Sharing a delicious find

I found a box of these mint tea bags in my pantry, and took a couple to work to try out.


I thought "I bet that would be good cold," so I got busy brewing.
First I microwaved 2 cups of water, not hot but warm enough to melt a packet of Truvia and brew the tea. I emptied the Truvia into my cup and put in the tea bag, then poured the water over. I let it brew for a couple minutes, stirring to make sure everything was dissolved. After it looked like the yea had brewed enough, I filled the rest of the cup with ice.


It is SO good! Much better than I imagined it would taste, actually.
I'm definitely making this again.

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Purple for Ethan

Today Sophie & I are wearing purple. So is my sister-in-law, and countless other friends and friends of friends. My Facebook feed is full of families wearing purple all for the same reason. Today, right now in fact, a lovely five year old little boy named Ethan is undergoing a major brain surgery.

Ethan has Doose syndrome, a rare form of epilepsy. His mother, Taryn, is also a member of the birth board I joined right after Sophie was born. Ethan's younger sister is Sophie's age. This post on Taryn's blog tells about the beginning of their journey leading up to today's surgery. I cannot imagine what this family is going through every day. Our own experience was terrifying for us, and Sophie only had one day of seizures and one hospital stay, and then a happy ending. I can't comprehend the strength Taryn and her husband have.

The family is surrounded by love and prayers today, and I hope you will add your prayers to ours. Pray the surgery goes well, there are no complications, and that it works. He will have a difficult recovery, but pray that it goes quickly. Ethan is a fighter, and he deserves this win. Their whole family does.

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34 lessons

Today, I am 34 years old. I'm now in my "mid-thirties." Part of me doesn't feel that old, part of me feels like my age has caught up with how I have felt for years. Getting married and having a baby at 19 made me grow up pretty fast. So far, my thirties have been pretty good. I still don't have everything figured out, but I'm more comfortable in my own skin. Earlier today, I was thinking about how I'm different now than I was ten or even five years ago. So, in honor of my 34th birthday, here are 34 lessons I've learned.

1. Life is too short to listen to telemarketers. No is no, I'll even give you another one just because I know you're simply trying to make a living, but then I'm hanging up.
2. Don't make yourself unhappy trying to please those who don't care about you.
3. I have more friends than I realized.
4. Just let it go. Relax.
5. When combined with enough chocolate or caramel, coffee is delicious.
6. But don't drink too much in a day... ugh.
7. Eating junk for a day is okay, but more than a day is SO not worth it. Eat good stuff and feel good.
8. You  ALWAYS have time for one more hug or kiss. Too many people don't get that chance.
9. Two days in the year I absolutely refuse to cook: Mother's Day and my birthday. I don't care if we stay in and someone else cooks and cleans up, or we go out - I'm not doing either.
10. Gifts are nice, but what REALLY makes me happy is togetherness. And if someone else wanted to do the dishes, vacuuming, and put away the laundry I'd just be ecstatic.
11. Sharpie WILL come off laminate furniture with enough scrubbing, but so far nothing gets plain ballpoint pen ink off the wall.
12. Sounds too good to be true = really is too good to be true
13. Check the source. No matter what the information, check the original source for the truth.
14. Technology is awesomesauce, but it's even better to get a real card or letter in the mail.
15. Family is everything
16. Money isn't.
17. Keep the receipt.
18. Nothing beats a great group of friends.
19. The main difference between a teenager and a toddler is height.
20. Your kids will argue, no matter what the age difference is.
21. Preview the book before buying. "First chapter free" is a wonderful thing.
22. Don't be afraid to look ridiculous.
23. No matter how cool of a parent I think I am, I'm really not.
24. When the knee pops and pain starts, STOP DANCING. Even if you did just post on Facebook thirty seconds earlier that you were going to kick your daughter's butt at Just Dance. The ability to walk trumps saving face.
25. Being a parent does not mean I can't be myself. My hobbies and interests are important, too.
26. Marriage is not a fairytale. But it is so worth it. Nothing beats going through life with the person you love.
27. Don't forget to love on the dogs.
28. Don't forget to bathe the dogs....
29. Fill the bathtub with water before caulking or else you'll be doing it again.
30. It's not hard at all to fix the toilet. Just Google the problem, get the correct part at the store, and follow the directions. Don't be afraid to try it.
31. Fresh fruit goes bad quickly. Eat lots of it and learn to cook with it.
32. Experimenting in the kitchen often has tasty results.
33. No matter what, stop to listen when someone is talking to you.
34. Some things can't be unseen.

