So here's my entry for the Quirky Quote Qontest...
"God's gifts put man's best dreams to shame." - Elizabeth Barrett Browning
This has come true for me more times than I can possibly share. I love this quote - it's been important to me for over 10 years now... Not so quirky on the surface, but hey, in the ways in which it comes true, it sure can be!
BooMama is offering a giveaway at her blog for Glory Revealed, which sounds like a drool-a-licious cd. If I don't win, I'm definitely going to take advantage of the "save $5 by clicking here" thing to go get me my own copy. Scripture, set to music by the top Christian artists? Sounds GOOD to me!
gosh, 5 minutes for mom is a fabulous website for contests. can you tell that i'm addicted to contests? now they're offering a dyson vacuum. can i say that everytime their commercial comes on tv, i'm hooked? Mister saw a commercial for the first time the other day (probably during idol) and was captivated as well...
yeah. go check out the contest. and the vacuum!
silly america. not even putting the Androgenous One in the bottom three. although my Mister informed me that the top four have something like 80% of the vote, and that all the others are way down at the bottom.
of the top four (Melinda, LaKisha, Jordin and Blake), who would you want to see in concert most?
LaKisha - “Last Dance” - I have to say that I missed this, as I was busy bringing dinner down to the tv room, but Mister said that she did all right. I was hoping that she'd do a "belt-it-out" song, as that's what it's going to take to beat out Melinda. Dress? Boots? Gorgeous.
Chris Sligh - “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” - I used to like him so much, but he's not standing out in the crowd. It was a little off...
Gina - “I’ll Stand By You” - I thought that she was fabulous. Way to go, Illinois chick!
Sanjaya - “Bathwater” - Where do I begin? The song was kind of creepy (I hadn't heard it before). The hair? It made me cringe so much. When they first showed him, I didn't realize that he'd faux-hawked it, and I thought he'd shaved it all off.... then the moment when I realized that the light shining through the fluffiness above him was the hair. Gross. Boy doesn't sing. He's just soaking up his fifteen minutes. Too bad it wasn't limited to only fifteen minutes. They didn't even mention the fact that he flubbed his words halfway through. And he's in the TOP TEN?
Haley - “True Colors” - Was it Simon that said that she could have been any of thousands of teenage girls? Yeah. Although she showed off the legs again this week. I think that's why she's still in it. Mister didn't agree with me on that one, so call me cynical. But yeah.
Phil - “Every Breath You Take” - I was taking dinner dishes back upstairs, so missed it, but really enjoyed the ten seconds they showed of it in the recap.
Melinda - “Heaven Knows” - LOVED the outfit. Simon was all wrong on that one. My critique of Melinda (I know, that's practically a sin!) is that she doesn't change her style much from week to week. She's really really good at what she does, but she just keeps on doing it.
Blake - “Love Song” - Every week I like him a little bit better. The crooked mouth. The super smooth, controlled voice. Yup. Definitely the favorite guy.
Jordin - “Hey Baby” - She's still my favorite. But this one was only okay. The outfit was not flattering... she looked like she was having fun, but it wasn't overly musical.
Chris Richardson - “Don’t Speak” - I still do not see the attraction with him at all. I was sorting clothes during him, and didn't get caught up in the performance. Plus he does his signature "jerk the head to the right rhythmically" move way too often for me.
yup. still slogging through the piles of clothes. i'm making five piles:
1. too big for me!! saving those for future pregnancies.
2. they fit. these will be the only clothes in my closet and dresser, making choices a heck of a lot less emotional (these still don't fit?!)
3. they don't quite fit yet, but i'm going to hold on to them anyway
4. going to goodwill
5. i bet i can do something with this to turn it into a cute piece of clothing.
just came upstairs to soak up some air-conditioned goodness (that's right. air conditioning. in central illinois. in march.) and get something to drink. now heading back down! morituri te salutant!
