Celebrate with me!

So, as some of you may know, this week is my birthday.  I will be turning 25 years old on Wednesday, woo!  That night I'll probably have a little something something with family, but I want to invite everyone across the nation to participate in a little celebration on Thursday (mostly in your own homes, of course, because the whole nation wouldn't fit in mine).  Go all out!  Eat a lot food, have some extra pie, and think of me.  I'll be thinking of me, too.

Pie in the sky

It's coming up on that time of year where I think about making pie and then don't actually do it.  But maybe this year will be different, since I've been thinking about it a lot harder than usual.  Also I have some summer blackberries stashed in my freezer, can I get a what-what!  If I don't turn them into delicious pie, then nobody else will, because my mom doesn't live here.

Sorry if you've missed me, but I've been super busy, what with the city league volleyball and the secret Christmas things and the visiting folks.  Mostly the secret Christmas things, though, and if you know about them, then don't betray me here by commenting about them in a non hush-hush way.

Who am I kidding?  Nobody comments on this blog, and that's why I can get away with posting maybe once a month.  what-what.

I want one to live in my house.

Oh, how I wish this were a real thing:

http://www.petitelapgiraffe.com/about.php

Saturday Stream of Consciousness

So...I am really into playing Scrabble via facebook these days.  And winning at it, let's be honest.  I get sad when my letters don't play well together.

In honor of the fall season I am thinking about doing a pumpkin craft, but I haven't gotten around to it.  I like making things but I have to be really in the groove in order for it to happen.  Also I am afraid to go to the craft store to pick up the things I need because I always (always always) end up buying more than I planned and then I feel sheepish and ashamed.

I dyed my hair a vibrant red and so maybe I should be a matchstick for Halloween.  One that is on fire.  But then what would Matt be?  What goes with a flaming matchstick?  Maybe a marshmallow or something.

Izzy had a birthday (yay for being two!) and we got a Costco cake.  We have enough cake to last until Matt's birthday in January I think.  But since I love cake so much we'll probably get more anyway, and then we'll get fat.  I believe there is a correlation.

Bloopity bloo, blog for you!  That's my poem for the day.

It's cold outside.

I am very disappointed in the snowing that happened here this week.  Not because I dislike snow, but because I love the autumn.  I don't mind bundling up, I just prefer to actually be warm after I do so.  October, redeem thyself!

Anyway, the cold kind of caught me by surprise (because I rarely read the weather forecast) so I don't have a whole lot of indoor activities planned for the tiny one and me.  We go on short walks and then come inside to read books and be goofy.  Yesterday we watched a super cheesy Care Bears movie and ate popcorn, in the middle of the afternoon.  Later we watched youtube videos about phonics for an extended period of time.  Now I have songs stuck in my head like, "A a-a-apple, B b-b-ball," and so forth.  At least I know all the words.

Use those skills!

I have been super busy with basically two things: Webelos and Korean.  Strictly speaking, they have nothing in common with one another.

Matt and I are Webelos Den leaders now.  Pretty much I had no idea what that involved until I actually became one.  Now I'm all like, "I looked through everything and planned it all out so that the boys can earn 20 badges in 12 months.  We have to know all the things."  Maybe I'm a little crazy?  Whatever.  This month we're going to work on the Scientist badge which you KNOW will involve some awesome experiments and probably a rocket, and maybe I will FINALLY figure out how Bernoulli's Principle actually works.  And who doesn't love Sir Isaac Newton?  Motion, yeah!

As for the Korean, I was reading a friend's blog where she said she became obsessed with this show called "Playful Kiss" and so I had to check it out and then I became a little obsessed.  Matt totally served a mission in Korea, too, so he knows all about the language.  I have a textbook and Matt is helping me out a lot.  I've learned how to read the writing system (FINALLY my linguistics minor comes in handy) but the rest is still pretty overwhelming.  I can say a few words, though, like, "Hello!" and "Thank you," and "Stupid."  Oh, and "Why you gotta be like that?" and "Poop."  Just the important stuff so far.  We even learned how to make kimbap (Korean sushi).  Yum.  That's right.  Obsessed. 


