joy Cupcakes". But there are other options. One of my cupcake cookbooks has a recipe for Top Hats which are chocolate cupcakes with a huge swirl of marshmallow icing on them that are dipped in a chocolate sauce that hardens as it cools...HELLO! Yup, that one is on the list. And I still need to figure out my failed red velvet recipe. Either way cupcakes and Laura will be together this weekend and if that doesn't make me happy then nothin' will.

*Side note: A couple of people have emailed me asking where I get the cupcake papers for my cupcakes. I get them here. They are called Nut and Party cups. Enjoy!

Morning email

L: Hey cutie
W: Hi. What's up?
L: What time did you leave this morning?
W: Before 6. I wanted to get some extra hours to make Friday easier on you
L: I rolled over for a snuggle and got a cat cleaning herself
W: Nothing in the world says "this is not the time to snuggle" quite
like a wet cat butt being licked
L: Amen to that. By way she was sitting on your pillow.

Two months in advance, but don't forget:

I want to make and decorate sugar cookies

I want to clean my house listening to Christmas carols

I want to go on a Christmas-light drive with my sisters

I want to make a stocking stuffer for everyone

I want to find the perfect ornament for Henry

I want to fall asleep on the sofa with the Christmas lights on

I want to make a gingerbread house

I want to volunteer at LINK

I want to make a gumdrop wreath for our front door

I want to keep an advent calendar

I want to make homemade peppermint marshmallows to drink in my hot cocoa

You can't hang

I stayed up until 1:00 last night sewing Henry's Christmas stocking. I was sitting on the sofa in a calf length pink flowered night gown wearing my glasses with one arm and huge green wool socks, sewing a tiny snowman. At about 11:00 Wade came in and said he wasn't rock and roll enough to stay up as late as I do. I threw him some horns and started working on the snowman's tiny mitten. I am a bad ass.

Um...yum!

One of the very wonderful things about eating a plant based diet is that you instantly get more of what all of need to be getting more of....plants. Tonight for dinner I did a vegan take on a chicken noodle soup with dumplings. It had no chicken and no noodles and it was loaded full of veggies and it tasted better than any chicken noodle soup with dumplings I have ever had. This recipe came from a cookbook purchased during a moment of weakness at Amazon. It has leeks, carrots, onions, potatoes and peas, and then me being unable to stick with a recipe even when it is my first time making it...I threw in some kale. I will do anything to sneak some kale into my son's diet. Henry thought it was good at first. That seems to be how it goes lately. The first few bites go down great and then he decides that the peas should not be touching the carrots and the beans should not be touching the dumpling and the whole thing goes array.
Anyway, Kelly, I am making this for you. One batch of this would last you a month :)

YELLOW

Our little maple tree out front, well I should really say little I think it is actually the second biggest tree on the block after the tree in our side yard (one of the perks of owning an old house) but anyway, our little tree is coming around slowly. The rest of Lawrence is ablaze with beautiful oranges and reds while our little tree trugs along...mostly green still with just specks of yellow.

Friday Five

Things that come easy to me....
1) Parallel parking
2) Memorizing song lyrics
3) Forgiveness
4) Laughter
5) Giving my opinion

Things that I am not so good at…
1) Public Speaking
2) Singing without going flat (doesn’t stop me though)
3) Phonics
4) Riding in airplanes
5) Picking up after myself

Give me what you got.....

Things that make me happy Thursday

I had my third exam today. I’ve realized why it is much much better to finish college as a young person. Frankly, I just don’t have time for this crap. Everyday I have a choice-jump in the leaves with my son and husband or study how the notochord forms in chick embryos….it’s a no brainer. So, again the exam creeps up on me and again I go in unprepared and only half invested. Whatever, I don’t think I failed it and that is good enough for me….I guess that is a function of age too, I really could care less if I get an A or C I just want to pass it and knock one more shitty class off the list so I can finish up this seemingly never-ending college experience. But the exam is over and we only have 8 classes left in the semester. And that makes me happy.

