Run Like A Kid

Mammoth & More

2009-03-26T10:18:00.000-07:00

We spent last weekend in Mammoth, which was mixed. The drive up sucked, the drive back down was pleasant... There wasn't enough snow the first day, there was too much snow the second day. It would have been perfect if we could have stayed a bit longer because there was a big storm that came through and dumped like 3 feet of fresh powder... GREAT conditions for snowboarding and snowmobiling... but the person who owned the condo we were borrowing showed up and we needed to leave. Oh well!

Jared also didn't last longer than 20 minutes in his ski class... that we spent nealry $200 on! Ugh! I did get snowboard for a couple of hours and that was fun... it was pretty icy, but still fun -- and certainly fast.

This week has been busy, but fun. It's been warm enough to play outside late and we even got to eat on the deck on Monday night. Last night we had our former neighbor, Jake over for dinner and that was a lot of fun. He always brings over a nice bottle of wine. I made chocolate-chocolate chip cupcakes -- a big hit! Later Jed and I snacked on smoked gouda and red apple slices -- the best!

This afternoon the kids have dental appointments followed by t-ball practice and dinner in the park... it should be another fun afternoon/evening!

Jed Works A Lot

2009-03-18T10:01:00.001-07:00

Jed works a lot, which means I end up feeling like a single parent a lot. I feel slammed so much of the time. I leave work and go running on MWF. I run errands T/TH. Then I pick up the kids and feed them a snack. We go to a playground or home... and I rush around making dinner, packing lunches, putting away dishes, re-loading the dishwasher, putting away laundry, getting the kids bathed... cleaning up the huge messes the kids make... etc.

Yesterday we made little green cupcakes for St. Patrick's Day. The kids got all my decorating supllies and covered the kitchen floor with various shapes and sizes of sprinkles and colored sugar. They did not help decorate the cupcakes.

Jared also managed to destroy my newly planted sunflower seedlings with his remote controled car. "I didn't mean to mommy... the truck was supposed to go on the side, but it CRASHED!"

So the kids were nuts all evening and I did my best to run interference. Reading a bedtiem story to both of them at the same time is not easy... but I got them to bed with no major problems and spent an hour working on Jared's Birthday invitation before climbing into bed to watch some Ugly Betty!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T10:15:00.000-07:00

It's St. Patrick's Day. I made a corned beef brisket this morning (or something like it, I kinda made up my own recipe but I got all the nasics in there) and popped that into the slow cooker along with veggies, potatoes and cabbage wedges. Tonight I will make some Irish soda bread and help the kids make and decorate green mini-muffins. I'll probably skip the green beer. I'm trying to watch what I eat as our Spring Break trip to the Mayan Riviera is rapidly approaching.

Mia has a nasty cough, slept with us the last two nights and woke us and herself up periodically throughout the night. Nevertheless I managed to get up this morning and run 3 miles before getting ready for work (and making that brisket!). Yesterday I managed to squeeze in two miles. Jed is taking Mia in to the doctor in about a half-hour.

My coworker has a funny little saying... it's something like "yesterday I was a total FNF." HUH? Apparently this means she was a "fatty-fatty-no-friend" who couldn't stop eating all day.... of course this couldn't possibly be true as she actually weighs about 95 pounds. I, however, have been an FNF for weeks now... rapidly gaining back about seven of the 11 pounds I managed to lose since December. Very frustrating, because let me tell you, losing 11 pounds is really freaking hard, but gaining 7 pounds is really, really easy. Especially when you love to cook and eat!

Work is busy, I guess I better get back to it.

Canceled!

2008-11-16T13:13:00.000-08:00

So I only had two big plans for the weekend: 1) Take the kids to a Birthday Party on Saturday afternoon and 2) Run in the Inaugural Pasadena Marathon (though I was just running the 1/2).

Birthday Party: Canceled due to illness.

Marathon: Canceled due to air quality.

Luckily, some unexpected happy events took their place. The amazing sky as a result of the smoke from the fires... a fuchsia sunset that started hours before it normally would have and lit up the whole sky. One of my best times in along time running the ghetto loop. Making breakfast for the family on Sunday. Whipping the backyard into shape. Catching up on Grey's Anatomy.

Here are the photos I took today... On my to the marathon, the deserted 110 Freeway at 5:55 a.m. The Canceled signs and me -- rolling with it!

Halloween's Coming!

2008-10-29T09:37:00.000-07:00

Halloween is almost here and Jared is really excited about trick-or-treating. He's going to be the Dark Knight and Mia is going as a Ladybug. Really cute. Jared, Uncle Julian and Daddy all helped carve a really simple, and angry looking Jack-o-lantern last night.

Jed's friend has been staying with us since last week... he's in the Army and about to embark on his first tour in Iraq. He'll be stationed in Mossul. I'm pretty sure Jed has been enjoying the visit. They've gone goKart racing and hung out... we all went to the beach... relaxed a lot -- and we had a really nice dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. A piece of meat from there is always a real treat!

I've had that cold for 15 days now -- yep, 15 days! So I've barely been exercising at all -- which I really miss. I think I'll be able to get back into the swing of things by week's end. Jed's friend, Julian, has been staying in the room where my treadmill is so I haven't had the optio of jumping on in the mornings. He leaves on Thursday, so Friday I can hop back on. Yay!

I got to an old friend's Art Opening this weekend and see a bunch of people I haven't seen in years. Marina Kappos' show, Politicus, was inspired by the upcoming elections. It was really beautiful, incredibly clean and tidy work; she's extremely talented. Here's a link to an older show at the same gallery called "A Murder Of Crows." I saw an old schoolmate, Eric... he's doing well, successful and was as nice as ever. Then there was Becky Cox, who managed to exude the same smug disdain for all aura that made me dislike her back in Jr. High. Some people never change I guess.

I also got to see Marina's twin, Ronni... who not only is an accomplished artist herself (check out her beautiful jewelry) she also just got married in ana amazing wedding ceremony in Africa! I'm envious of the trip she got to take... there's a video of part of the experience, which I will try to add soon.. and it looks just amazing!

Getting Sick Was Just the Pick-Me-Up I Needed

2008-10-17T15:35:00.000-07:00

It helped me lose a couple of those extra pounds I have gained since returning to a desk job!

Of course, I have felt like crap all week so I am SO glad it is Friday!

Update: It's Not My Fault

2008-10-10T11:27:00.000-07:00

It is not my fault that I am gaining weight... there are forces acting against me.

At this very moment, the In-N-Out truck is stationed below my office window -- where it has been spewing out the hypnotic smell of double-doubles for the past hour.

It is only getting worse... the fumes having an opiate-like effect on me. If only I could have a cheeseburger I could go through the afternoon with little or no pain!

Maybe It Isn't My Job, Maybe It's Me

2008-10-10T09:34:00.000-07:00

So now I have gained a total of 5 pounds... it's not just the job... it's partly me. I really don;t like getting up in the dark to exercise. My eyes are still so bleary I'm afraid I'll make a disastrous misstep on the treadmill... and in the evenings, I still feel tied to my evening wine and snacking after 8 p.m.

What's a working girl to do? I know, get a little willpower.

I sure do miss my regular 6 mile runs... ache for them... yearn for them. I have a day off on Monday (Columbus Day, yes it kind of rules working at a school). I'm going to use this day to go for a nice long leisurely 9 mile run and then run a bunch of errands (massive Target shopping and some shoe shopping).

We missed or tip to my dad's lake house last weekend because there was a 90% chance of rain. It didn't rain there, but it did rain here. Nice. So we're going to try and head up this weekend.