(i was a latin nerd in highschool)
so guess what DH and i get to do this evening? let's just say we're off to find the best refrigerator deal we can... in a hurry.
at least we have a second freezer in the garage to help out in the interim.
i've mentioned before that i am a member of a Monday Night Crochet Group. i usually crochet, but there's knitting, scrapbooking, crosstitching, etc., going on as well as crocheting... i'm excited, because tomorrow night, i'm going to begin this afghan as a project for a dear friend's wedding present. i have a tendency not to like patterns, as i make stuffed animals, clothing, afghans, etc., all without any direction. this will be an exercise in patience.
i'm all about stretching myself in crocheting - i can get in ruts where i'm only comfortable doing the familiar. this will be a very good opportunity to teach me some discipline in crocheting. freestyling, or designing as i go, has its place, but not everything needs to be done that way!
plus, this new afghan is a great excuse to buy new yarn!
so you know how i said in my last post that i was really trying to step out there and design my own blog? maddie, from girliebits, out of the sweetness of her heart, sent me this incredible banner. me and the gimp were able to do some fun stuff, but nothing approaching this coolness.
THANK YOU, MADDIE!
isn't it beautiful? now go check out her website...
(all you poor people reading this through google reader, etc, are missing out on the prettiness that is now my blog.)
so while i had a beautiful blog design before, i didn't do it myself. i had found it on a fabulous website called girliebits, and i had adapted it a little bit.
but i wasn't content with that. i wanted to learn how to really do it... so i started playing around and reading source code for lots and lots of blogs. this is my first attempt at really playing with it on my own. it's still based off of minima, as many blogs seem to be, but in the upcoming weeks, watch for this to be tweaked and tweaked until i get it just the way i want it. while i loved the way this used to look, i felt like i was cheating. who knows, i may end up having something very similar to that design, but i'll be proud that i came up with it on my own as opposed to using someone else's design.
one of my recent crochet projects was to make a nursing poncho, large enough so that i could nurse discreetly underneath it, have it breathable for Peanut, but it had to be cute! it was fun to make, but it just wasn't cute on me - it ended up being too bulky and made my nursing-chest look even bigger than it was. fortunately, i have a slender cousin who looks great in anything, so she inherited a brand-new poncho!
gosh, i haven't been very frequent with these posts, eh? i guess it's the springtime getting to me. spring cleaning and all that...
in two days, we went from having a brown yard with a couple crocuses popping up around a tree to having the crocuses swallowed up in the lush greenness that is our yard. to be sure, there's squishiness and puddles everywhere due to the immense amount of rain we've been receiving, but it's been inspiring me to clean.
$16.72. that's how much change i pulled out of DH's car this morning. i took it to run some errands while Peanut and DH slept in - love me some saturday mornings! but after driving around town in his car, i was overwhelmed by the clutter and dirtiness and had to at least straighten it out. i'm pretty good about keeping things straightened. clean? that's another matter.
wardrobe reconstruction. i'm sorting through my clothes, seeing what fits, what may possibly fit some day, and what my post-partum body will never squeeze into again. that last pile of clothes (embarassingly large, i may add) is now fodder for my next fun project - taking those clothes and turning them into new pieces of clothing. i'll post some pictures - i have some fun projects upcoming. the biggest challenge? making them into nursing outfits...
i've decided that is a verra fun website. they're having a new contest, even though i'm still wading through the blog party posts!
i have a niece that would just go into joy-shock if she received one of these adorable dance skirts from katchy kids... oh my goodness. if i don't win this contest, i may just get her one anyway - imagining the look on her face is so much fun!
i know i've been quiet lately - we took a trip this weekend that has me in rehab today. travelling with a almost-4-month old isn't quite like hopping in the car with DH and just driving off into the sunset. it was wonderful, but i am so sleepy. and dopey. the house is absolutely trashed, but my Monday Night Crochet Group is coming over tonight. (so much fun - women, yarn, talking about babies and husbands / recent dates, etc.... )
must clean. do you think that will help work off all the kajillions of calories consumed this weekend? and today's the feast of St. Joseph (a personal favorite), which means that my Lenten sacrifices of no sweets and nothing to drink except water are out the window today. actually, that's kind of a nice way to transition back to being home. mmm. maybe i should go eat some chocolate before i clean. :)
i know i've been quiet on here the last few days. let me explain why.
sunshine. warm.
