I'll write a full review of my newest favorite website after the semester is over, but I just have to geek out about it for a moment.
I originally found WEBstaurant when I was looking for pizza screens. Since then I've fallen in love with it over and over again as I browse and dream. I want to open a bakery just to get my hands on all the wonderful goodness to be found on this amazing website!
Anyway, I wrote two reviews for the things I bought there, and they were both accepted! They're giving me a $2 credit for each review that they publish! I know it's only $4 but man, that's a new set of stainless steel measuring cups right there! What a great incentive to keep reviewing.
Hm... what else can I do with my $4? I'm oddly giddy over that tiny sum of money.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Almost
The end of the semester is almost here.
It's almost Christmas.
It's almost time to visit family and friends.
Man is almost out of the Army (no disability rating yet).
The kids' long string of birthdays is almost here (Dec, Jan, Feb, April) and they all want parties.
I have a new story idea that I'm almost convinced I should start writing on right away. Almost.
I'm almost convinced that we need to swap three bedrooms in my house. Heh. I need to decide before I have the missionaries over for dinner, so I can get them to lift the furniture for me. They're always asking if there's anything they can do, and Man sure as heck can't lift.
I'm almost done Christmas shopping.
The kids are almost... no, not almost. The kids are sick, have been sick for a long time, and they're not better yet. Should that keep us home for Christmas? It might if they don't get better, and I can't tell you how awful I'd feel if any family got the lingering crud we're fighting.
All this almost is making me a little crazy. I'm so not used to much sugar anymore that when I sat and nibbled on Hershey's Kisses all day yesterday without eating real food, I went nuts. I suddenly have a lot of sympathy for those who suffer with bipolar disorder.
Two more class periods and one day full of finals. Yep, all of my finals are on the same day. ALL. That's six hours of hard core testing, man. And a lot of #2 pencil lead. Thank goodness there's only one hand written exam. The other two are a combined 160 multiple choice questions and the turn in of one take home essay test, which I've already completed. I might actually try to take the psych test early this week. Hm... time to get one that, I think. Wish me luck!
It's almost Christmas.
It's almost time to visit family and friends.
Man is almost out of the Army (no disability rating yet).
The kids' long string of birthdays is almost here (Dec, Jan, Feb, April) and they all want parties.
I have a new story idea that I'm almost convinced I should start writing on right away. Almost.
I'm almost convinced that we need to swap three bedrooms in my house. Heh. I need to decide before I have the missionaries over for dinner, so I can get them to lift the furniture for me. They're always asking if there's anything they can do, and Man sure as heck can't lift.
I'm almost done Christmas shopping.
The kids are almost... no, not almost. The kids are sick, have been sick for a long time, and they're not better yet. Should that keep us home for Christmas? It might if they don't get better, and I can't tell you how awful I'd feel if any family got the lingering crud we're fighting.
All this almost is making me a little crazy. I'm so not used to much sugar anymore that when I sat and nibbled on Hershey's Kisses all day yesterday without eating real food, I went nuts. I suddenly have a lot of sympathy for those who suffer with bipolar disorder.
Two more class periods and one day full of finals. Yep, all of my finals are on the same day. ALL. That's six hours of hard core testing, man. And a lot of #2 pencil lead. Thank goodness there's only one hand written exam. The other two are a combined 160 multiple choice questions and the turn in of one take home essay test, which I've already completed. I might actually try to take the psych test early this week. Hm... time to get one that, I think. Wish me luck!
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Fun little project
I was fiddling around with blogs and started this little guy:
Something Clever and InconsisTent
Check out my fish!
I was thinking about doing that blog for product reviews. I don't want my blog to become a commercial but there are some consumer items I'd like to share and discuss, for better or worse. Amazon has a nice program that gives me the power to easily link pictures of what I'm preaching about, including a little photo carousel.
(My favorite part is the fish, which I may have to integrate into this blog as well.)
Something Clever and InconsisTent
Check out my fish!
I was thinking about doing that blog for product reviews. I don't want my blog to become a commercial but there are some consumer items I'd like to share and discuss, for better or worse. Amazon has a nice program that gives me the power to easily link pictures of what I'm preaching about, including a little photo carousel.