I am having an excellent time.

My new best friend.

Izzy and I have a new bike.  She is beautiful (I'm guessing it is a she even though it is blue).  I don't have a name for her yet, but I'm thinking about it.  You can think about it too.

Izzy likes to bring me our helmets.  Matt says it is good that she associates helmets with bike riding, and I agree.  Brains are pretty important to our family.

We have gone out almost every day this week (sometimes twice).  It's really convenient to have Izzy up front with me, except for when I have to duck under trees or when she decides that she would rather steer.  So far no accidents, though.  It is her job to ring the bell.

We need a basket.

Pretty colors

As formerly promised, here are some poorly taken pictures of the newly painted rooms:

The color is called "Jamaican Aqua" and it really is quite lovely.  It's sort of a shame that the rooms have practically no furnishings.  But at least now they are not ugly, unfurnished rooms.

The next thing has to do with hair and requires before and after pictures, along with dramatic drum rolls (if you don't mind).

Before:

Those are my raptor eyes.

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and after:

It is some sort of red, a la Ariel or Strawberry Shortcake.  I can't tell.  Apparently when you dye your hair red you cannot always tell what the results will be.  Obviously this is true.

Blah blah blah, super cool.

Who needs transitions.

Man, August; what a lame blogging month.

I pulled out my old trumpet earlier this week and tootled around a bit.  My range is pretty much completely gone, but it still left my lips pleasantly tingly.  Nobody can kiss the way a trumpet can.

We painted two more rooms this morning, which leaves two left.  Sigh....  I cannot tell if that is a sigh of relief or a sigh of despair.  This project is taking FOREVER but it is entirely worth it.  I will post pictures Tuesdayish, after some furniture and whatnot gets moved around.

I am reading me some Diana Wynne Jones (Chronicles of Chrestomanci) and can I just say once again how sorry I am that she's dead?  This stuff is great.

In other news, I am doing something rather daring next week.  I am going to dye my hair for the first time.  Maybe this is a bad idea?  Maybe it is a good idea but I chose a bad color?  WHO KNOWS.  The good thing about hair is that for most people (particularly women my age) it grows back.  Anyway, you should be in complete suspense.  Also you should tell me what color you would like to see my head just in case it turns out terrible* and I need to change it ASAP but am too depressed to pick out anything for myself.  That is what friends are for.

*The English major inside me thinks that "terrible" should be in adverb form here but the normal person inside me is all, "NO.  People don't talk like that.  At least not Americans."  So as a compromise we are leaving a footnote, acknowledging the difference of opinion.

One of these things is not like the other

We just got back from going to Washington DC for a business trip of Matt's, and it is a lot different than Utah.  They have public transportation, humidity, and monuments while we have churches, mini vans, and vast stretches of nothing.  But I guess the biggest difference between here and there can be summed up in two words:  white babies.

I don't really know what's going on.

Today I am making chili and being upset at the post office.

Chili is pretty much just stew with beans in it, right?  Basically I don't know what I'm doing.  I got a whole bunch of chili peppers in my Winder Farms produce box, though, and I know even less about what else to do with them.  Whatever I'm making, there will be a LOT of it. If it is good, we will eat like kings!  If it is bad, we will eat like peasants!  Plenty of food, either way.

As you may have noticed, we were out of town for a week, so we had our mail put on hold.  It was supposed to resume on Wednesday, but it is now Friday.  I have yet to receive a single credit card offer, and I usually get about two of those a day.  >:(  SOMEBODY is being a lazy mail lady.  I don't know her name but I do know what kind of car she drives.  It is very boxy.

Also, I had a really cool dream last night that involved a battle (with swords and fire balls) followed by many different kinds of pie, all of them delicious.  I bet I'd make a pretty good pie-soldier.  Whatever that is.

Go-cation

We are in Washington today.  Also probably for the next couple of days.  That is how we do things.