'nuff said. it's been so beautiful outside that i realized we had a particularly cold and grey winter. we have a great outdoor mall here in town that lately has been swarming with young moms and strollers... just because it's a nice place to walk around and if you get a tad bit chilly, well, ann taylor's always there to just pop in. and does old navy have new baby clothes? not that i buy old navy unless they're on sale, but it's so much fun to look. i have a rule that no new baby clothes are to be bought unless they are $4 or less. i totally broke that rule yesterday when i saw a beautiful peach silk easter dress with matching headwrap. ah well. easter only comes once a year, and we'll see LOTS of adoring fans then. gotta give your public what they want.
speaking of giving your public what they want, here's my take on last night's AI performance:
brandon (you can't hurry love) - after that performance, i bet he'll be the one to go home. he's not the one who SHOULD go home, but i bet america won't forgive him for so obviously forgetting the words. and it's got to be rough going first, because who remembers who they saw first?
melinda (home) - i wasn't that big of a fan at first, but she's definitely, definitely growing on me. i really liked simon's comment that she made a boring song fantastic. that's talent. plus i liked the dress. not the shoes - i agree that those would be torture!
chris sligh (endless love) - not so much. and the lack of glasses made his face seem rounder. put 'em back on! i love his voice, but the song bored me a little bit.
gina (love child) - i thought it was okay, i'm enjoying the fact that she's different. duplicates get sent home. rough for a rocker chick to have to sing diana ross, but she did it fairly well.
sanjaya (ain't no mountain high enough) - oh my goodness. i'm sorry, but the Androgenous One (as he's been nicknamed in our house) just doesn't have it. i read a comment last week (sorry, i forget which blog) that said that he belonged on radio disney. i can see that. at times, you could barely hear him over the band. i do have to give him credit, because the last ten seconds of the song were good, but he just looks so scared the whole time. i loved simon's "wail" comment...
haley (missing you) - maybe i zoned out, but i didn't notice when she forgot the lyrics. i have to say, that this was the first week where i actually kind of liked her. although i think half of that came at the end, when you could see that she was a real person who was beating herself up over messing up, and just really appreciated simon's kind words.
phil (i'm gonna make you love me) - i used to really like him. but i'm forgetting why. he'll go in the next couple of weeks, but i don't think it'll be this one.
lakisha (God bless the child) - i thought she was good. i didn't think she was as great as the judges said, but going by the audience's reaction, maybe the control-factor came across more in person. i like her - she just seems so down to earth. she's definitely in my top three (melinda, lakisha, jordin)
blake (you keep me hanging on) - i thought it was okay. he's by far my favorite guy in it, though... he's just different, which is so important.
stephanie (love hangover) - okay. not great. never really saw the attraction there, though.
chris (the boss) - spent too much time running around that he forgot to sing well. although i've never been a big fan. but he was out of breath half the time... not good, dawg.
jordin (if we hold on together) - she's my favorite. i think that melinda and lakisha might just be a touch better at the vocals, but there's just something about jordin that just makes me want to see her do really really well. and i thought she was fabulous. and looked great. it always makes me laugh when she stands next to ryan...
i just won a great contest over at serendipity mine today... how fun is that? it's one of the many many great blogs i've discovered in my meanderings through the first 350 entries in the contest. that's right folks - i've visited 350 blogs in the last few days. phew. no wonder i'm beat. only 4,000,567,034,356 to go before i finish all of the party blogs!
about a week ago, i won a contest over at the seabird chronicles - tomato seeds for my garden. gee, this is contagious. if i win much more, i'll have to consider hosting my own contest, just to pay it forward.
do you think i'll win one of the party prizes? i've been lucky lately....
in honor of my twelfth post, what do you think of my new design? isn't it cool? i now belong to the vast realms of bloggers who don't just use the blogger templates. they boast that they have OVER THIRTY designs, but most of them are just color variations of another one. not so cool. mine's cool.