(My favorite part is the fish, which I may have to integrate into this blog as well.)
Reading
In an effort to understand and work with the people with whom I live, I'm currently reading Men Are from Mars and Women Are from Venus, and The Parenting Breakthrough.
I read Mars/Venus quite some time ago and thought it made a lot of sense. This time through it's making me mad. It has a lot of anti-feminism undertones that just rub me the wrong way. The author comes across as some sort of male apologist who's trying to coax volatile yet delicate females into getting along with their mates.
I understand that when he says feelings can't always be rational and logical that he is NOT saying that they never are. That first sentence is the one that gets to me. Perhaps it's an irrational feeling of irk that cannot make logical sense because life has me by the nads and I'm incapable, due to my female nature, of calming down and making complete sense. Jerk.
The Parenting Breakthrough is a really great book though. The author is funny and visual, laughs at herself and has a lot of very practical solutions to teaching children that have astounded me. I didn't know how to be a mother or even a babysitter when I brought home my first beautiful, impossibly tiny and delicate baby. I didn't know what to do about kids or babies or homemaking or finances. I was so afraid of finances that I just spent as little money as possible when I got out on my own. It kept me out of debt, but money didn't do me any favors either. I'm learning more about how to be a practical adult from this book than any other book I've read. Have you ever heard of something called E-Trade or Ameritrade? The stock market has long been one blurry mystery to me, something that accountants and rich people who employ accountants know about and something you need $1 million to even begin to play with. The author talked about buying a small online trading account for her teenager to give him a feel for what stock markets are like. What??
Obviously I'm getting more out of one book than the other and I switch between them as I get too irritated to keep reading with interest (Mars/Venus) or too overwhelmed by what I don't even know about myself (Breakthrough) like interior decorating as a means of teaching, life plans, and investment banking.
I feel too tired to roll up my sleeves right now. I feel like I don't have the strength to do much of anything besides get food on the table once a day and churn out homework and tests like a cross eyed pasta machine. Similes that don't make sense? Largely inexplicable irritability? At least one hot bath a day to scorch some endorphins into my screaming mind? Dragging myself through exercise only to want a nap right afterward? Check, check, check, double check.
And now I must go grocery shopping. Work on the van plus getting Man into one last college that only requires that he take one class and transfer his 250+ credits in before FINALLY getting a Bachelor's degree (which may actually turn out to be a double or triple major, thanks to the military) means beans and rice for a week or two, but really, it doesn't get much better than a good pot of beans and basmati rice. I thank God for times when I can really enjoy simple things.
I read Mars/Venus quite some time ago and thought it made a lot of sense. This time through it's making me mad. It has a lot of anti-feminism undertones that just rub me the wrong way. The author comes across as some sort of male apologist who's trying to coax volatile yet delicate females into getting along with their mates.
"To expect a man who is in his cave instantly to become open, responsive, and loving is as unrealistic as expecting a woman who is upset immediately to calm down and make complete sense. It is a mistake to expect a man to always be in touch with his loving feelings just as it is a mistake to expect a woman's feelings to always be rational and logical." (Mars/Venus, page 37)
I understand that when he says feelings can't always be rational and logical that he is NOT saying that they never are. That first sentence is the one that gets to me. Perhaps it's an irrational feeling of irk that cannot make logical sense because life has me by the nads and I'm incapable, due to my female nature, of calming down and making complete sense. Jerk.
The Parenting Breakthrough is a really great book though. The author is funny and visual, laughs at herself and has a lot of very practical solutions to teaching children that have astounded me. I didn't know how to be a mother or even a babysitter when I brought home my first beautiful, impossibly tiny and delicate baby. I didn't know what to do about kids or babies or homemaking or finances. I was so afraid of finances that I just spent as little money as possible when I got out on my own. It kept me out of debt, but money didn't do me any favors either. I'm learning more about how to be a practical adult from this book than any other book I've read. Have you ever heard of something called E-Trade or Ameritrade? The stock market has long been one blurry mystery to me, something that accountants and rich people who employ accountants know about and something you need $1 million to even begin to play with. The author talked about buying a small online trading account for her teenager to give him a feel for what stock markets are like. What??