Preparing for an exam is stressful but it’s hard to be too bummed about it. I woke up this morning feeling a little more rested, went to bed early and my hubby took care of Henry’s nighttime calls so that I could be rested for my test. On our drive to Gigi and Grandpa’s this morning Henry was cracking me up talking about how he needs more Mentholatum (I don’t even know how to spell it so I really can’t figure out how a not-quite-2-year-old could figure out how to say it). The cool air met the warm river water and caused a light fog to form over the river making our drive over the bridge this morning quite lovely. The sun rising in the background and the red, yellow and orange trees with the fog was picturesque and made me wish that I had my camera, but a photo couldn’t have captured how lovely it was in real life, so instead we just drove really slow and I explained the “smoke on river?” to Henry. I love that I can finally have conversations with this kid. I remember not quite 2 years ago looking at him and wishing I could understand what he needed, now he can tell me what he needs (apparently today it's Mentholatum) and that makes me happy.

Once we got off the bridge I turned up NPR just in time for Carl Kasell to tell us that the Phelps clan might just be getting a tiny slice of what they deserve from a family in Baltimore. Apparently they protested at the funeral of a soldier who was killed in Iraq and the father of that soldier sued them and won-$11 million dollars in damages. The family will of course fight the ruling but you know, I am eternally optimistic and believe that people who fill their lives full of hate will eventually get their come-up-ins. Karma will get ya. The Phelps are disgusting human beings that ooze a message of hate so foul and hurtful that $11 million doesn’t even really touch it but it’s a start and quite frankly I am just thrilled that someone had the guts to stand up to them. And this makes me very happy.

The Frida Kahlo cult

My friend Elizabeth reads the New Yorker and she will occasionally print off or emails articles to me that she thinks I would be interested in. They range from articles about social issues to essays by David Sedaris. She is so good to me! Today she passed along article about Frida Kahlo because she knows that I am, in fact, a due paying member of the Frida Kahlo cult. The author of the article said it best when he described her work as "assuring me of two things: first, that things are worse than I know, and second, that they're all right." Seems fitting today.

Horizon

It seems impossible that we are getting close to the end of 2007. Time is flying by a record speeds. But the end of the year is full of things that we are looking forward to. There is a lot of good stuff on the horizon for the Bean’s crew-
A trip to Atwood over the holidays
A trip to Louisville the first week of 2008
A birthday celebration for a little guy
Christmas and Thanksgiving with my family.
Jason and Mandy are coming to visit and we get to spend the weekend with them at the Circle S (Which means I can scratch off #20 )

Family, friends and travel to close out 2007--We can only hope with 2008 is full of more of the same.

Nina

I’ve got some stuff to work on.
Big stuff.
Life changes.
Questions that I need to answer.
Priorities to reorganize.
Relationships to invest in.
Relationships to let go of.
Time to find.
Memories to create.

I haven’t worked though all the details but I have a starting off point-
First -no more television-wasted time.
Second -no more road rage-wasted energy.
Third -no more negative people-more wasted energy.
Forth-find time for exercise-I miss it and I need it.

I want to put my time and energy into things that really matter to me. Into creating a life that follows my personal truth with determination and honesty but also with gentleness and an open heart. Simplicity, peace and happiness- that is my mantra for now.

When I die they will laugh about my insane cookbook collection

or....If I don't show up to work come check on me to make sure I wasn't crushed by my insane cookbook collection. Either title will work.
I got a coupon from Amazon for being such a great customer and I got an email from Compassionate Cooks about Colleen's latest cookbook and so I decided it must be a sign and I ordered two more cookbooks. That's it! I must stop now. I have more cookbooks than I know what to do with and probably 80 recipes I have found online that I have printed off and need to try. But today, for my Things that make me happy post rather than focusing on my addiction to cookbooks I will focus on the fact that they make me Oh So Happy! And the fact that I have a wonderful spouse that never comments on the fact that my cookbooks and recipes take up 1/3 of our kitchen counter. Love you honey!

Random

Wade started his "new" job today so he had to go in at 7am (instead of his old noon to midnight shift) and we got to take a lunch break together. I am hoping that this becomes a regular date for us because we so rarely get to spend any time together-alone and not asleep. We had brunch at my favorite brunch place, Miltons, and I discovered my new favorite fru-fru coffee-The Heavenly Latte. White chocolate, coconut and vanilla. I don't know if they put the little feather on all their lattes or if it is just for the "heavenly" variety but it is almost too cute to drink....almost...