There was some sprinkling this morning, followed by a bit of shy sun.  There's a rooster stalking around outside, a cow grazing in the back yard, and a dog the size of a small horse sticking his nose into everything.  I did some weeding in the garden and picked some peas, and there will be steak for dinner.  These are the good times, and they are rolling.

Izzy walked around all morning, pointing at Grandma's things and saying, "Wow!  Whoa!" When either of the dogs comes up to her, she sticks out her hand and says, "Sit." (This she learned from our next door neighbor, who has a dog that actually listens to commands.)  One of her cousins filled Izzy's hair with dirt and grass seeds, so that means a bath later tonight.  Pretty much Izzy is having a wonderful time.

Tomorrow we are going to pick blackberries.  They will be delicious, and some of them will probably end up as a pie.

Ha ha, woo!

Books in boxes.

Is there anything better than getting books in the mail?  Maybe.  But right now I am not going to think of what those things are because that would be counterproductive to my happiness.

Okay.  Maybe I'm thinking about cake just a leetle bit.

Summertime!

We have been busy.  Sometimes busy doing things, other times busy not doing things.  That is what summer is for, yes?

Painting our bedroom and bath:

Painting Izzy's room:

Painting thrift store treasures to go in Izzy's room:

(Before)

(After)

Fixing other thrifty finds:

(Before)

 (After)

Making hair pretty holders:

Painting the hall bathroom:

Doing summer things outside:

Doing summer things inside:

 And making messes:

Throw in a great deal of book reading, walk-going, and hot dog eating, and that's what we've been up to.

Life and times

When I got back from my hour-long walk with some gal pals at 7 AM this morning, Matt was still in bed.  Izzy had thoughtfully placed her shoes right next to his head, though, so that when he woke up he would know what she most wanted to be doing.  So we went on an early, windy pajama walk to give poor sick dad more sleeping time.  We had the swings all to ourselves!  Big kids are so lazy during the summer.

Anyway, earlier this week I started off the day by spilling approximately 1500 hair pretties all around the toilet.  Fortunately I have a little helper who loves both the potty and being right where I need to be.

Izzy would probably like to be in my arms during all the waking hours that don't involve kitties or doggies, but sometimes things just gotta get done.  When those things are kitchen things, we've reached a compromise.  Instead of being actually held, she can stand on a stepping stool or sit on the counter.  For some reason, that generally seems to make things okay.  Maybe it's because she can see what I'm doing; maybe it's because being in a slightly precarious position is dangerous and edgy; or, maybe it's because she can touch all sorts of things she is not supposed to.  Postulate among yourselves.

Evidence of my dedicated domestic helper!

Chopping:

(She had a plastic blue knife, so there was a lot more stabbing and poking than actual chopping on her account.)

Baking:

(This also mostly involved stabbing, but this time with a spoon.)

Scrubbing:

(Of course, she had to draw on the wall before she could clean it off.)

Is this officially a mommy blog now, or has it always been one and I've just been in a state of denial?  Next time we'll do something uncharacteristically deep and meaningful.

Refashionable lady

I stumbled across a couple of blogs where the authors make use of their sewing skills and keen eyes to turn ugly/too big/all around wonky clothes into marvelously fashionable clothes.  This is something that I would lovelovelove to be able to do.  So I am.

First off, I had this shirt.

I got it from the Salvation Army in high school, but hadn't worn it in years. I thought it could become a much more attractive shirt if I took it in and shortened the sleeves, BUT I made a few mistakes and ended up with this:

Obviously, I now have a super cool vest.  One that will probably become a beloved addition to the dress up box, as soon as we get ourselves one of those.

Next, I had these shorts:

My mother-in-law gave them to me, because she is a very thoughtful lady.  But they had no butt pockets and made me feel sort of frumpy, so I couldn't see myself wearing them very often.  Since they are such a pretty blue, though, I didn't want to waste them.

Et voila, I turned them into a skirt!

I embroidered a pretty yellow border around the hem, just to jazz them up a little.