(IN)secure

I did something unusual today. I spend at least five full minutes styling my hair. I know, that doesn't sound like much. But when you consider that my usual rotation of hair styles take approximately 30 seconds each, it's a lot.

I received compliments throughout the day. Several people told me it looked nice. I even used hairspray!

For some reason, though, I was self-conscious all day. I was afraid that the pieces would come unpinned without my knowledge and look terrible. I was afraid that it looked like I had tried too hard. I was afraid I looked ridiculous.

Why do I do this to myself? Why do I second (or third, or fourth) guess myself when I try something new? No matter what I project on the outside, on the inside I still feel like the girl from my childhood. Unsure, insecure, teased for being different, outright bullied. That girl is a scar imprinted on my soul, clouding my view of myself and my world.



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Not funny - When whimsy crosses a line

In case you haven't noticed, I like Pinterest. A lot. But recently, I came across a pin that just wasn't funny to me. It's a hair dryer shaped like a gun. The caption and the comments were lighthearted and fun.

I don't find it funny.

Call me oversensitive, but when you lose two friends to suicide by firearm, things like this just aren't funny or cute. It's scary. Many look at this and see a harmless juxtaposition; I see violence. And I'm not anti-gun. I'm anti-suicide.

Did you know this?

Suicide is still the leading cause of firearm death in the U.S. In 2007, the U.S. firearm suicide total was 17,352 an increase from the 2006 national gun suicide number of 16,883.

Also, half of all suicides in this country are via firearms. 

Still cute? Funny?

 

http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

Happy Labor Day!

What I've been doing this weekend:




















I made the stool, necklace board, & bracelets. We've played outside & inside. Great weekend.
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Favorite things

Her constant companion

Because who needs a baby book when you have a blog?  

Sophie is two and a half years old. That "half" seems so important - not a young, just-turned-two, but not yet almost-three. She is perfectly, exactly two-year-old two. The silliness, the occasional tantrums, the strong will, the defiance, the laughter, the repetition, the "why"s, all of it. It's time for an update of Sophie's Favorite Things!

Curious George. She has a minor obsession with this show.
Cows
Horses
Trains



This song:

VeggieTales
Cheese
Chocolate Milk
Grapes and strawberries and oranges
Blocks
Playing with our dogs
Cat-chasing
Hello Kitty
Having her fingernails and toenails painted
Elephants
Her friends
Bunny!! Always her most favorite thing
Books
Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That
Helping to cook
Washing her hands
Stars
Dancing
Ring Around the Rosie
Swimming (in a "swimmoot)
Playing on the playground
Pizza
Chicken

None of your business

Yesterday at work I stopped in to use a staff restroom that I've never been in before. On the back of the door was a printout of the often-repeated Regina Brett column, 45 Life Lessons. (It has been since updated with "5 to grow on.") Much of the list is good advice, a bit is trite and almost cliched, like a grocery store greeting card. One line really stuck out at me, though.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

What a difference from how most of us think!

We want to be liked. When someone doesn't seem to like us, we can drive ourselves batty trying to figure out why. We spend so much energy dwelling on how other people view us, and how to change those opinions that we don't match our own views of ourselves. But you know what?

It doesn't matter.

It might not be anything we CAN change. And really, why worry about it? Just like it's none of my business how Sally feels about Sue, or how Sue feels about Bob, it's also none of my business what opinions anyone else has of me. (I of course exclude family and close friends - but would hope those have favorable views of me. If not, I would hope they would try to work things out.)

Sometimes people just don't get along. Don't take it personally.  It is such a relief to not have the burden of strangers' (or acquaintances') opinions weighing on your already-full shoulders. This concept relates to an article discussed on a local morning radio show recently, 15 Things You Should Give Up to be Happy.

It all comes down to one simple concept: Let it go.