I went out on Wednesday night with my old friend Beth. We went to the York. It bills itself as "Highland Park's Neighborhood Gastropub."

It is pretty cool too. It used to be a place called the Wild Hare.... dark inside and out with bog booths you and ten friends could crawl into and hide. Now it has aged brick walls, a cool wood bar with a natural edge (with the bark and everything, but polished up), and the ceiling is all open and exposed, the bar is all glass. The menus are big chalkboards up on the walls (that's actually kind of annoying because you pretty much have to stand in front of someone else's table to read it) and you have to order at the bar -- which I HATE! The biggest -- and best -- change is that the restaurant front is now all glass windows, so you don't feel like you're in a cave anymore... it's much more urban hip.

Here's a much better description of how cool the actual space is.

But anyway, we ran into another friend there and he made a great dinner recommendation. We got the blackened catfish with corn remoulade and man was it tasty! I also asked the bartender to whip us up some little lemon drop shots that we could drink real quick before sitting down with our drinks to wait for dinner -- they tasted like candy! Yum.

Here's a review.

We had a fun, relaxing time... and I wasn't distracted by a preschooler tugging at my clothes and a baby tugging at my nipple! Unfortunately, both of my kids were crying when I left... and they were still crying 15 minutes later when I called to check-in. So I made sure to make it home in time to put them to bed.

My New Job is Making Me Fat

2008-10-03T08:57:00.001-07:00

I've gained 3 or 4 pounds since I started this job.

I had managed to keep below -- just barely below sometimes, but always below -- the 130 mark for as long as I can remember... but since I started working and now sit at a desk all day... the numbers have been creeping up. I was 133 this morning.

I have been wanting to lose the same 5 pounds for as long as I can remember -- now it's closer to 10 then it is to 5.

My old routine (running with the stroller 15+ miles per week, 2 hours of spinning, plus lots of hiking and running after the kids all the time) kept me from gaining weight PLUS I could eat whatever I wanted. Now I find myself editing what I want to eat... but it doesn't seem to be helping.

I actually need to -- drumroll please: DIET. The nasty four-letter word. But what to so, what to do? It's been a long time since I last dieted successfully... and teh blow job diet was a huge failure.

A Day in the Life

2008-10-02T12:47:00.000-07:00

"What? You're going to bed?! It's like 9 o'clock!?" explained/complained my husband last night.

I was tired. I needed sleep.

"Aren't you going to watch 'How I Met Your Mother' with me?"

I consider this, and agree... "Yes, in bed."

He's happy about this and massages my shoulders and back throughout the show. Clearly, he's looking for some action.

As a stay-at-home, my days were busy and crazy -- but they were fun. They were also quite varied. Now my day follows an almost unbreakable pattern. Here was yesterday:

5:50 am Alarm goes off

6:15 am Finally awake enough to start exercising

7:00 am Take shower, get dressed, nurse baby, help get kids ready

7:35 am Out the door with Mia... drop her off at babysitters... speed on to work

8:00 am at desk

noon still at desk

3:55 pm still at desk

4:00 pm Bolt out door, rush to pick-up kids... at two different locations... Jared is having a playdate at our house and I have to get Mia by 4:30 pm

4:45 pm Back at home, try to get everyone settled... no one can agree what to have for snack, what to play (Jared demands to watch TV even though he knows he isn't allowed to during the day AND he has a friend over)

6:00 pm start making dinner while simultaneously trying to watch the three kids play

6:30 pm Jared's playdate pal doesn't eat shrimp... so I prepare Cheesy Shells from scratch and mix the rest of the pasta with our shrimp. I go outside and discover that they have turned the sandbox into a beach -- it is full of water. Bathe both the kids (picture day is the next morning after all) AND get all the kids fed.

7:30 pm Spend a half-hour ushering playdate out the door and trying to calm Jared down over the devastation of the playdate being over.

8:00 - 8:30 pm The rest of the evening is a blur of packing lunches, prepping coffee, playing, brushing teeth, nursing the baby, singing songs and getting the kids settled into bed.

8:45 pm I'm brushing my teeth and getting ready for bed... having decided that my usual bed time of 11 p.m. just won't do.

9:30 p.m. I give in to the hubby and after, sleep like a baby straight through until 5 a.m. Then I stay in bed until 6:30 a.m. forgoing my morning workout in favor of nursing and snuggling baby Mia in bed.

Then it's right back to the routine.

It's Hot! And Not So Hot

2008-10-01T12:16:00.000-07:00

It got hot again. It was so hot we slept with the air conditioning on. It is October.

Not So Hot
Work and the home routine are moving along. No time for date nights so my husband has become boring to me. I have no interest in his days... I only care if he has had the time to help with dishes and laundry. I feel annoyed when he hasn't showered before I get in and I have to share the space. I don't have time to enjoy the steamy confines of our predicament.

The weekends are still as fun as ever. This past weekend I got to go running twice. We went to a dog show where my niece was showing a dog... surreal, but surprisingly fun. The kids loved it.

We also did the usual birthday party scene and visiting with the family -- even a bit of swimming.

Mia had her first sleepover. She stayed at my mom's house Saturday night. Mia had a great time, but it was essentially a wasted night for me. Jed blew the possibility of anything romantic with his "bug patrol" (don't ask.) I didn't even get a dinner out.

Not so hot.

Mt. Whitney Pushes Us to New Heights

2008-09-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

I never finished this post back when I started it... so I decided to just get it up now... This is old, but here it is:

Nearly a year ago my friend MJ asked me if we wanted to hike Mt. Whitney with them the following year.

"Umm... OK, sure," I said, figuring it was no big deal. I have run marathons after all, what's a little hike.

What I didn't know then:

At an elevation of 14,494 feet, Mt. Whitney is the tallest peak in the contiguous United States The hike is about 22 miles (35 km) round trip with an elevation gain of over 6,100 feet (1,900 m).

Most people start the hike in the dark -- often as early as 3 a.m. We were scheduled to start at 5 a.m.

It generally takes between 14 and 20 hours to complete the hike in one day, according to http://www.visitusa.com/whitney/mountwhitney-facts.htm

Many people, including myself, experience altitude sickness during the higher elevation parts of the hike... the effects -- which feel a little like being drunk -- lasted until I was all the way down the mountain.

The hike is so popular you have to apply for a permit to be on the trail months in advance... but even still there are very few people nutty enough to be on the trail. I think a majority of people do the hike over 2 or 3 days, but it might be more evenly divided... I'm not too sure.

If you need to poop while on the trail... you have to do it in a specially designed "human waste kit" and pack it out. Ewwwwwwww!!!

The only mammals you are likely to see other than humans are marmots -- and we saw one!

It's incredibly beautiful.

This is apparently where my first draft ended. Was there more to the list? I can't remember!

Anyway, after several weeks of training the time had come. WE went up north spending a few days in Mammoth and a day in Yosemite in an effort to "acclimate" to at least a slightly higher elevation. The evening before the big day we went to Lone Pine and checked into a horrible little room with our preschooler and baby in tow. We needed to get up at something like 4 a.m. in order to get on the trail around 5.

Long story short: we never slept. Mia fell out of the bed and cracked her head. She had a purple golf-ball sized ball lump on her head and I am pretty sure she passed out. We, obviously, decided not to go. Then, around 8 or 9 in the morning... we changed our mind... we decided to leave Mia with our friend and just hike up a little ways, since there was no way we could make it all the way to the top.