Obviously I'm getting more out of one book than the other and I switch between them as I get too irritated to keep reading with interest (Mars/Venus) or too overwhelmed by what I don't even know about myself (Breakthrough) like interior decorating as a means of teaching, life plans, and investment banking.
I feel too tired to roll up my sleeves right now. I feel like I don't have the strength to do much of anything besides get food on the table once a day and churn out homework and tests like a cross eyed pasta machine. Similes that don't make sense? Largely inexplicable irritability? At least one hot bath a day to scorch some endorphins into my screaming mind? Dragging myself through exercise only to want a nap right afterward? Check, check, check, double check.
And now I must go grocery shopping. Work on the van plus getting Man into one last college that only requires that he take one class and transfer his 250+ credits in before FINALLY getting a Bachelor's degree (which may actually turn out to be a double or triple major, thanks to the military) means beans and rice for a week or two, but really, it doesn't get much better than a good pot of beans and basmati rice. I thank God for times when I can really enjoy simple things.
Monday, November 08, 2010
Chalk mat
This is for Amber!
Here is a link to a tutorial for a chalkboard mat that's a bit more stylin' than the ones I made, but the visuals may be useful.
Link.
Here is a reworded version from the directions I used (clarifying, mostly, and getting rid of some yokel grammar).
Supplies:
1 piece 10x13.5" chalk cloth (aka blackboard cloth)
2 pieces 12x20" cotton fabric
1 piece 5x12" cotton fabric
1 piece 12x20" fleece (either fusible or baste it into place)
1 piece 12" elastic
1 piece 12x20" fusible interfacing
Chalk, half a sponge
First half:
Pin or fuse the fleece to wrong side of one 12x20" piece of cotton.
Second half:
Fuse interfacing to wrong side of the other 12x20" piece of cotton fabric (to prevent the fabric from bunching when sewing on the chalk cloth. A simple way to overcome this is to use a quilting foot if you happen to have one). On the piece of cotton that's 5x12", finish one long edge by folding over twice and then top stitching. Align the unfinished 12" edge with one of the 12" edges of the larger piece of cotton, mark the center, and stitch straight from the edge to make a divider for the pockets. Each pocket should still be loose except for the one stitch in the center. Center the chalk cloth in the remaining open area of your fabric and zigzag stitch around the edge of the chalk cloth. Pay close attention to any bunching. Pin the ends of the elastic to the edge directly opposite of the center stitching on the pocket, making sure the loop of the elastic is toward the center of the fabric.
Putting it together:
Put both pieces of cotton right sides together, pinning the edges. Sew together with 1/4-1/2" seam or whatever seam securely catches all of your edges (this was a Souper Saturday project, so it wasn't too precise) leaving a window on one of the long edges open for turning (preferably away from the pockets so they get caught in the initial stitching). Turn and top stitch around the entire edge. I ended up not top edging the pockets on one of them because the fabric was too thick for my machine. It turned out fine.
They're cute, easy, infinitely customizable, very inexpensive relative to color wonder, compact, and durable. I want to make a couple more for the older kids but this time actually use a cutting mat and some decent fabric scissors.
Here is a link to a tutorial for a chalkboard mat that's a bit more stylin' than the ones I made, but the visuals may be useful.
Link.
Here is a reworded version from the directions I used (clarifying, mostly, and getting rid of some yokel grammar).
Supplies:
1 piece 10x13.5" chalk cloth (aka blackboard cloth)
2 pieces 12x20" cotton fabric
1 piece 5x12" cotton fabric
1 piece 12x20" fleece (either fusible or baste it into place)
1 piece 12" elastic
1 piece 12x20" fusible interfacing
Chalk, half a sponge
First half:
Pin or fuse the fleece to wrong side of one 12x20" piece of cotton.