I tried this out recently, too. One person in a group I couldn't get along with? Hidden. People in my Facebook friends list that are not really friends? Unfriended. And I admit it, at first I felt awful. Guilty, even. As if they would even notice! But why let myself feel stressed about it? It is time to take control of my own peace. I'll be doing more, too. I've thought about closing my Twitter account. Realizing my first thought to that was "what will the people I follow and the ones who follow me think?" further illustrates my need to let go. Most of the ones I interact with there are also on Facebook. Or Pinterest. Or Instagram. What would I be missing? I can't think of a good answer.

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Fall is almost here!

It's that time of year again - my post dedicated to being a couch potato!
The Fall TV season is almost here - just one more month (or less in some cases) and we will have new episodes to watch! So, in honor of the occasion, here are my top four shows I'm eagerly awaiting (in no particular order).

1. Dexter
OhhhhMG that finale! Talk about taking your breath away! And the trailer that's been released is only adding to the feeling. It's back September 30 on Showtime.
Cannot. Wait.

2. Castle
Our whole family loves this show. And the new season premieres on September 24 - my husband's birthday! Great present. Another show that ended with an "OMG!" but this time in a good way. Castle and Beckett, together at last, spawning the worst couple nickname ever. "Caskett" just is not right. I'm anxious to see how the characters, namely Beckett, deal with what happened.

3. Bones
Booth and Brennan are together. They have a baby. Max is babysitting. Then, bad guy is after Brennan, she goes on the run with the baby for safety, and a bomb is planted in their house. What next?? It looks like September 17 is when we find out.

4. Doctor Who
Sometime in early September, no one seems to know exactly when, the Doctor will return to our lives. This is a show I started out watching on Netflix just to see what all the fuss was about, and soon was hooked. And now my oldest daughter is, also! She's also using Netflix to catch up.

Also on my can't miss: Criminal Minds, Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, Big Bang Theory, Glee.

Who broke my baby?

Free image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

This is me today. Ok, it's not really me, but it's how I feel. But she looks more awake than I feel. For some reason, Miss Sophie was awake and ready to play at 4:45 a.m. She is NEVER up that early. Ever.

It started with her waking me up asking for George (Curious George, her current favorite). I grabbed my phone off the nightstand to see what time it was. Um, no. I don't like to even acknowledge the existence of that time. I told her it's bedtime. "Why?" Because it's nighttime. "Why?" Go back to sleep! (Cue thoughts of the Samuel L Jackson-narrated audiobook) Requests for George turned into "Want locket-milk (chocolate milk) and cee-ral (cereal)" No. Shortly after - "I gotta pee!!" She went into the bathroom, but turned on the fan instead of the light, which scared her. So, I had to get up and help her. Back to bed? If only...

When she started running up and down the hall playing with the dogs, I gave in and took her to the living room. I turned on Curious George (thank goodness for DVR) and made her a cup of chocolate milk (I use sugar-free chocolate syrup, and it gets her to drink her milk, don't judge). I went back to bed, hoping for more sleep. Nope.

"Mommm-eeee! Momm-eeee!" I get up again, and go down the hall. The dog had gotten on the couch with her (he's not allowed) and was apparently licking her toes. I knew there would be no more sleep, so I gave in and made coffee, put on another episode of George, and took my shower. She finally fell back asleep later for another half hour (when it was time for me to get ready for work, of course), and woke up just as happy and playful again. Which I guess is a good thing, better than being whiny and crankypants because she's so tired, but oh em gee child! Mommy doesn't have enough energy to play when she's woken up that early.

I might have a nap for lunch today.

On another note, her love of Curious George has allowed me to do more with her hair. As long as he's on tv, I can do whatever and she's fine with it. Here are the past three days' hairstyles for her:

Politics suck

It's that time of year - political ads are oversaturating our televisions. Everyone wants a sound bite from the candidates. Interviews are everywhere, and the talking heads are going non-stop.

I'm over it.

Where do I stand? I stand out of the way. I don't belong to either party. I've taken the "Which party do I identify with" quizzes like crazy and get the same results every time: 50% each side. So I choose which issues matter the most to me, and vote for the candidate that agrees the most with me on those issues. Democrat, Republican, Independent, whatever.