Leaving about 5 hours after we planned to, we scrambled up the mountain and made it nearly to the top -- we were about a mile shy of the summit, but that last mile and the return would have taken too long and we were anxious to get back and check on Mia.

We didn't summit, but we did more than we expected and we had a great time.. and thanks to altitude sickness I basically caught a buzz for free -- and with no hangover... i was sober by the time we reached the parking lot. Cool! and I cannot wait to try it again!

Camping with a Toddler

2008-09-22T12:39:00.001-07:00

Well, we had a fantastic time camping. Highlights include: Hours and hours playing at the beach, exploring tide pools, sitting around the campfire, Ranger Ed and devouring 3 lbs. of bacon.

We loaded everything into the car and hit the road right on schedule. I made reservations months in advance at Sycamore Canyon Campground because it was so close and Jed had stayed there as a kid. It's a great campground and we picked out a 4-star site.

In about an hour we pitched the tent, set-up camp, met our neighbors and headed for the beach! The kids were having a great time and getting dirty and sandy! Dinner didn't come out as well as we hoped, but we did have a nice time by the fire.

At bedtime, things got rough. Mia couldn't seem to get to sleep and was being such a pill that Jed finally drove her home for the night. Luckily we only live an hour from the campground. I managed to enjoy a couple of beers in silence by the fire. I even kept the fire going.

When we all reunited on Saturday morning we had a fantastic breakfast of bacon and cheesy eggs. Jared and I scootered around the campground. Then we all packed up and headed to the beach.

The beach was perfect and the weather was too. My mom and step dad joined us on the beach in time for lunch. Jed took Mia back to the site for a nap and we all returned to the campsite an hour or so later so that Jared could take a nap too. My mom and her hubby watched the kids for us while we went on a short hike to "Overlook Point" or something like that. It was nice to do something without the kids.

By the time we returned from the hike my brother had turned up. The kids were thrilled to see him. My parents left a short time after Mike showed up... we tried to get them to take Mia with them, but they had "alone time plans." Ewwwwwwwww!

Luckily, the late afternoon melted into evening and dissolved into night time with no trouble at all! We poured wine, prepared dinner (excellent tonight!) and took turns scootering around the campground with the kids. After dinner we checked out the "campfire program" and then returned to the site for s'mores.

Then something amazing happened. I held Mia by the fire and sang to her... and I watched her fall asleep. It was precious.

But it didn't end there. After placing her in the playyard (where she slept soundly ALL night) I then cuddled Jared. He fell asleep in my arms too!

With both of the kids fast asleep and cozy in the tent, Jed, my brother and I listened to music and enjoyed the fire. It was the perfect end to a perfect day!

The next morning we hit Leo Carillo state beach and did some tide pool exploring. We returned to the site for MORE BACON! We then packed everything up and hit the beach for another great day! Everyone played Frisbee, splashed in the waves and dug in the sand. After a tasty lunch it seemed EVERYONE was ready for a nap. So we climbed in the car and hit the road.

It was great camping so close to home... by 6 p.m. we were not only home and unpacked -- I was also clean and relaxing with a glass of wine while Jed soaked the kids in a hot bath.

It was a fantastic weekend. Fantastic.

I've Got to Admit It's Getting Better

2008-09-18T12:55:00.000-07:00

A little better all the time.

I still hate leaving Mia... and being away from the kids all day, but we're working it out.

I'm settling into my new position and feel productive -- even helpful and valued at times.

Jared is adjusting well to the new routine: though he complains that he's tired every morning and he's always the last one up.

Jed is ever-helpful. He pitches in by getting Mia dressed (often in a well-matched outfit), he gets my coffee ready, folds laundry, puts away dishes. He tries to come home before 7 a couple of nights a week -- those are the best.

I managed to log about 7 miles on the treadmill this week -- far less than the 18+ I used to do in a regular week, but it's something. I got the checkbook updated, the groceries ordered and have managed to put away the laundry and make dinner every night.

Things are hardest for Mia. She cries in the morning. She cries in the evenings. She gets frustrated and screams while she writhes in frustration on the ground. She cries when I fix her hair every morning and she cries when I put her in her crib every night. She wakes up early, demanding to be nursed and held and wails when I leave the room.

I look forward to when she smiles and laughs... usually it's fairly easy to coax her into her old amenable mood. Hopefully it will just keep getting better.

I Hate This

2008-09-17T08:57:00.001-07:00

First of all, I can not believe that it has been two months since my last post. Seriously, I just can't!

I guess that means I was just really busy having a fantastic summer with the kids... and did I mention that my husband and I almost climbed to the top of Mt. Whitney? That's a story for a completely different entry.

But to the point. What I hate is working. That's right, I am now working full time.

The job itself is fine. I am now the Communications Director at a small private K-8 school in Pasadena. I'm working in a small office with some lovely women and the work is satisfying.

This is my fifth day. So far I've had to juggle two morning drop-offs and two morning pick-ups (because the two kids are at two different places) with everything else. Toss in a sick kid, my husband's erratic and demanding schedule on top of trying to transition my daughter (who is still nursing) from being with me all day to being at a daycare all day. It's been trying to say the least.

To top it all of, on Sunday evening, my daughter had a nasty fall that resulted in her front teeth getting all busted up. One of her teeth also got pushed up and back, so the front looks crazy! She also got pieces of asphalt embedded into her gums -- which had to be scrubbed out by Emergency Room staff. They prescribed her antibiotics -- which means 10 days of forcing medicine down her throat too. Yay!

Two days and two dentists later we still don't know how much permanent damage there will be -- aside from the jagged teeth, which is perfectly obvious. It also hurts when she nurses now because her teeth are so sharp.

Making dinner in the evenings is hard because Mia doesn't want me to put her down... my husband has been home twice to help out, which is nice... but the rest of the time it is really difficult. Very painful to watch her going through this.

Jared, on the other hand, seems to be adjusting nicely. I am very proud of him. He's helpful and protective of his sister and likes to entertain us with knock-knock jokes and wild stories.

Everything else is a mess... little time to talk to family or friends or deal with anything not immediately pressing.

I hate this. I hope it gets better.

Catching Up

2008-07-17T15:03:00.000-07:00

Again I am remiss in my postings. Summer has a way of being relaxing and crazy busy at the same time.

Most importantly, the swing set is up and in "full swing" -- pun intended. The kids are loving it. It is not unusual to hear Jared out there swinging first thing in the morning.

I just dropped Jared off at my dad’s house… he’s taking him to Lake Isabella and to see the giant Sequoia trees. I took him to the Hollywood Bowl for a special kids’ concert this morning after swim lessons, and that was sort of a fun thing to do before saying “bye.” I miss him already, though I should be enjoying the respite.

I am going to Glen Ivy Hot Springs Day Spa on Saturday where I will soak, steam, sweat, sun, mud, scrub, body masque and get a massage that sounds amazing! Check it: Rejuvenate your body. Vigorous strokes and direct pressure using transitioning warm/cool Temescal stones warms up and cools down tired and aching muscles.

In my culinary world: It turns out that the best thing I did with all those nectarines was to make some preserves that didn’t set up quite right and now I pour it over plain greek yogurt and top with sliced toasted almonds – YUM!

I had a GREAT dinner date with my friend Dawn the other night… no drama or chaos and we actually sat at a table instead of the bar (my pick). It really gave us a chance to catch up as we spend little time together since I have had the babies.

Oh, and Jed and I went to the Weeds Wrap party last Saturday night and that was sort of a fun/different thing to do. The theme was South of the Border so that means there was lots of tequila tasting -- ay yay yay! I even got to talk to a few of the stars and dance two feet from Mary Louise-Parker (whom I think Jed is in love with.) It was fun, and even better, a cheap date!