I just spent a good hour reading through all of this week's kitchen themed tips on WFMW. The whole time, I have in the back of my head "hey you, you have a blog now. Got a kitchen tip?" I had originally thought I'd post my grocery list tip, but it's pretty darn similar (although with a twist) to Shannon's and lots of other peoples. Then I thought I'd post how I use tupperwares and great waterproof labels I got from labelyourstuff.com (I couldn't find their kitchen set of labels on their site anymore, but you could just use the blank ones) to organize my very tiny pantry cabinet so I could see
everything at once...
And then I went to go make a sandwich and realized I have a great tip for making your sandwiches lower in calories... I love mayonnaise. Love it with anything. We have a sandwich chain in town that slathers mayo all over their sandwiches, which is why I go there. That's sad now that I see it in print. But mayo's not all that low in calories. So now I use this: Grey Poupon's Mild and Creamy mustard. It gives the creaminess of mayo with the zip of mustard. With the added flavor, you don't notice that you're not using as much. And the best part? ZERO CALORIES. That's right. You can use as much as you want. :)
Here's an extra recipe for you. I know it's Brussels Sprouts and you may not like them. Or your kids might not like them. But all veggies are better roasted, and you add bacon? These are to die for!
ROASTED BRUSSELS SPROUTS
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb brussels sprouts
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt
pepper
Here's yet another party meme - bold whatever you've done!
01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa.
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk.
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe.
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured an ancient site
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played Dungeons & Dragons for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Got flowers for no reason
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently well enough to have a decent conversation
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised (raising) children (child)
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds (I guess losing the same 10 pounds 10 times doesn’t count.)
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life
151. Finished a marathon
So I've been virtually snacking all day long. Do I have to count that on my calorie chart? And yes, I chart calories for my DH and I. It takes a little bit of time, but it sure keeps us aware of what we're eating. But these are my favorite kind of calories. The ones that get me drooling and then I drink some water and eat some celery and pretend that I'm eating all the fun stuff at all the UltimatePartyBlogs...
As Oprah says, nothing tastes as good as thin feels!
The ULTIMATE PARTY Meme, courtesy of groovyoldlady!
Under what circumstances do you wear make-up? I wear concealer, lipgloss and mascara on any day when I actually brush my hair and change out of my pajamas before DH comes home. Maybe a touch of foundation on Sundays or for special occasions.
Living where? In a great medium-sized city in the Midwest. It's just small enough to be cozy and large enough that all the shopping I could want is right here. And restaurants. We have lots of great restaurants.
Tell us your biggest pet peeve. Hmm. People who expect your life to revolve around theirs...
Iced coffee or hot? Either one, depending on the weather. But I've been caffeine-free for about a year and a half now - I expected I'd get pregnant, I did and now I'm nursing, so I'm only a decaf girl.
May I look inside your closets and cupboards when I come to visit? Yeah, just be careful opening the cupboard next to the oven!
Are you a yeller or are you gentle and quiet? I'm not particularly gentle, unless I'm talking to Peanut, but I'm not a yeller either. I think I'm normal. :)
Tell us about your very bestest friend in the whole wide world: I'm going to be predictable here and say that would have to be Christ, with my DH as a close second.
Ever wish you could live in a different time era? Tell us when and why: I used to wish this - either live with Anne of Green Gables or with Emma, but heck, I like toilets.
People REALLY get under my skin when they________: Interrupt me to tell me I'm wrong.
Are you nervous speaking in front of people? No way! I thrive on it...
Right now, what book(s) are you reading? Just got back from the library, so there's a little stack on my nightstand. I think there's a couple Greg Iles there (he's great, but scary, so be warned...) and a couple Christian fictions.