Second half:
Fuse interfacing to wrong side of the other 12x20" piece of cotton fabric (to prevent the fabric from bunching when sewing on the chalk cloth. A simple way to overcome this is to use a quilting foot if you happen to have one). On the piece of cotton that's 5x12", finish one long edge by folding over twice and then top stitching. Align the unfinished 12" edge with one of the 12" edges of the larger piece of cotton, mark the center, and stitch straight from the edge to make a divider for the pockets. Each pocket should still be loose except for the one stitch in the center. Center the chalk cloth in the remaining open area of your fabric and zigzag stitch around the edge of the chalk cloth. Pay close attention to any bunching. Pin the ends of the elastic to the edge directly opposite of the center stitching on the pocket, making sure the loop of the elastic is toward the center of the fabric.
Putting it together:
Put both pieces of cotton right sides together, pinning the edges. Sew together with 1/4-1/2" seam or whatever seam securely catches all of your edges (this was a Souper Saturday project, so it wasn't too precise) leaving a window on one of the long edges open for turning (preferably away from the pockets so they get caught in the initial stitching). Turn and top stitch around the entire edge. I ended up not top edging the pockets on one of them because the fabric was too thick for my machine. It turned out fine.
They're cute, easy, infinitely customizable, very inexpensive relative to color wonder, compact, and durable. I want to make a couple more for the older kids but this time actually use a cutting mat and some decent fabric scissors.
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
author
Princess: Mom, how do you spell author?
Me: [we live in a loud house, I didn't hear her very well] What do you mean? Arthur or author?
Princess: Author, like the guy who drew the map.
Me: [distracted] Um, c-a-r-t-o-g-r....
Princess: Wait, what?
Me: Cartographers draw maps, not authors.
Princess: [grunt in exasperation] Never mind!!!
Yeah, wrong teaching moment.
Me: [we live in a loud house, I didn't hear her very well] What do you mean? Arthur or author?
Princess: Author, like the guy who drew the map.
Me: [distracted] Um, c-a-r-t-o-g-r....
Princess: Wait, what?
Me: Cartographers draw maps, not authors.
Princess: [grunt in exasperation] Never mind!!!
Yeah, wrong teaching moment.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
various halloween pics
This makeup was for a costume birthday party. The face paint was for the trunk or treat, and the pics without makeup were from the school's costume parade.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Fire and Ice Ball
It's that event that middle-upper class husbands dread. It the means of raising many thousands of dollars for many larger charities. And it's where the wealthy go to "get a good deal" on jewelry and sports memorabilia.
The Red Cross has a charity ball called The Fire and Ice Ball.
Here's the event info: Red Cross Ball
It was fun! We sat at a table with two other couples who had been sponsored that night (in other words, got in for free) -- one couple were injured soldiers and the lady in the other couple is a Red Cross volunteer. The other two couples at our table were there to actually donate money and/or bid since it was a charity ball. From what I could see, I believe that members of the armed forces, preferably injured, were placed at each table so that donors could rub elbows with the people whom they were indirectly benefiting.
Marine General James T. Conway was honored with a lifetime excellence award (40 years of service in the Marines!!), along with injured members of each branch of the military. The Army recipient stood tall enough to reach Man's armpit, but that didn't stop him from performing some heroics and receiving a traumatic brain injury in Iraq. The only honoree to struggle to contain his emotion was the Air Force guy. You better believe that the Marine to receive the award was on his very best behavior with General Conway standing right behind him during his speech. The poor guys barely spoke 10 words in acceptance.
There were silent and live auctions on trips, jewelry, and sports memorabilia. One man at our table, a former Soldier, commented on how good of a deal it was to have 4 signed baseballs (Ripkin, Ryan, Rose, and Aaron, whoever those guys are) at a starting bid of $800. The most expensive sports item was a blueprint of a stadium signed by Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and Joe DeMaggio valued at $16,000. Lots of bats, jersey's and helmets were on display next to necklaces whose value I just didn't understand. $1200 value for what, exactly? I've seen similar stuff on WalMart shelves for $5. The most expensive non-sports item on the silent auction was made out of mink, something I thought East Coasters would have a raging fit over (valued at $5,000). The weirdest thing I saw was a salad bowl valued at $450. It looked like beaten silver with sort of glass tongs. Seriously? It seemed like a lot of the items up for bid didn't get sold for quite what they were valued at. At the end of the live bidding there was a push for straight up donations. A large screen showed the goal ($20,000) and displayed names of those who were contributing funds via little machines that looked like iPhones. There was a gasp and applause as the goal was met within a very few minutes and then exceeded.
