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Category Archives: holidays
In the spirit of the day …
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Posted in holidays
What’re you having for T-day?
Ah, Thanksgiving: the publicly sanctioned celebration of gluttony. We will be going up to my parents’ house as early as we can get ourselves going tomorrow, so I can help with the prep and the Hatchling can have quality time with the grandparents. We will be having:
Turkey
Dressing (cornbread, not that Yankee whitebread crap)
Gravy
Sweet potato casserole
Garlic mashed potatoes
Cranberry relish
Cream cheese corn
Salad
Chocolate chess pie
Pumpkin pie
Apple pie
So yes: we will be stuffed good and proper. What are you having? What are you most looking forward to?
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Posted in Comestibles, holidays
Questions for a Fourth of July Weekend
1. How is it that I only found out that H&M carries kid’s clothes, like, two days ago?!?! Fortunately I found out at the same time that they’re having one of their huge sales, so I STOCKED UP.
2. Why can I never think of anything more interesting to send my sister for her 4th-of-July birthday than a damn amazon.com gift certificate? I mean, besides the fact that I put it off until the last minute? HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MELLIE!
3. How much do you want a piece of the s’mores cheesecake I just made for the picnic I’m going to tomorrow? A frickin’ LOT, that’s how much. My whole house smells like creamy chocolate. Mmmmmm … creamy chocolate.
4. What is it about a french pedicure that I find so satisfying? Is it the chic style or the illusion of clean toenails? Either way, mama like.
5. Who should I be rooting for to win Wimbledon? The men’s game is easy: Roger Federer, all the way. But I can’t decide for the women’s game.
That’s it, kids. Have a happy 4th and don’t let the fireworks scare the toddlers or pets.
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Posted in holidays, random tidbits
I like long weekends. Let’s have them all the time.
It was a good Memorial Day weekend in Squab country. Mr. Squab came home early on Friday, we had a cookout Saturday night, vegetated on Sunday, and had a picnic on Monday, at our favorite park. Good times. I think we’d all be better off if 3.5 day weekends were standard, don’t you?
Meanwhile, I started this week with a vengeance by having a job interview (!). Nothing too freaky – it’s not like I’m looking to go back to full time work or anything, particularly since we hope to have a new little one on the way soon. But I need to get back into teaching, if for no other reason than to prevent massive gaps on my CV. And also I really enjoy it. So I’ve been looking for some adjunct spots, something I can do while being a SAHM. Handily, my BFF is the registrar at a local music college, and so she let me know they were looking for some people for the fall. I aced the phone interview, and so today I did the in-person one. 15 minutes of teaching demo followed by a round of pretty boilerplate interview questions. I think I did pretty well – toward the end of the interview I actually got an “amen, sister” from the chair of the hiring committee – so it was rewarding to know I’ve still got my interviewing chops. But I’ll tell you what: prepping for job-related stuff WITH a two year old is a whole different ball of wax than prepping without one. I was up late last night getting materials together and then shaving my much neglected legs (hello, razor burn!) The interview was at 10 this morning, and since the Hatchling slept until 8:30 (I know, this is not something to complain about), we had to hustle it up to get out of the house on time. Thank god for lovely friend J, who was there to watch the Hatchling while I was gone, and to zip my damn dress up the rest of the way (impossible to reach with my stumpy arms) and to loan me a deck of cards – critical for my teaching demo – since I’d left the house without mine. Of course.
I’m actually feeling pretty zen about the whole thing. It’s a part time position (at least for now), which is a little more low key, and since we don’t need for me to have it – though, don’t get me wrong, the extra $$ would be nice – I feel like I’ll be ok whether or not they have a spot for me. I guess that’s a good place to be, mentally. Right? Or am I losing my edge? Anyway, I’ll keep you posted on the outcome.
Here’s a clip of the Hatchling and her cousin doing a little happy spring dance at the park on Memorial Day. The Hatchling’s 5:00 shadow is actually a light crust of Oreo cookies. Because that’s how we roll, baby.
Happy Oreo Dance on Vimeo.
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Happy Mother’s Day to Me
The Hatchling, thank goodness, appears to be on the mend. She’s still sleepier and crankier than usual, and lord have mercy she cannot be more than three feet away from me, but her rash is getting better and there’s no more fever. Woot!