Ultimately, I think they're all the same, though. Different labels, same results. Nothing changes. And with the abundance of 24 hour news channels, it's a never-ending stream of chatter ranting and raving. Which reminds me - yet another reason why I hate Fox News. (For many others, watch this documentary.) My husband had the channel on earlier this week. In the morning, the people who yell at each other across the table were saying that unemployment was worse than ever, the economy was getting worse every day, and it was all President Obama's fault (although they can't be bothered to refer to him as President. Have you ever noticed that?). In the evening, on the same channel, another one of their talking heads was saying that the economy was better than it had been in years, companies are hiring again, jobs are increasing, the housing market is improving, and consumer spending is up. Wait - doesn't that directly contradict what his coworkers were saying earlier that same day? Yes it does.

Anyway, I will definitely be glad when the election has come and gone. The political character assassinations won't end completely, but at least it will be a little better for a couple years.

Billboard to the world

Billboard generator at http://www.makesweet.com

This is the billboard I would make if I could put one up for all the world to see. It's a message we all need to hear.

You are beautiful.
You are marvelous.
You are precious.
You are the whole world to someone.
You are loved.
You are cherished.
You are worth it.
You are perfect.
You can do whatever you set your mind to do.
You can reach your dreams.

You'll watch this more than once

I must share this amazing piece of K-pop. I have a friend living in Korea and she shared it on Facebook yesterday. It. Is. Hilarious. For real. Some of it is pure awesomesauce, some of it is insanity, some of it will make you look at it as if looking at a person with three heads. And you will laugh out loud.

You're welcome.

Conversation with my grandmother

Today's post comes from a prompt from Writing.com. I have their writing prompts app on my phone and was swiping away, going through my favorites to see what stuck out to me. Then this one came up, and I just had to use it. It's a phone conversation with a relative who has died. I immediately thought of my grandmother (Mema) who died five years ago this November. She never got to know about Sophie, whose middle name is my grandmother's name in her honor. Enjoy, and I'll try not to cry as I write.

Hi, Mema. I just called to see how you are doing. It's been so long since we've gotten to talk and I miss you like crazy still. So many changes have happened since we last saw you. Emma is so grown up. I can't believe she's in high school already! You would be so proud of her. She is a smart girl.

You have a new great-granddaughter, too! Her name is Sophie Inez. She is just as wonderful and amazing as Em was at this age. You two would have so much fun together! She loves having her nails done. She also loves singing, and would love the billboard song you used to sing me when I was little. I wish I knew the words, because it's a great song. I also think your vegetable casserole would get her to actually eat broccoli.
I think about you all the time. So many times I want to ask you about something - tell me about the Hindenberg disaster, how long do I cook a dish or what measurements are used for the ingredients, what do you think of this outfit, or my hair? We have restaurants that you would love and it would be so nice to take you to lunch again.

I'll call again soon. It's nice to hear from you. I miss you and I love you.

Update: Through the miracle of search engines, I found the words to the billboard song she used to sing to me!
As I was walking down the street
A billboard caught my eye
and what was on that billboard will make you laugh and cry

The wind and rain had come that day and washed it half away
And what was on that billboard was what i have to say

Come smoke a Coca-Cola
Drink Ketchup cigarettes
See Lillian Russell wrestle with a box of oysterettes

Meet pork and beans tonight in their final fight
and John Browns lecture on polio right

Simonize your baby, with Hershey's candy bars
And Texaco's a beauty cream that's used by all the stars

Bay rum is good for horses
It is the best in town
Castor oil cures the measles pay five dollars down

Teeth extracted without pain for a half a dime
Big bens are selling now a little out of time

Doctors say that babies, should smoke 'til they are three.
And people over 65 should bathe in Lipton tea
With flow-thru teabags
Cause everything they have sags 

Sacred gifts

Free image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The wonderful book Spin Your Story from Kind Over Matter asks the question "What are my sacred gifts?" It's a question we should all explore from time to time.

So what are my gifts? Good question. I have a hard time answering questions like this, both because I tell myself that I don't make a difference, and because I'm afraid of sounding vain. Also, I can't think of anything. So I asked my husband.

Here's his list of my gifts: I'm a good mother, good at drawing, and writing. Good list.
My list?
Creativity
Fairness
Compassion
Empathy
Making yummy things in the blender
Making cakes - maybe? Maybe I'm deluded and should be featured on CakeWrecks. Who knows.

The real question, though, is what do I do with my gifts?  What do I put out in the world to help make it a better place?

A very good question, indeed.