Attempt number the second at refashioning turned out much better than the first.  This is probably because after the first flop I payed WAY more attention to the measure-twice-cut-once rule.  It is deceptively important.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

We have been super busy the last few weekends with the house painting.  It is by no means completely finished, but it is enough done that it is no longer awkward to have people visit our home.

Before, pretty much every room in our house was this color:

Boo, boring!

But now, BEHOLD!!!

I am trying to watch "Bones" and this post is distracting me, so I am going to finish lamely.  Right now.

I've missed you too.

It has been a somewhat unusual week.  My brother has been in town, but visiting us means also visiting various lady friends, so we actually haven't seen that much of him.  Enough to remember how much I like him, though.

I have been sick (cough cough sneeze).  Izzy has been sick (whine whine poke).  We have done a lot of snuggling and movie watching.  There are worse things.

Matt has been working working working, and we have sorely missed him.  But now he is pretty much back to regular hours AND it is a holiday weekend, so we will paint some of our house (oh yes) and probably eat some popsicles outside and it will be wonderful.

Painting is an adventure.  It turns out we have a lot of house and only two of us.  Well, generally not even that many since Izzy counts as a negative person so far as productivity is concerned.  So if you are looking to spend some quality time with either a very small person or a regular sized roller brush, contact me here, in the comments!*

*People I do not actually know in real life need not apply.

Going visiting

Now that it's actually pleasant outside most days (today notwithstanding), Izzy and I have been getting to know our neighbors a bit better.  We go on a lot of walks and Izzy likes it best when these walks end up at somebody else's front door.  She knocks and knocks until somebody answers or she gets tired of waiting.  We have weaseled our way into quite a few houses with this technique; it's a shame we're not selling anything.

If cake were a person we'd be BFFs.

I am becoming quite the domestic lady.  I have baked cupcakes for the second week in a row.  Woo!

Now, to be fair, the first time I made them things didn't turn out quite the way I had planned.  The cake part tasted great (from scratch, baby!), but the frosting part left something to be desired.  It was a colorful, grainy goo that oozed its way off the cupcake until it had hardened enough to stay put.  Still tasty, but definitely not pretty.  And somehow I ended up with at least twice the amount I needed.  I saved it because um...that's what I do with food, but it's not like it was desirable the first time around so WHO KNOWS how long it will be just hanging out in my fridge, getting harder and harder and grainier and grainer.

Izzy didn't care.  Cupcakes are cupcakes.

Today, however, I had success.  I used the same cupcake recipe but tweaked the frosting a bit.  (Or maybe I just did a better job of following the instructions?  Pretend like that's not it.)  I used a pastry bag to frost the cupcakes, but it looked like pastel blue dog poop so I scraped it off and tried again.  This is what I ended up with:

(Makes me think of the circus.)

The pictures are blurry because my tiny helper likes to poke the lens.  And no, this isn't some weird perspective shot distorting the cupcake sizes.  That is one regular cupcake surrounded by midgets.  Sweet, delicious midgets.

Ham I am

Let's pretend like I was never missing so that there is no awkwardness in my resuming the blog, okay?

Today we baked a ham for Easter, and I'm pretty sure it will last us the rest of our life.  I'm very excited about this.  Although, a lifetime of ham will probably get old really fast.  But this next week will be super cool, anyway.

I don't really have any other profound thoughts that I am willing to share at this time, so that's all you get.

Almost forgot the title

No Sweat Log this week (obviously) because I am taking a break from the exercising for a bit, for reasons that are probably good and now enticingly secret.

However, I will show you pictures of the froofy dress that my mom and I made for Izzy.  We did not have a pattern, but this tutorial helped us figure a few things out.  It is a very pink dress.

I did most of the sewing, Mom did most of the cutting, and we both made a few mistakes.  I won't tell you what they were so that you can imagine that the dress is perfect.

 Bonus! Pajama pants with scalloped bottoms:

THAT'S RIGHT.  We made those too.