The food was 5 star catering, for sure. Menu included a squash soup, poached pear salad (on a bed of greens with fresh made Dijon dressing; a lump of mild but tangy cheese was nestled in a hollow in the pear), halibut (perfectly poached with a delicious sauce), guinea fowl, delicate veggies of many kinds (didn't care for the carrots or potatoes), and tiny deserts you only see on the food network (brie cheesecake, chocolate pyramid bursting forth with a caramel center, and mango sorbet in a little inverted pastry hat; each offering was the size of a golf ball; Man was the happy recipient of the diabetic lady's untouched dessert). Gourmet cupcakes with mile high icing were piled high and available before and after the meal.
A live band played Big Band type music and some Sinatra and Tom Jones. A lady singer whaled on a tambourine and shook her booty in time to her maracas. She minced her way out to the dance floor and gracefully interpreted direction from the sound crew when her position in the hall started giving feedback from her microphone. Single soldiers stared at her with their mouths hanging open and one plump but brave young man danced with her while she sang with a slightly alarmed expression on her face. After that she took a drink break and didn't leave the stage again. One of the weirder songs was a jazzed up Ding Dong the Witch is Dead.
Gift bags afterward included brochures on how to donate even more money to the Red Cross and a little flashlight that plugs into the wall and lights up in a blackout or whenever energy flow is otherwise interrupted. They also act as nightlights. Tag was happy to get one of those for his room.
We rode down and back with some nice Sergeants and had some good conversation. One of them was in full dress blues and wanted to stay very late because "it took me all week to put these blues together, I'm going to ride them 'til the wheels fall off." All those little medals and things are difficult to adjust to Army standards. Man looked very good in formal greens, which is just the Army dress greens uniform with a normal white shirt and bow tie instead of the green shirt with black hanging tie.
All in all, a good time and I was glad to take my shoes off at home. I still have a couple of flowers pilfered from the centerpieces. Their heavy heads (three rose and one crimson Gerbera daisy) bow over the edge of a plastic glass, classy meets mom un-chic. A girlfriend of mine helped me do my hair since my awkward attempts netted me a headful of fuzz and a few bent bobby pins. Best comment of the evening came from my 2 year old "Oooooh, mommy's a peen-cess!"
The Red Cross has a charity ball called The Fire and Ice Ball.
Here's the event info: Red Cross Ball
It was fun! We sat at a table with two other couples who had been sponsored that night (in other words, got in for free) -- one couple were injured soldiers and the lady in the other couple is a Red Cross volunteer. The other two couples at our table were there to actually donate money and/or bid since it was a charity ball. From what I could see, I believe that members of the armed forces, preferably injured, were placed at each table so that donors could rub elbows with the people whom they were indirectly benefiting.
Marine General James T. Conway was honored with a lifetime excellence award (40 years of service in the Marines!!), along with injured members of each branch of the military. The Army recipient stood tall enough to reach Man's armpit, but that didn't stop him from performing some heroics and receiving a traumatic brain injury in Iraq. The only honoree to struggle to contain his emotion was the Air Force guy. You better believe that the Marine to receive the award was on his very best behavior with General Conway standing right behind him during his speech. The poor guys barely spoke 10 words in acceptance.
There were silent and live auctions on trips, jewelry, and sports memorabilia. One man at our table, a former Soldier, commented on how good of a deal it was to have 4 signed baseballs (Ripkin, Ryan, Rose, and Aaron, whoever those guys are) at a starting bid of $800. The most expensive sports item was a blueprint of a stadium signed by Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and Joe DeMaggio valued at $16,000. Lots of bats, jersey's and helmets were on display next to necklaces whose value I just didn't understand. $1200 value for what, exactly? I've seen similar stuff on WalMart shelves for $5. The most expensive non-sports item on the silent auction was made out of mink, something I thought East Coasters would have a raging fit over (valued at $5,000). The weirdest thing I saw was a salad bowl valued at $450. It looked like beaten silver with sort of glass tongs. Seriously? It seemed like a lot of the items up for bid didn't get sold for quite what they were valued at. At the end of the live bidding there was a push for straight up donations. A large screen showed the goal ($20,000) and displayed names of those who were contributing funds via little machines that looked like iPhones. There was a gasp and applause as the goal was met within a very few minutes and then exceeded.