Nectarine Harvest

2008-06-19T15:02:00.000-07:00

All the nectarines on our tree seem to be ripening at the same time. They are delicious when eaten pulled right from the tree while they are warm and juicy from being pelted by the sun. Yum! Mia and I love to eat them in the backyard and let the juice drip all over our hands and toes. Then we hose off and that's fun too!

The heat sure is making it hard to keep up with all of the ripening fruit. The bugs seem to be eating more than we are. I am trying to utilize them quickly. We've been having fresh nectarines, I made a batch of nectarine jam, I've frozen nectarines, made nectarine bars(like lemon bars, only the consistency isn't quite right so they are sticky) and nectarine cobbler (far and away my favorite.)

It's nearly a full time job!

I'm also trying to get an old fashioned swing set -- a surprisingly difficult challenge if you want to get a decent one. Hopefully we will be picking it up tonight.

I'm also going to be doing a women-only trail run this Saturday up in Pasadena that is sponsored by "Run Like A Girl" so I'm *really* excited about that.

Am I Too Old For This Top?

2008-06-13T14:14:00.000-07:00

So I was trying to decide if I am too old to wear the navel-bearing top I have on right now and I realized... if I'm asking the question, I'm too old. Oh well, I am leaving it on anyway!

Now the real question is, will I actually go to my son's preschool wearing it?

All else is good. I had a good run today and even managed to mow the lawn and clean the kiddies play castle (it was nasty!)

I'm looking forward to Father's Day this weekend, and the Gardens of the Montecito Tour. Not only will I be helping my friend who is putting on the event, but my yard is going to be in the tour. We recently relandscaped our yard, ripping out the grass and replacing it with drought-tolerant plants and hardscaping. The idea was to create a bit of a zen feel, provide some screening in front of our living room windows and establish a hedge to curtain us from our neighbors' terrible yard. Here are the before and after photos:

(Click here to see more images of our new landscaping)
Actually, I see I really need to update the "after" photo. The bamboo and the hedge and all the plants have really filled in.

Houseguests

2008-06-06T12:51:00.000-07:00

So, while on an extended hiatus from writing in my blog I had 14 people in my house on one night... and they all slept here... and all had breakfast the next morning.

Insane, isn't it?

Breakfast the next morning involved two dozen eggs, over a pound of cheese, two dozen tortillas, two packages of pork breakfast sausages, one entire casing of chorizo, three avocados, an entire gallon of milk and two pots of coffee. Thank god we didn't do a dinner here.

Overall it was a pretty good experience. The guests were three of my cousins and their kids and my brother. Everyone seemes to handle themselves well -- the only problem was that they clogged BOTH of my toilets. Ewww! Freaking kids!

While the family was here my cousin Angie (finally) graduated from college, we went to tea, had a visit from my grandma, we went to Disneyland and California Adventure and we went to the L.A. Zoo. The day we went to the zoo the oddest thing happened: our visitors from Montana and North Dakota were treated to a rare and spectacular thunder and lightning storm right here in Los Angeles! What are the chances?

Jed's BFF Julian also stayed with us for two weeks. Julian and Jed grew up together in Mount Washington. Now Julian is in the army based in Alaska, but after some intensive desert training he's heading for Iraq in November. We wish him well.

I think Julian got a rare glimpse at what life and outings with two small children is really like. The first week he was here he joined us on a couple of outings, but then I got sick. REALLY sick. So Jed and Uncle Julian took over. I'm the first to say that outings with our two kids can be really tough. I do it all the time by myself, and it's often just great -- but it *is* exhausting.

I spent the second week of Julian's visit bundled up on the counch watching TV and being miserable. I felt bad that I was such a terrible hostess, especially since this was his big LA vacation... but then again he did keep saying that I looked like a mental patient everytime I walked into the room.

A Mammoth Mother's Day

Mother's Day weekend was also really cool for me. The four of us spent three relaxing, warm, fun days in Mammoth. It is unusal for just the four of us to go, so it was really special. Also, Jed did almost all of the work so I got to kick back and read a book. Yay!

Lovely Day

2008-05-08T06:54:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was just one of those days for me: a really lovely day. I stop short of saying perfect because a perfect day would have involved something over the top, but it was lovely.

I woke well rested. I nursed the baby and she went back to sleep. I had time to snuggle with my little boy. I got to read a magazine while soaking my foot. We got out of the house without any yelling.

I had a wonderful run and the temperature was perfect -- and Mia laughed the whole way. Back at home Mia and I puttered and played and while she took a nap I got to do some arm and ab exercises and take a shower.

Then we went to lunch with a friend of mine who is just a ray of sunshine. The food was great and I got to play with my new phone/GPS unit and it worked awesome!

Back at home again we played some more and while she napped I made turkey pesto meatballs and popped them in the slow cooker, relaxed and my brother came by for a visit.

The evening continued in the same idyllic manner. I sipped a glass of wine while the kids took turns in the swing. I raked up leaves. Dinner practically finished itself and the family ate together without any incident. No one complained and everyone gobbled up their meatballs.

After dinner we went on a brisk walk and finished before the mosquitos came out. After a quick bath for the kids, my husband and I took turns reading to them and then tucked them into bed.

By 8:40 the evening was our own. And it was good.

Blow Job Diet Huge Success

2008-05-06T13:58:00.000-07:00

After 10 days the Blow Job Diet has been a huge success -- for my husband. It has been a complete failure for me.

It seems I just can not pass up on my evening wine and/or dessert. In fact, most evenings I still ended up having both. Which means that after 10 days, my husband had gotten about 6 blow jobs (though he did manage to take care of business with me about an equal number of times) but, I still owe him about 10 blow jobs.

The good news is that even with not being able to exercise for the past week due to a toe injury, I still never seem to gain any weight. I just can't lose any weight. I feel good, and good about my body -- but I'd like to feel GREAT!

Other News

Mia is saying a lot of new words. Aside from mama, dada and uh-oh, she now says: hi, bye, dog, hot, more, baba (bunny) and a few other sounds that mean a variety of things. I LOVE it. Love, love, love it. She is just so precious.

Jared has started saying, "Mommy, you're pretty. I love you." I don't know who put him up to this, but I love them. Daddy may even get an extra BJ if I find out it was him. It's just precious.

Jared is really into reading these chapter books right now, we just devour them. It's so great to see him developing such a love for reading -- albeit listening right now.

The Blow Job Diet

2008-04-28T16:40:00.000-07:00

Like so many of us, I am constantly hoping to lose that *last* pesky 5 pounds. I've come up with lots of diets. I give up wine. I give up chocolate. I give up everything for 10 days. But, it never sticks.

Last week I came up with a new one: every time I have a drink OR a dessert-type treat, I have to give my husband a blow job. Now it's not that I don't like giving blow jobs, it's just fine, but I'm usually so tired at the end of day that I just don't want to bother. So I figured this was a great idea... even if I don't lose any weight, the hubby will be VERY happy.

So far it's just working out OK. The first couple of days it was really hot. I'd take a sip of wine or a bite of cake and we'd share a secret smile... but nearly a week later, he's had 3 blow jobs, and I've only had sex once.

By Friday I found myself eyeing the wine bottle and thinking: Gee, if I drink a glass of wine, he'll fall asleep happy, and I'll just be frustrated, because unfortunately, with the kind of days he pulls and the very few minutes of awake time we have with no little kids around -- round two just isn't gonna happen.