Toilet paper: Should the free end come down the back or over the top? I'm a woman, so I think it goes over the top. Most men I've met don't see the difference.
Your favorite article of clothing. My "first-date" top that I wore when I met my DH for the first time. True, I don't quite fit in it as a result of my lovely nursing chest and my post-partum tummysag, but hey, it's hanging proudly in my closet in case I'm ever that size again!
In honor of Especially Heather's search for great crockpot recipes, here's my submission:
White Chili
1 lb. boneless chicken breasts, chunked
1 onion, diced
1 14 oz. can chicken broth
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ tsp. oregano
3 15 oz. cans northern beans
1 green or red bell pepper
4oz. diced chilies
shredded cheddar
crushed tortilla chips
In slowcooker, combine chicken, onion, broth, garlic, and oregano. Cook on low 4-6 hours, add beans, peppers and chilies, cook 1 hour more. Top with cheese and tortilla chips.
DH is off at work (I know, it's Saturday, but he goes in a lot on weekends to get ahead), and Peanut is asleep in the swing (for her current snotty state, the swing is much more comfy), so I was supposed to be doing my writing for 4marks that I do on a regular basis, but got sucked into the goodness that is the Ultimate Blog Party. I'm only letting myself visit ten blogs at a time, but those "times" are running into each other!
How do you veteran bloggers keep from getting completely sucked in?
Welcome to my brand spankin' new blog! I know there's not much to discover here yet as we're still in the newborn phase, but hey - you were all a baby blogger once upon a time!
Let me introduce myself. My name is Laurel, but since there's already a fabulous blogger out there named Laurel, I thought I'd embrace the anonymity of becoming lifeasamama. Aw shucks. Did I just go being non-anonymous on practically one of my first posts? (non-anonymous is really fun to say, btw!) Oh well. The cover is blown, but from here on out, I'll just assume the lifeasamama tag so that Laurel Wreath can be herself.
So who am I? I'm a SAHM of a beautiful - absolutely beautiful - little girl named Peanut. No, that's not really her name. What kind of parent do you think I am? That was her in-utero name, and we've found that it still seems to be appropriate. All my favorite nicknames for her are food related. What's up with that? Honey, babysweet, pumpkin, cupcake, etc. Ah well, I really like food. That's so fun on all these blogs because I love creating and sharing recipes - watch for more to come in the near future.
Other than that, I am madly in love with my DH (we've been married just over a year - Peanut was our honeymoon souvenir) and do some part time writing for 4marks, a Catholic website. I spend way too much time online (I'm in good company here) and finally got around to having a blog instead of just reading everybody else's! Thanks for stopping by - I'll be visiting yours soon if I haven't already!
so my Peanut is just over three months old, and i think she's teething already. poor thing has been grabbing at her ears for a while now, but it's escalated until it's pretty annoying for her. she's been drooling like there's no tomorrow, and hasn't been as interested in eating.
while that's not the end of the world, add a slight cold on top of it and you have one snuffly baby who's pretty darn miserable. poor little thing! we were up all last night because if i laid her down, or even put her in the swing, she'd start choking on all the snot and spit. so i sat in the chair and held her all night. we're pretty sure it's not an ear infection because she has no fever and the cold came second, but i'm taking her to the doctor's today anyway. first time mom and all that!
what gets me, though, is the fact that when i woke her up to take her temperature, and i'm poking the thermometer into an area that can't be too comfortable, she just gives me the sunniest smile. she trusts me so completely that even if i cause her a little pain, she knows it will be all right. her smiles make it all worthwhile. the sun started rising this morning, after i'd had about ten minutes of sleep, but when she woke up a little and saw me, she just got so excited.
even though she was miserable.
nobody said parenting would be this nice.
i've toyed with the idea of having a blog for a long time, and even started one once. emphasis on started. it didn't really take off, but now i have something that i like to talk about... my sweet baby girl! i read enough blogs out there to have the itch to do it myself, and now let's see if i stick to it!
