2.03.2012
2.01.2012
Time. I've Lost Mine, Can I Borrow Some of Yours?
Let's start by saying that before I had a babbling, rolling, giggling, smiling, energetic baby on my hands I actually wondered in those last months of pregnancy, what I was going to do with myself during the day once she arrived. SERIOUSLY??
Let me continue by saying that the few posts I've managed to write in the past few days have occurred for the following reasons. 1. My parents were here and successfully managed to entertain the baby for a while. 2. I have decided that despite my New Year's resolution to be more organized, which resulted in a cleaning schedule, that cleaning is not the best use of my time. 3. Stretchy is taking a nap.
Since she was born, I have gone from having all the time in the world. Time which I used to fill with mindless activities like browsing the internet, playing mindless solitaire games on the computer, drawing random doodles, trying new recipes, shopping at stores by walking down every single aisle, and even, on occasion, napping.
For some reason, now that I have zero time, I continually think of things that I never did WHEN I HAD TIME, but that seem imperative now that I don't. Like making a home organization binder, redoing my teaching portfolio, making a book of our photos from our year in Dresden, sleeping...
In fact, now it seems that I have actually managed to have negative time. Negative time occurs when you not only have zero time to get anything done, but when it seems that the time you might have to get things done is so minimal that it doesn't exist. It causes all "things that need to get done" to pile up so that you become so overwhelmed that even when you have time, you cannot utilize it because you are so befuddled by those "things" that you don't know where to start and are fairly certain that even if you did start, you wouldn't be able to finish and would probably just add to the list rather than be able to cross things off.
Stretchy naps about 3 times a day. Awesome? Sure, it would be. If she ever slept for more than 20 minutes. 20 minutes allows for the completion of the following household tasks: emptying 1/2 the dishwasher, washing 6.8 dishes, putting in 1.2 loads of laundry, folding 20 items, putting away a laundry basket full of items, except those 4 things, making a bed, taking a shower and getting dressed, writing 4/5 of a blog post, or most often, checking e-mail (resulting in the use of the remaining 19.5 minutes mindlessly surfing the internet).
So, how about it. I've lost all my time. Can I borrow some?
Let me continue by saying that the few posts I've managed to write in the past few days have occurred for the following reasons. 1. My parents were here and successfully managed to entertain the baby for a while. 2. I have decided that despite my New Year's resolution to be more organized, which resulted in a cleaning schedule, that cleaning is not the best use of my time. 3. Stretchy is taking a nap.
Since she was born, I have gone from having all the time in the world. Time which I used to fill with mindless activities like browsing the internet, playing mindless solitaire games on the computer, drawing random doodles, trying new recipes, shopping at stores by walking down every single aisle, and even, on occasion, napping.
For some reason, now that I have zero time, I continually think of things that I never did WHEN I HAD TIME, but that seem imperative now that I don't. Like making a home organization binder, redoing my teaching portfolio, making a book of our photos from our year in Dresden, sleeping...
In fact, now it seems that I have actually managed to have negative time. Negative time occurs when you not only have zero time to get anything done, but when it seems that the time you might have to get things done is so minimal that it doesn't exist. It causes all "things that need to get done" to pile up so that you become so overwhelmed that even when you have time, you cannot utilize it because you are so befuddled by those "things" that you don't know where to start and are fairly certain that even if you did start, you wouldn't be able to finish and would probably just add to the list rather than be able to cross things off.
Stretchy naps about 3 times a day. Awesome? Sure, it would be. If she ever slept for more than 20 minutes. 20 minutes allows for the completion of the following household tasks: emptying 1/2 the dishwasher, washing 6.8 dishes, putting in 1.2 loads of laundry, folding 20 items, putting away a laundry basket full of items, except those 4 things, making a bed, taking a shower and getting dressed, writing 4/5 of a blog post, or most often, checking e-mail (resulting in the use of the remaining 19.5 minutes mindlessly surfing the internet).
So, how about it. I've lost all my time. Can I borrow some?
1.30.2012
Cake Wars: Me vs. Me... In my kitchen!
I love Food Network Challenge where they have to make crazy cakes. Every time I watch it I'm convinced I should probably be on it. Mostly because I have close to zero cake decorating experience and have made all of two (now three) decorative cakes in my baking career. Yet I still feel, that despite never having even seen a piece of fondant, that I could be a strong competitor.
While in Dresden, I made two fancy-schmancy cakes. One was an alligator for our friend Casey's birthday, and another was "commissioned" after the cake was displayed at a party, for another friend's daughter's birthday.
Click here to see the first cake, an awesome alligator. Here to see the second cake- a frog prince.