I have a feeling that the longer I keep the diet up, the better it will work.

I'll keep you posted. I have to admit, it seemed like a better idea when I first thought of it.

Hooters Rules

2008-04-03T20:09:00.000-07:00

So, I was right 750 ml was overpriced. Not only was it overpriced, the food just wasn't that good. It sounded fantastic on the menu -- but it just wasn't that great. We spent nearly $200 -- and that included just two glasses of wine -- and did not include the babysitter. Not good.

After that disappointment we agreed that this week we would do something fun and cheap: I suggested Hooters and Jed jumped at the invitation. A pitcher of beer and enough spicy wings to get things sizzling for hours was less than $40 and it was so much tastier than the week before!

Jed bought some electronic drums. I got to hear them for the first time tonight -- very cool. He also got us a new game for our Playstation; it's called Rock Band and it is kind of like Guitar Hero only you have a guitarist, a drummer and a vocalist. I think you can even have a basist. Very fun!

And look here is a blog about my neighborhood, Montecito Heights: http://montyheights.blogspot.com/ Too cool!

We're off to Disneyland tomorrow. With a 1-year-old and a 4-year-old -- that's an adventure. Wish me luck.

Cool Spider, Hot Coffee and A Babysitter

2008-03-25T14:16:00.000-07:00

The time has changed so now it stays lighter much later and the weather has warmed up. We've been jogging and hiking a lot more these past few weeks and it has been a treat. (That's Griffith Park at right)

We live close to Ernest E. Debs Park which is a huge reserve with a lake, lots of trees and paths and great views of downtown LA, South Pasadena, Glendale, Highland Park, Alhambra and beyond. The other day while hiking there we saw a spider that I happened to notice looked bumpy -- a little like a pine cone. Upon closer observation we found that the body of the spider was covered in babies who would periodically jump off and scurry away. Isn't that odd? I've never seen anything like it!

I have also trekked to Cycleway Coffee, which is kind of like a Starbucks -- expect that it is in our neighborhood! It's a first for us to have somewhere to get coffee that we can actually walk to. It takes about an hour round trip (not counting any time actually spent in the coffee shop,) and it's a pretty good workout too because there are a lot of hills.

The image at the right is from a hike I took to the South Pasadena water tower. I live din that city most of my life and had never been up there before. It was nice.

We have a babysitter tonight and so we are going to a wine bar and bistro called 750 ml. I am quite sure that it will be overpriced, but I'm looking forward to going somewhere that I would NEVER take my kids too and where I am pretty sure no one else would have the audacity to bring their kids to. Hey, I need a break.

Snuggle Time

2008-03-18T14:53:00.001-07:00

My son woke up this morning and insisted that I get back in bed for snuggle time. Well, you got it buddy! Why can't he be like that all the time?

Yesterday Mia pointed at something and said "dah!" I turned around and sure enough, there was a dog... This was impressive because I had spent 20 minutes last Friday trying to teach her the word. Then she said it again just a few minutes later and pointed at another dog! Meanwhile, "Mama mama mama" has come to mean, not only me of course, but also, Daddy, and I want (fill in the blank).

Mia doesn't walk with her hand up in the air anymore. Now she just looks like a little drunk femal leprechaun tottering around. Very cute!

Jared likes to make "fire come out of his knees."

Jed is working out and running again.

And someone is crying during nap time. Damn!

I'm the Last of A Dying Breed

2008-03-08T07:42:00.001-08:00

Natural born redheads may be extinct by 2010. So, quite literally, as a natural born redhead with no carrot-topped kidlets, I am the last of a dying breed. According to researchers from the United Kingdom's Oxford Hair Foundation the recessive gene for red hair is being dominated by darker shades through intemingling.

Currently, less that 4% of the world's population are natural redheads. I read that something like only 1% of the world's population have completed a marathon... since I've done both, I must be really rare!

In light of this news about natural redheads' diminishing prowess on the planet, I got my hair dyed... albeit a brighter shade of crimson. As my little rocker tells me, "Mommy, you're on Fi-re!"

It's interesting being a natural redhead. My whole life people always remeber me as the girl with the red hair. My friends will back me up when I say it is unquestionably how I nabbed as many guys as I did given my awkwardness in our teen years. There is just something about red hair...

Here's a weird tidbit. My husband only had one other long-term, live-in type girlfriend.. she had red hair. Wanna get even weirder? His mother has red hair too.... Isn't it kind of Oedipal that he married a girl with red hair? One more odd tidbit, our surname "Unrot," his father's last name, means "without red" and yet, both his father and he married women with red hair. Bizarr-o.

Recycling Fabrics

2008-02-20T14:56:00.000-08:00

Does anyone know of a place where I can take fabric (i.e. clothes not suitable for donating and a set of flannel sheets with a big rip in it) to be recycled? I really don’t want to send them off to a landfill, but I don’t sew and never will – therefore, they have no place here.

I poked around online, but just couldn't find any place that took small amounts of consumer waste.

Priceless?

2008-02-19T15:01:00.000-08:00

I've been reading the Spiderwick Chronicles to my nearly 4 year old son so I decided to take him to see the movie. In order to get my mom to babysit my one-year-old, I had to have my cousin drive my mom to Universal City Walk. So, here's what I spent for the three of us:

Parking (*after* theater rebate) $6
IMAX Tickets ordered from Fandago $47
Popcorn and drinks (no candy) $22
Dinner afterwards (2 kids, 2 adults) $49
Taking your kid to see a movie after reading the book: $124, not quite priceless.

It was a lot of fun though and the great seating meant that even Jared didn't have to worry about seeing over the head in front of him.

Out of Touch

2008-02-15T13:21:00.000-08:00

So I've been out of touch for a while... It's been a little crazy.

We went on a trip to Mammoth and it snowed too much. Search and rescue had to rescue my brother after he spent 3.5 hours in, basically, a blizzard. Scary! He also got really sick, as did my husband.

My husband is still sick. It has been three weeks, and depsite a course of antibiotics, he still has a fever that comes and goes at free will. Now he thinks he has an ear infection too. And he has pink eye. And we just switched to Kaiser so you can't just pop in to see your doctor... he has to wait until 4pm when urgent Care opens because there are no appointments available. Still, I'm not knocking Kaiser yet because it has been pretty good so far and it is so much cheaper than our old plan.

Mia turned 1 on January 31st. I made the Barbie cake I practiced before and it came out great! (picture at right) My kids are sharing a room now and it is working out really great (knock on wood). Having our bedroom and our bed back is a big deal! As of my last entry, we were still co-sleeping with Mia... now I feel like we are on the endless honeymoon -- EVEN WITH MY HUBBY BEING SICK! Can you imagine when he's better again!

Jared, who is nearly 4 but going on 14, has started this really charming habit of talking back to us.

Me: Jared, go put on your shoes please.

Jared: No, you put on your shoes!

Me: Jared! Don;t talk to me like that or you are going to have a time out!

Jared: You're a bad guy mommy and I'm gonna shoot you! (makes shooting noise and guns me with his cocked finger then tears through the house at break neck speed until he finds somewhere good to hide for a minute.)

Oh, yes. It's lovely.

In the midst of all this chaos we have also been having minor repairs done around the house and are in the beggining stages of having our front yard landscaped. More on that as it gets accomplished.

I just finished reading A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini -- it was excellent. I also read the 7th Harry Potter book, and that was fun.

Bagging the Bag

2008-01-17T16:10:00.001-08:00

I'm not big on New Year's Resolutions, but this year I am trying to live greener.