We decided that the best way to boost the resale value of our house is to add a bathroom and so I started looking for bathtubs. Of course this probably won't happen for a couple years but it is good to be prepared for these things. I found this tub on the web. It is a couple that restores old bathtubs. I LOVE IT! So...I reserved one. It was free to reserve it and there is no obligation. I think it is just so that the people know what type of bath we want so that when they find it they can contact us. YAY!

Friday Five

Top Five repeats on my i-pod

1. Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da:::The Beatles
2. The Food:::Common
3. I Feel for You:::Chaka Chan
4. One, Two, Three, Four:::Fiest
5. I’ll be Rested:::Mavis Staples

Hit me with yours......

Two thoughts

I love people that blow up stereotypes. Today in class we had a guest speaker, he was recruiting undergrads for the teaching program. Apparently there is a major shortage in the US and so KU has developed a program for undergrads to get their major degree and a teaching certificate. Anyway, so this guy looked like a football player. He was probably 6 foot 5 and weighed 300 lbs. He had a combed out fro and was covered in tattoos. He is a 7th grade math teacher. He was funny and bright and passionate about teaching and, I have to admit, by the end of his presentation I had a little crush. He is a recent KU grad but I got the impression that he does not teach in Kansas. These are the kind of people I want teaching my children because teachers do so much more than present a subject, they help build self-esteem and have a big impact on their students future. After listening to his presentation I wanted to be a teacher.

Then we had a nurse do a presentation. I started thinking about when I was pregnant and the nurses I encountered both before Henry was born and during our stay in the hospital when he was born. I love being around pregnant women, and a good nurse can totally change a pregnant Mom’s experience. Our delivery nurse, Colleen, was totally amazing. I hugged her four times in our two day stay at the hospital. Wade did too. She was awesome and after Henry was born I sent her a thank you note (I also sent our doctor a thank you note because she was also awesome). After listening to his presentation I wanted to be a nurse.

But then I love cooking and baking and cupcakes and chef school sounds like so much fun. Yikes! Will I ever figure this out? I suppose I would rather feel overwhelmed with choices then feel as though I don’t have any options….and a positive way to look at it is that either way I think I will be happy with my decision. And either way is better then what I am doing right now. Oh so much better.

Birthday-o-ween

As a kid I always wished that I had an October birthday. For starters my birthday is in August so I never got to bring birthday treats to school. Second, it just always seems like it would be so fun to have a birthday costume party. Henry's birthday falls so close to Thanksgiving every year that I imagine it might be sort of hard for him to have birthday parties when he is school age...maybe we will have early birthday parties over Halloween instead....

Well, these cupcakes are for my Mom. My parents spent the weekend in Chicago celebrating her birthday and so to surprise her and do something for the woman who is always doing something for everyone else, I put made these and left them on her kitchen counter with a bunch of sunflowers. I had Henry do a quality control on the cupcakes before we took them to Gigi's house. His analysis "Henwe like cupcake. More please. Nother Mama?" Fingers were licked as well as arms and shirts, so I think we were good to go.

Black bean soup, grilled polenta and salad

I know, noodles and beans together...it's weird. But it actually really works. This recipe is super easy too. The only downfall is remembering to soak the beans the night before. Polenta is a piece of cake to make or you can buy it in tubes at the store.

I missed Saturday but that's okay because I didn't really fix anything. We had Amy's veggie burgers, baked beans and broccoli.

Lentil Stew, salad and biscuts

There is no way to make lentil stew look appetizing in a photo so you'll just have to trust me on this one. It was good lovin.

5 Years

Self-portrait #8

I finished my Frida necklace last week. I think it turned out really great.

Eh.......almost

I put the recipe together in honor of my friend Lisa. We used to work together and would often run into each other around lunch time in the break room with our matching stuffed shell pasta Amy's meals. One afternoon she told me that that this was the one meal that she could eat every day.

This dinner was oh so close...but not quite. The flavors were great. The spinach puree was a little too smooth for our taste, it needed some body and some crunch. I haven't given up on it yet though...you might see it again soon.

Things That Make Me Happy Thursday Part 2

I got on the subject of San Francisco this afternoon and it brought back all my great memories of our trip to SF many many years ago. We weren't married at the time but so far this is the closest we have come to a honeymoon. There is a ton of great stuff going on in the Bay Area, we didn't even scratch the surface during our visit. Alcatraz was really cool. Shopping in Berkeley was fun. But my favorite part of our trip was Muir Woods. That is a place I could go back to over and over again. It was breathtaking.