After the first cake a year ago, I was asked to create a dragon cake for a friend's birthday. He's Welsh, and the Welsh flag looks like this:
Unfortunately, when I agreed upon making the cake, I didn't even know I'd have a baby yet! Needless to say, making fancy-schmancy cakes is a time-consuming process. With a small baby, I would have needed approximately 1 year, 4 weeks and 3 days to complete a dragon cake. So, I had to call in the reinforcements. Thanks Mom!!
Due to my incredible cake-decorating expertise, I only had to redo the entire carved part of the cake once, and the wings twice, but other than that, things went smoothly (though as always, took about 14 times longer than originally anticipated).
Here is the fancy-schmancy dragon cake.
I also made cutsy-wootsy dragon cake pops.
See, told you I should be on Food Network! Also judging by the quality of photo #1, I should not enter photo contests... Though I am starting to work on the quality of photos (see photo #2) but can only manage to bang out one good photo a session...
While in Dresden, I made two fancy-schmancy cakes. One was an alligator for our friend Casey's birthday, and another was "commissioned" after the cake was displayed at a party, for another friend's daughter's birthday.
Click here to see the first cake, an awesome alligator. Here to see the second cake- a frog prince.
After the first cake a year ago, I was asked to create a dragon cake for a friend's birthday. He's Welsh, and the Welsh flag looks like this:
Unfortunately, when I agreed upon making the cake, I didn't even know I'd have a baby yet! Needless to say, making fancy-schmancy cakes is a time-consuming process. With a small baby, I would have needed approximately 1 year, 4 weeks and 3 days to complete a dragon cake. So, I had to call in the reinforcements. Thanks Mom!!
Due to my incredible cake-decorating expertise, I only had to redo the entire carved part of the cake once, and the wings twice, but other than that, things went smoothly (though as always, took about 14 times longer than originally anticipated).
Here is the fancy-schmancy dragon cake.
I also made cutsy-wootsy dragon cake pops.
See, told you I should be on Food Network! Also judging by the quality of photo #1, I should not enter photo contests... Though I am starting to work on the quality of photos (see photo #2) but can only manage to bang out one good photo a session...
1.28.2012
Mission Organization: Started
To keep up with my New Year's Resolution I have so far completed the following. Check.:
*Pinterest is a fantastically awesome way to collect things you see online on your own personal "pin boards" to be shared with family and friends. It also allows you to see what family and friends are collecting. It is also extremely addictive and should be used with care. Many hours of what could have been productive computer time editing photos, updating my blog, or doing other important things have been wasted searching the internet for fun things for my boards. Just saying...
-organized my pantry with matching storage containers
-organized my kitchen cupboards with additional shelf risers
-organized kitchen paper clutter with the following two awesome ideas found on Pinterest*
Mail Station/ Message Board
Paper Filing System
1.21.2012
Darth Vader
The past two nights I've been in the company of Darth Vader Baby. We're sharing a room since we're at my parents visiting, and let me say that sleeping with a baby who snores louder than my dad (think chainsaw) makes sleeping very difficult. Not to mention the possibly lethal levels of Vick's Vapo-rub particulates circulating throughout the room or the fact that humidity levels in there rivaled the rainforest. Let's just say I'm tired...
Strethcy hasn't been sick yet (though I've supposed some days of not feeling so great to give her an excuse for being fussy 24/7), so the past couple days I've been the most paranoid mother on the face of the earth. Its probably a good thing that I'm here with my own mother to keep me grounded or we'd probably have been to every hospital in the state multiple times. ("What do you mean she's fine and just keep her elevated? Clearly she has brochitis or some other respitory disorder." "It's NOT pneumonia? Well then it must be whooping cough- those vaccines suck!!") Fortunately, Stretchy is still alive. She's clearly not a happy baby, but her condition looks like its not life threatening. Probably a good thing I didn't go to all those hospitals because now I'd feel like an idiot.
Dear baby,
Please get better soon. Mommy doesn't sleep well with a snoring baby next to her. Also, she's very tired from getting up every 10 minutes to check if you are breathing.
Love, Mommy.
1.15.2012
Happy 1/4 Birthday!!
Today is Stretchy's 1/4 birthday! I can't believe that she's already 3 months old. I also can't believe that 3 months ago we didn't have a baby.
I had to make sure that we had some pictures of her on her 3 month birthday, so I put her in my favorite outfit, the one with whales, and set her up with her new favorite toy, the fishtank. (PS. Lamaze toys are THE best)
So Happy Quarter Birthday!
I had to make sure that we had some pictures of her on her 3 month birthday, so I put her in my favorite outfit, the one with whales, and set her up with her new favorite toy, the fishtank. (PS. Lamaze toys are THE best)
So Happy Quarter Birthday!
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