My first big move has been to try and use reusable bags for shopping trips -- all shopping trips. So that means groceries at the regular market, going to the Farmer's Market, even buying toys at the toystore for Birthday Parties.

I buy a lot of groceries, so the bags had to be big, strong, washable and small enough to stash in my purse. There were quite a few options, but oh so few that actually looked hip. Enter the Envirosax. Endorsed by Oprah! I'm toting the retro bags, you can see them here, just scroll down.

Turns out these bags are handy to use for everything... and they look good too. Yay.

I've also been trying to use my reusable water bottle as much as possible. I still keep regular bottled water in the car as back-ups though.

Clear Skies

2008-01-17T16:00:00.000-08:00

The weather has been epic this past week. It's been so lovely that I've been enjoying every minute of it and haven't had a bit of time to write... OK I could have made time, but I preferred to sit in the sun and play with my kids or read/doze in a sunny spot.

Today we went to the Griffith Observatory where you could see all the way to Catalina. It was so lovely we stayed for hours. We saw the really cool Planetarium Show, held a meteorite and had a raucous picnic lunch on the front lawn while enjoying the spectacular view of the Hollywood sign.

I'm so kind I offered to take many tourist couples' pictures with the Hollywood sign in the background... it really was a kick.

It was so much fun that I can't wait to go back... perhaps tonight we'll even hit the Farmer's Market!

Welcome 2008: A Recap of the Holidays

2008-01-02T14:34:00.000-08:00

Well the holidays have come and gone and we are still completely intact. I managed to make it through holiday parties, holiday meals and many holiday gifts of food without gaining a pound! I managed to sneak in short sessions on the treadmill just about every other day, with the exception of our trip to Mammoth.

Speaking of holiday gifts of food, we got a lot of them. Among other goodies we got a giant box of cheeses and cured meats, a large selection of English muffins, a big box of steaks, a giant tin of chocolate covered cookies (so good!), a box of truffles and a big basket with all kinds of goodies including four bottles of wine. Clearly I liked the wine basket the best, but I'm surprised by how much of that food we have gone through. I realize now that food is actually a very practical, useful gift and I thank everyone who contributed to our holiday bounty! Hmmm... now that I think about it, did everyone think we were like so broke we couldn't buy groceries?

My Holiday Highlights included:

Our annual hike to Sturtevant Falls to mark our anniversary. We got married there eight years ago. Wow. Time flies.

Jared's Holiday Program: this was memorable mostly because Jed was late, and then was made even later when he got pulled over for driving like a lunatic. Lucky for him, the cop was a dad too... he let him go!

Jared's first ski class. This involved an awful lot of time getting him outfitted into an awful lot of gear for a rather short amount of time out on the bunny slope. But I guess it was the first step right?

Snowboarding with my brother higher on the mountain than I have ever been. All I can say is adrenaline + fear + snowboarding = FUN!

Having a white Christmas and getting to make a snowman.

Most importantly, we had lots of family time to do things like go to the playground or sit around in our PJs!

Autism Is Like the New Blonde!

2007-12-14T15:09:00.000-08:00

So I thought I would have a really nice run to write about today, but instead, I'll have to rant a little about an Autism discussion I had with my good friend C.

We met up at the Rosebowl in Pasadena for a run and it started out pretty good. After a few minutes she mentioned that she had read an article that says 1 in 3 kids has autism. I said that I thought that number seemed pretty high, but I had also read more and more kids who would previously have been labelled with some other sort of learning disability were no being labelled as autistic.

Then my friend went on to add that she was certain a friend of my child's is autistic, stating that this child has all the tell-tale physical and social characteristics including deep-set eyes (or something like that). Now, I got pretty defensive about this because I adore the kid in question and find the child to be perfectly intelligent and "normal" (and for God's sake that is not meant to imply that autistic kids are not normal; I think kids are perfect just the way they are.) It's just that this kid talks, walks, interacts, knows their ABCs... So I tell her that I think the kid is just fine, but she would not relent on the topic.

So we get into this whole discussion about there being different levels of autism and how many people with it are highly functioning. So I make the point that if a child is learning at a normal level, functioning just fine and going to have a perfectly normal life, why label the kid as having autism and freak out the parents.

To make a long story short, I say that if 1 in 3 kids is autistic that's pretty sad, to which she counters: "well, what's sad is people who think that autism is a negative label." Hmmm... I feel like she's calling me sad, so I say, "So I should be proud if I have an autistic child?" And she says, "well, it's the same thing as having a blonde child or a brunette child." WHAT? I DON'T THINK SO!

Now let me be really clear here, I don't think of autism as a "negative" label and I think we all know of autistic kids who are just amazing and excel at specific things... so I am not saying that. But, are there any parents of autistic kids out there who would compare having an autistic child to having a blonde child? And if 1 in 3 kids is labelled as autistic because they learn differently, isn't that a little bit alarmist? I mean we all learn differently, and let's face it, we're all a little different. Now if there are any parents of autistic children out there who want to comment on this, please I would love to hear from you.

To extricate myself from the discussion, which was starting to upset me, I finally had to pointedly change the topic. We are good enough friends that the conversation flowed smoothly in a new direction.

Now, all that said, I figured I certainly better inform myself on the topic better, lest it come up in conversation again. So here are some facts that I gathered from Autism Speaks:

"Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder that typically lasts throughout a person's lifetime. It is part of a group of disorders known as autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Today, 1 in 150 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined."

I read about the "red flags," but none of them applied to the child in question. I was unable to find anything referring to physical characteristics on this site, so I really can't speak to this. I did find this elsewhere: "Interestingly, there are a some autistic individuals whose vermal lobules VI and VII are larger than normal." I have no idea what that means.

After the somewhat tense first 3-mile lap, I went on to run the second lap on my own and sank into some music. It was just what I needed, I had a solid run and felt mellowed by the end. Oh, and I ran it a couple of minutes faster than usual too. Mama's rock!

Today's playlist included:

Plain White T's, Hey There Delilah (I actually listened to this twice because it mellowed me out so much.)
Gwen Stefani, Hey Baby
Black Eyed Peas, Let's Get Retarded
Sean Paul Featuring Busta Rhymes, Gimme The Light Remix
Tom Jones, Hooked on a Feeling (remember the dancing baby???)
Lenny Kravitz, Fly (I always feel like I could lift off during this song.)
Lil Bow Wow, Puppy Love (don't judge, don't be a hater)
The Killers, Mr. Brightside
Jamiroquai, Virtual Insanity
See #1

I just spent the last two hours wrapping presents from Santa, up next is my husband's company's holiday party... Which means I get to wear make-up, a dress AND impractical shoes!

Mommy And Me Yoga

2007-12-13T14:32:00.000-08:00

Today the kids and I tried out a Mommy and Me yoga/pilates class. It was really great!

The moms and little babies spread out their mats on the grass at Brookside Park in Pasadena for a pilates session, while the slightly older children spread out mats (or towels) several yards away with their own yoga instructor!

I was pretty sure that my three-and-a-half-year-old would have fun at the kid's yoga class because he's very social, but I was worried about how my ten-month-old would be. Turns out she felt right at home and crawled from one mommy to the next all during class.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was what a great workout it was. I could really feel my muscles engage! After class I loaded both kids up into the stroller and squeezed in a 15 minute or so jog around the park. I run, therefore I am.