So today I had a very nice squabby mother’s day. This morning all the local family members came over for a mother’s day brunch, for which I made: cheese eggs, hash browns, bacon, sliced melon (honeydew and cantaloupe), cheese grits, coffee, mimosas, bloody marys, and OJ. We also had almond croissants, apple croissants, and homemade (but not by me) caramel pecan rolls. Don’t you wish you had been there? After gabbing with the fam and having a mini-celebration for my nephew’s 10th birthday, Mr. Squab and I went outside and planted 34 hostas in our front yard. (Which is undergoing a major transformation this weekend. Pictures will be posted sometime this week.)
So: I cooked and ate a bunch of fatty, yummy food, hung out with people I love, and got dirty and sore digging around in my front yard. A pretty awesome Mother’s Day, all told.
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Happy Easter!
Oma made the Hatchling a fetching easter dress:
(She’s also apparently borrowed her aunt’s Treo for some quick text messaging. It’s soooo hard to keep up with one’s social obligations when one is almost two.)
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Faith. And also Begorrah.
Well, I got almost four pages written, plus I have a detailed plan for how the rest of the chapter is going to go. Mom says that counts. We had a video conference on Sunday (so web 2.0) to set goals for writing this week. One of the many good things about having my Mom keeping track of me is that she reigns me in from setting unmanageable expectations for myself. I have a tendency to say things like “this weekend I’m going to FINISH chapter one revisions.” This goal is possible, but also unlikely, and then when I don’t reach it, I feel like a total failure and don’t want to go on. Mom says “how about you try to finish the first two sections?” which is far more attainable and then if I do happen to get more done, it’s like a bonus. She’s smart like that.
Anyway, not to jinx myself, but I’m feeling far more hopeful about this than I was last week. At least I’ve gotten some actual pages out, so I know it’s still possible for me to write. But enough about me. What I REALLY wanted to say was:
Now get out there and drink some green beer, dammit.
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Wuv.
Happy V-day, everyone. Remember: you get chocolate even if you don’t have a valentine.Share this:
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Posted in holidays
Resolute
It’s that time of year again. Time to watch post-stroke Dick Clark mumble his way through the “Rockin'” New Year’s Eve, start thinking about taking down the decorations, stop counting cookies as one of the major food groups and generally get one’s house in order for the new year. And resolutions. Time for resolutions. Actually, I think last year I resolved to give up making new year’s resolutions, but screw it. I’m a creature of habit, and now is as good a time as any to set some goals for self- improvement. Here are mine:
1. Get healthier. Please to note: this is NOT code for “lose weight.” One of the ways in which I want to be healthier is in my mental attitude about my physical shape. So I’ma try to stop crucifying myself on a daily basis for not being a size 6, one. It’s a drag, and I’m running out of wooden crosses. Two, I need to find a way to be physically active on a regular basis. More, I need to find a way to do this joyfully, so I’ll be able to KEEP doing it. This is a real toughie for me, especially in winter, because I HATE being cold, y’all. HATE IT. So all those picturesque winter sports like skiing and ice-skating and such are RIGHT. OUT. I’m going to start up with T-Tapp and see how that goes, and come the thaw (in, like, May) try to be better about getting out and about with the Hatchling on a daily basis.
2. Get greener. Like the frog said, it ain’t easy, but I’ve been meaning for a while to give up disposable grocery bags, and this year I’m gonna do it, by gum. When I lived in CA I was really good about keeping canvas bags in my car to use for shopping purposes, but I slipped back into bad habits when I moved home to the Midwest. However, I’ve collected a nice assortment of non-disposable bags that I’m going to start keeping on the porch so they’re right there when I leave the house. It’s what Al Gore would want!
3. Give back to the community. Just before Christmas, I joined the Parents Advisory Council for Minneapolis Early Childhood Family Education. It’s a volunteer group that does fundraising for ECFE and builds awareness of the program and its benefits through community events. I figure since I’m benefitting from ECFE (and also since I think it’s like the best thing since sliced bread) I oughta do my part, you know? I’m incredibly lazy about volunteering er, extremely protective of my time – but it will be good for me to do this, both from a community service perspective and from a get-mommy-the-hell-out-of-the-house perspective.
That’s it. Just three. Don’t wanna take on more than I can reasonably be expected to achieve. What are your new year’s resolutions?
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Posted in holidays, quizzes and lists
Christmas pictorial
We baked cookies. Lots and lots of cookies.
Presents were opened.
Drawings were drewed.
MORE presents were opened.
We took pictures of it all.
Overall, a most satisfactory holiday. Here’s hoping yours was the same. Now go decorate a virtual gingerbread house. MUCH neater than the real thing.