The food was 5 star catering, for sure. Menu included a squash soup, poached pear salad (on a bed of greens with fresh made Dijon dressing; a lump of mild but tangy cheese was nestled in a hollow in the pear), halibut (perfectly poached with a delicious sauce), guinea fowl, delicate veggies of many kinds (didn't care for the carrots or potatoes), and tiny deserts you only see on the food network (brie cheesecake, chocolate pyramid bursting forth with a caramel center, and mango sorbet in a little inverted pastry hat; each offering was the size of a golf ball; Man was the happy recipient of the diabetic lady's untouched dessert). Gourmet cupcakes with mile high icing were piled high and available before and after the meal.
A live band played Big Band type music and some Sinatra and Tom Jones. A lady singer whaled on a tambourine and shook her booty in time to her maracas. She minced her way out to the dance floor and gracefully interpreted direction from the sound crew when her position in the hall started giving feedback from her microphone. Single soldiers stared at her with their mouths hanging open and one plump but brave young man danced with her while she sang with a slightly alarmed expression on her face. After that she took a drink break and didn't leave the stage again. One of the weirder songs was a jazzed up Ding Dong the Witch is Dead.
Gift bags afterward included brochures on how to donate even more money to the Red Cross and a little flashlight that plugs into the wall and lights up in a blackout or whenever energy flow is otherwise interrupted. They also act as nightlights. Tag was happy to get one of those for his room.
We rode down and back with some nice Sergeants and had some good conversation. One of them was in full dress blues and wanted to stay very late because "it took me all week to put these blues together, I'm going to ride them 'til the wheels fall off." All those little medals and things are difficult to adjust to Army standards. Man looked very good in formal greens, which is just the Army dress greens uniform with a normal white shirt and bow tie instead of the green shirt with black hanging tie.
All in all, a good time and I was glad to take my shoes off at home. I still have a couple of flowers pilfered from the centerpieces. Their heavy heads (three rose and one crimson Gerbera daisy) bow over the edge of a plastic glass, classy meets mom un-chic. A girlfriend of mine helped me do my hair since my awkward attempts netted me a headful of fuzz and a few bent bobby pins. Best comment of the evening came from my 2 year old "Oooooh, mommy's a peen-cess!"
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Kojo!
My new fav radio program:
The Kojo Nnamdi show!
(I just love his voice and he's either good at picking topics or he's got some great producers)
The Kojo Nnamdi show!
(I just love his voice and he's either good at picking topics or he's got some great producers)
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
update
Official Army determination: Husband, due to injury, is no longer fit to be an active duty soldier. Which means he'll seen be a disabled vet at the ripe old age of 30-something. (this is something we've known for months, but now it's chiseled in stone)
What does this mean?
Let's pretend, for a moment, that there are only two ways this whole thing could turn out (even though I giggle at how utterly ridiculous such an assumption would be):
1) We get a percentage we can live with, so we accept it, sign on the dotted line, and get some orders cut for separation from the Army. This will take anywhere from 2-5 months, depending on how long it takes to cut orders.
2) We don't get a percentage we like, so we appeal. Then we get out of here in a year or so.
Now, there are a lot of complicating factors going into this decision and subsequent decisions. Where we move and when is largely determined by how good of a job Man can get, taking into consideration my desire to attend school.
More news as it becomes available.
What does this mean?
Let's pretend, for a moment, that there are only two ways this whole thing could turn out (even though I giggle at how utterly ridiculous such an assumption would be):
1) We get a percentage we can live with, so we accept it, sign on the dotted line, and get some orders cut for separation from the Army. This will take anywhere from 2-5 months, depending on how long it takes to cut orders.
2) We don't get a percentage we like, so we appeal. Then we get out of here in a year or so.
Now, there are a lot of complicating factors going into this decision and subsequent decisions. Where we move and when is largely determined by how good of a job Man can get, taking into consideration my desire to attend school.
More news as it becomes available.
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