The Mommy and Me fitness classes, offered through Mama Mia Fitness, take place everyday from 9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. in the same location. The M/W/F class is a Circuit Training class and Tuesdays is a Cardio Blast class. Being that my schedule is so crazy between the two kids, and the fact that I like to run 6 miles already on M/W/F, actually making it to a class more than once a week is probably unlikely for me, but it would certainly be GOOD for me to do some cross training.

Judging from today's experience, I would have to highly reccomend this program for any mom -- especially a new mom. The moms I met today were kind and helpful and seemed very down to earth; and getting regular exercise (especially outdoors) is so crucial post-partum to get all those feel good hormones going again. Well, that and SEX! (I know, I know, who has the energy?) That's just my two cents.

After the yoga class we hit Amy's Indoor Playground in South Pasadena. Now, normally I don't like paying to go into one of these types of places when my kids are just as happy being at a park, but with Mia crawling everywhere and putting EVERYTHING in her mouth I happily shelled out the cash! Amy's has a nice little cushy enclosure that is just for the little ones. She was happy in there and it even gave me the chance to get wild in the bouncy house with my son.

Another bonus of the indoor playground with a bouncy house is that it absolutely wipes out older kids. I lured my son away from the play area with an ice cream sandwich (and they even had the 140-calorie Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches, which are so much more of a reasonable "treat" than the giant 500-calorie variety) just minutes before nap time. I managed to get home quickly, feed both kids a little healthy food and get them both down for naps.

Now I have six minutes until my mother-in-law comes over so I can get my eyelashes tinted! I know it sounds very vain, but it's really because I can't stand mascara, but my eyelashes are totally blonde, so I look freaky without it! My husband's big Christmas party is tomorrow night so I want to look my best. It may be the one night in 100 where I actually get to feel a little less like a frumpy mommy than usual.

And here she is! Later!

Squeezing It All In

2007-12-12T17:08:00.000-08:00

Yep, that's what all us busy stay-at-home-moms (and of course, working moms too) do every day. We try to squeeze it all in. Getting exercise, keeping the house clean, getting the laundry done, running mundane errands, doing something fun with the kids and trying to save some energy for keeping the hard-working husband happy too. We all know what goes first... sorry Daddy!

Well, yesterday was so busy that I didn't even have time to write about it until today. I am proud to say, however, that the first thing I squezed in was a quick and effective workout. After building a barricade around my treadmill with a variety of large hard-to-move toys, and toy chests (to keep my crawler away from the machine), I popped in a movie for my older child (in the same room where I have the treadmill) and got in a solid 5K run. Yes, I had to stop a few times to tend to the kidlets, but I did it!

My playlist for the day included:

Abel Kader, Algerian Mix (simply hypnotic)
Jamiroquai, Canned Heat (you'll love the beginning)
Justin Timberlake, Senorita
2Pac, Daz & Kurupt, Ride With Us Remix (not my favorite of today's list)
Carrie Underwood, Before He Cheats (this song is great for running sprints... push to the max during the chorus!)
No Doubt, Excuse Me Mr. (this song never slows down, so neither will you)
Pink, Don't Let Me Go
Eagle Eye Cherry, Save Tonight Techno Remix (fun, fun, fun!)
*NSYNC, It's Gonna Be Me (I'm ashamed to admit this in my playlist, but it really is good for running)
Beautiful, Christina Aquilera (perfect for the cool down and a real confidence booster)

(I love good running music, so please always share your favorites!)

After squeezing in the run, I had the energy to shower, dress, get kidlets ready and make some quick PB&Js so that we could get out the door and off to gymnastics class. After class we hurried back home to meet up with a friend/colleague of mine who was in town visiting. (I made sandwiches on the buns I made on Saturday. How cool is that?) The visit with M. was great; thanks to sunny so. cal. weather we were able to hang on the deck and talk about life with kids. M. is planning to adopt a child from Uzbekistan. You can read all about it on her highly informative blog: Uzbek? Ubet!

We had a great time chatting and catching up while the kids napped, and wouldn't you know it, five minutes after she left my littlest woke up -- so no down time for me! But I did have something to look forward to it. My hubby called to say he planned to be home around 6 (which is super early for him), so we decided to check out this place called Barn Burner in Pasadena. I'd heard it had mediocre BBQ, BUT kids eat free Monday - Wednesday!

We met up at the Barn Burner with a friend and his three-and-a-half-year-old -- who is also my son't best buddy. It was great! An extremely kid-friendly place, which can be really hard to find. It's really loud. It's a big wide open room. They have balloons. There are games (including air hockey) tucked in the back where it is impossible for the kids to escape without detection. The wait staff didn't even bat an eye when our kids went whizzing through their service station and the service was really good. They even give the kids soft serve ice cream cones after their dinner.

Now about the food. Not the *best* BBQ. The meats were a little dry, with the exception of the chicken which was moist, smoky and simply superb! Luckily the BBQ sauce is really good, so you can simply drown any of the dry stuff with it and it's still quite good. The sweet potato fire fries were also excellent. They also served up quart-sized mason jars of beer and a perfectly palatable house wine.

We left at bed time full and relaxed. It was a busy day -- but a fun day!

Barbie Cake & Buns

2007-12-10T15:02:00.001-08:00

'Tis the season to bake... and I love to bake -- mostly because I love to eat. Anyway, my latest two attempts were to make homemade hamburger buns and a Barbie cake.

I decided to make the rolls because I had hamburgers, but no buns and I didn't want to go to the store. I'm so glad I tried it... I'll never buy rolls or buns again! It was not only much easier than I thought it would be -- but they were delicious too!

The Barbie cake was really fun. I'm trying to come up with a special cake for my daughter's first Birthday. It's still more than a month away, but I thought it would be fun to at least try it out a head of time. It was really easy to make this version.

I started out by baking a cake in my oven proof batter bowl... it works best to turn the temperature down a bit and cook for longer. I also had to scoop off some of the cake batter that bubbled up in the middle about half way through cooking... that turned out to be a delicious treat with some cold milk.

To decorate, I simply snapped the legs off of a Barbie doll and shoved bamboo skewers up the torso then stuck the whole thing into the cake. I used frosting to decorate the doll's body and cool whip to cover the skirt. I also sprinkled pink sugar on the skirt to try and give it a more ethereal look. I'd like to geta little fancier with the decoration on the dress but the cool whip isn't strong enough to hold any more decor so I will either have to use buttercream-style frosting or try using rolled fondant. I really think the fondant would make the most beautiful cake, but it's a little pricey... so we'll see.

Soft Serve Snafu

2007-11-29T09:48:00.000-08:00

I love soft serve, so I went online and ordered a soft serve mix for home ice cream machines.

The product description for the mix I bought reads like this: With only 22 Calories per serving and 1.7 Net Carbs Per Serving, Carbawhey is a delicious soft serve dessert specially designed for low-carb, low-lactose, and "diet conscious" consumers. This healthy alternative has no unpleasant after-taste or side effects.

Read the full description.

Hmmm... sounds good, I thought. So I ordered the multi-apck and paid for the shipping.

Holy christ the stuff was bad. A very weird sticky consistency and just terrible flavor. I tried making both the chocolate and the vanilla flavors. The vanilla required using a neutral base mix and adding French Vanilla flavoring. There were two different sets of directions for ho wmuch flavoring to add based on how much mix you were using. I ended up with an orange concoction that reeked of alcohol and was totally inedible.

So, I decided to write to the site where I purchased the mixes from just to give my review and I was even thinking that *maybe* they would offer to make an exchange. My product review must have felt more like a personal attack to the vendor. This is our exchange.

Here's what I wrote:

----- Original Message -----
From: "Michelle Unrot"
To: "'Douglas A. Bouma'"
Sent: Thursday, November 29, 2007 7:02 AM
Subject: RE: Order Update

> You should put a note on the website that explains how AWFUL this stuff
> tastes! I'm sure it is very healthy, but at what price? YUCKY! We're so
> disappointed. And the directions that came with the French vanilla flavoring
> were totally wrong too... there were actually two different sets of
> directions that didn't match. Anyway, no personal offense, but I find the
> product to be really terrible.
>
> Sincerely,
> Michelle Unrot

Here's what he wrote:
(Take note of the last graf, and please, tell me what you think it means.)

Good morning,

Thank you for the kind words and the input towards the product. All criticism is welcome, and we do have someone here at all times of the day to answer any question that you may have.

We do have customers that rave about this product and they have had some variation in texture and taste. Of course the machine that you use typically has something to do with the outcome.

Once again thank you for your kind gesture this morning and I hope that you have the same type of success with your daily ventures in life.

Happy Holidays

Doug
Owner
Soft Serve Depot

I think the moral of the story is one we've all heard before: When something sounds too good to be true, it is.

I believe I'll just be heading to Pinkberry next time I want some soft serve.

Santa Clarita Half Marathon

2007-11-06T14:28:00.000-08:00

I ran the Santa Clarita Half Marathon on Sunday morning. I can never sleep the night before a marathon... that means I didn't really get to take advantage of the fact that we got to turn the clocks back on Saturday night -- I mean, I couldn't sleep anyway! Oh well, at least it wasn't pitch black when I had to leave the house and head out for the race.

It was unseasonably warm too. As I ran the first few miles on the streets and trails winding through the Santa Clarita Valley the sky turned from fuchsia to a lighter pink to a brilliant blue with streaky white clouds almost imperceptibly. The air was crisp, but not cold. Perfect running conditions.

I love running in organized events because I don't need to worry about carrying water or snacks or if there's a place to pee along the trail -- all that is taken care of by the organizers. But, perhaps the best thing is the buzz of energy that surrounds you. I feel like I am literally pulled along almost effortlessly (but not quite) by the rest of the runners.

My mind slips and slides while I'm running long distances. Sometimes I am extremely focused on a single idea: I'm going to pass that guy with the red dolphin shorts and hairy legs before the next song starts OR I'll plan an elaborate dinner party (that I'll never throw) down to the minutest details -- think personalized place settings and a different beverage for every course.

Then sometimes I find that miles have passed and I've noticed nothing except the texture of the bridge boards I crossed earlier in the run. I can't recall where I'm at in my run, what songs I've listened to or what I've been thinking about.

Other times I run like a kid... I clear my mind, smile (at least to myself, no need to look like a complete dork), and kick out my feet and swing my arms and just have fun!

Regardless of how a run goes I almost always feel the same at the end: energized, a little high and extremely sexy and strong.

I finished in 2 hours and 9 minutes, about what I had expected based on my training and bout with illness in the weeks preceding the race.

While I was running, my little boy participated in a Kid K run. A Kid K is where the kids run in a one kilometer race (that's a little over a half-mile for the metrically challenged). It's a great way to get kids excited about running and to keep them busy while parents are running longer events. My little tike had a great time, it was his first event, but hopefully not his last!

The Oddest Interview

2007-11-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had what was perhaps the oddest interview I have ever had, save for one I had during the Internet boom in which the barefooted person interviewing me was playing ping pong, likely high and most likely making a six figure salary for doing not too much.

A couple of weeks ago I applied for a job at a big satellite entertainment company where I did some freelance work in between having my two kids. A week ago I was informed that someone from Human Resources would be calling me to conduct a "screening" call. When I asked what type of information I would need ready and how long it would take I was told that I didn't need to have anything ready as it was a background interview and it would be a standard list of questions. Not so.

A very nice woman from the company's HR office in Denver called me with a long list of very specific job interview questions that had been prepared by the person actually doing the hiring in Idaho. As I was answering each of the questions she was typing away at her keyboard, periodically asking me to pause or to repeat things -- which was really awkward. Aside from not getting any body language feedback from the interviewer, I knew my answers would seem flat without my own witty tone. Plus, when I asked for clarification on one of the questions, she said, "Well, I don't want to give anything away."

I really liked my response to one of the questions. The HR rep. said, "This job is described as hectic, busy, requires overtime and some weekends... Describe your current work schedule." To which I replied, "I'm a stay-at-home mom so my schedule is hectic, busy, requires overtime, working weekends -- AND I don't get sick days!"

Of course, I don't get paid either, but I didn't think that would be a good thing to point out. Anyway, wish me luck.

Hello, Doctor, Are You In?

2007-10-31T08:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went back to the doctor for a flu shot. The doctor walks in and says, "You were right, you did test positive for mono!" Ummm... Okay, well that certainly explains why I was feeling so run down and why I still wasn't feeling 100% even after antibiotics. What it didn't explain is why no one had called me from his office to let me know. I'd taken the test a full week earlier, surely plenty of time to give me a ring, right? Wrong, apparently I should have called in to the office to get the results two days after the tests. Argh.

The Cold That Wouldn't Leave

2007-10-29T15:07:00.000-07:00

So I'm finally feeling better today after two weeks of a cold and sore throat that just wouldn't go completely away. The baby still has some nasty congestion, which is particularly sucky because when she's stuffed up she has trouble sleeping. You see, when you have a baby who sucks on her fingers for comfort, and said baby can't breathe through her nose, she either gets no comfort or gets no oxygen. Meanwhile, mommy gets no sleep.

I finally decided to get back to my normal jogging routine today following my two week hiatus. The break was unfortunate because I am running the Santa Clarita Half Marathon this Sunday. This will be my first distance race since having my little girl and it will be my son's first time participating in a Kid K. I ran the full marathon a couple of years ago and actually managed to place second in my division! Because I have had so little time to train, I don't expect to do well this time, but I'm hoping to have a good time anyway!

Now that I'm back on track, I should be back to posting too!

My Employer Doesn't Give Sick Days

2007-10-19T15:38:00.000-07:00

Man, I sure could have used a sick day this week. My son got the flu on Sunday and by Monday morning I had a nasty cold with sinus pressure so intense I seriously considered drilling a hole in my head! Meanwhile, my 9-month-old also had a runny nose -- either from teething or a cold, I don't know. (BTW, when I say runny nose when referring to my baby, I mean snot running like so much water from a faucet, only it's snot so it gets smeared into hair, onto toys/clothes and dripped all over the carpet.)

So we were literally drowning in tears and snot! I didn't feel like moving, let alone dealing with two sick kids, but that's the catch when you are a stay at home mom -- you don't get sick days! Really, I just don't know how I got through Monday. How do other people do it?

Today is the first day that I am feeling sort of back to normal... and the first day that my son went back to school. So I managed to go for a jog, hit the grocery store and do some laundry. The little one with the shiny new tooth is napping soundly and I have the chance to rest up a bit too -- but of course this isn't when I NEED the break, that was on Monday when I just couldn't catch one to save my life.

Blogging Like a Newbie

2007-10-18T16:28:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about starting a blog for ages, but like most anyone with kids knows, there just aren't enough hours in the day. I'm more likely to write out a menu for the week with the accompanying shopping list (that almost invariably involves running around to a mere minimum of three stores) than I am to actually write something for fun!

Yet, here I am, on a day where I have spent nearly three hours in nasty L.A. traffic, getting my very own blog started. Apparently traffic is far more draining for infants and little boys, so while my two little ones nap I'm gonna get this party started.