We are watching Last Comic Standing tonight as a family. (Hey it is on at 7pm.) Tonight the comics had a challenge at the Playboy Mansion with a bunch of bunnies. Jack asks, “Mom, why are they all in swimsuits?”
Two minutes later, Jack asks, “Mom, when I grow up, will you take me there to choose a wife?”
I say no through pierced lips. Aaron asks, why while laughing. (Troy in the background is laughing hard.) Jack says, “Because they have a hot tub.”
Yeah right.
My intern for the summer has her last day tomorrow. Nazreth has been a huge help the past 8 weeks, and unfortunately, I am really going to miss her. Thankfully, she loves working with me so much that she wants to come back and volunteer for a while! (Well, maybe that isn’t the reason she wants to come back and volunteer, but it makes me feel really good to say that!
In honor of Nazreth’s last day, I made two cupcake recipes from Julie Hasson’s 125 best Cupcake recipes. (I took the boys to the library the other day and found myself in the cookbook section.) I wanted to make Nazreth something really yummy. I know she used to drink a lot of coffee and sort of had to wean herself down to one cup each day, so I thought the Malted Espresso Cupcakes would be a special treat. I like malt powder, but have never had it mixed with espresso or coffee. Julie assures “they are an exceptional duo.” I figured why not! Because I wanted a backup in case she hated my first choice, I chose the Best Chocolate Cupcakes. Since the boys were in need of a bedtime snack, I knew this would be a winner with them at the very least.
One thing that I really like about Julie Hasson’s cupcake recipes are that they are small batches – most are for 12 which is the perfect number because I will only end up eating about 6 if I make 12 rather than 12 of 24. I also like that her recipes are about whisking in things (flour mixtures get whisked into the main batter in three segments and the liquid mixture gets whisked into the batter in two segments). I have NEVER had such beautiful batters. That sounds really weird, but I can’t help it because it is true.
As any good baker, I had to test the batter prior to baking. The Malted Espresso Cupcake was interesting, but not dazzling. While the cupcakes cooled, I made her buttercream frosting recipe and halved it – left half plain and added some espresso to the other half for the Malted Espresso Cupcakes. The boys confirmed my suspicions – the chocolate cupcakes were terrific and we agreed brownie like. (I even baked them about two minutes too long and they were still great.) Troy had his cupcake topped with frosting paired with a frosting squirt straight from the bag into his mouth. Jack doesn’t like frosting much, but he tested the frosting and decided he’d have a squirt on his cupcake as well.
Once the boys were settled, I decided to frost the Malted Espresso Cupcakes with my espresso buttercream frosting. OMG were they AWESOME!!! I couldn’t believe it! The malt and the espresso ARE the perfect combination! My camera batteries are charging, so I’ll take a picture in the morning.
Speaking of cupcakes, I’ve lost 12 of my 16 pounds I’d set out for. I’ve remained stable for several weeks now at the 12 pound mark, and I can’t deny it anymore. The last 4 pounds are going to require MORE exercise. I increased my exercise initially by walking from the commuter lot at work. I park 1.13 miles away from my car. (Imagine I said we would never use the GPS!) I also used WeightWatchers.com to get my eating back in check. I am very happy that after about 6 weeks of tracking EVERYTHING I ate, I no longer have to use the points to calculate AND best of all, I am not constantly hungry!!
Speaking of exercise, I had coffee with a friend from MN. Peggy was in town because she is a driver for some friends who are doing RAGBRAI. (For those of you not in the IA know, RAGBRAI is the longest, largest and oldest touring bike ride in the world thanks to the Des Moines Register (newspaper). Thus, Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa.) It is huge, annoying for traffic, motivational and cool all at the same time. You can do the whole ride from the western IA to eastern IA over 6 or 7 days OR you can do one leg or part of a leg. It makes me want to not mind a sore butt to bike next summer.
At any rate, Peggy and I were able to catch up, something we haven’t done for a very long time.
Well, tonight Jack and I sat and watched two hours of The Baby Borrowers mainly because he was grounded from playing outside with friends for mouthing off from playing outside. He stopped into the living room to watch a little bit of Friends, then we started watching the show.
The show’s premise is this: teenagers who think they are ready to have a baby are required to spend three days each with an infant, then a toddler, then pre-teens, then teenagers, then elderly people. Tonight was toddlers first, then pre-teens. He thought these kids were “Just my style” (his style, not mine). One of the girls was 7 years old and threw tantrums like a three year old and was quite mean to her sister. I pointed out how ridiculous she looked and how pointless it all was. (I’ll have to get back to you on whether or not it sunk in.)
At one point this 7 year old had to stay in her room in a timeout because she locked “dad” and sister out of the house. The teen “dad” wanted an apology from her before she could leave her room. He tried to coax her into apologizing by eating popsicles with her sister and offers of pizza. She just went ballistic instead. Finally, she wrote an apology on a sheet of paper and shoved it under the door for “dad” to find. Jack thought this was very clever and said so.
Another teen parent couple were told that they behaved like friends, not parents. Jack asked for clarification on that, and so I filled him in on the difference. He then saw the previews for the teenagers next week and predicted trouble. I told him that I wanted him to be 15 and still be talking to me and giving me kisses even though it may not be cool. He did not commit to anything.
During commercials, we flipped over to Supernanny, a repeat I’d already seen, but I really hate watching commercials plus I may have an undiagnosed case of ADD, but we won’t go there. Supernanny provided a tip to parents about making an easy star chart and how it can positively reinforce good behavior particularly when a family gets stuck in a negative reinforcement rut. (Any mother of a high-spirited child can relate to this!) Here is the conversation that followed nanny’s tip.
Jack: What’s so great about a star chart?
Mom: Does it ever feel like I don’t talk about the good things you are doing and I only focus on the bad?
*pause for thought*
Jack: No.
Mom: Really????
Jack (after thinking he clearly said the wrong answer): No, well, eh sometimes.
I think that gives me permission to seek laser removal of my worst mom ever tattoo across my forehead for the tooth fairy incident.
On to less interesting things…
I’ve been carpooling for two weeks now because driving round trip to work 90 miles is seriously putting a dent in my checkbook. Stefani and I carpool twice a week which is great for both of our checkbooks, but she is a morning person, and I am not. She needs to be to work by 8am, where I would normally stroll in between 8:30 and 8:45. We meet at 7am which means I have to get up by 6am to leave by 6:50am. (Did I mention that I still make an english muffin breakfast and hot tea for my hubby??)
The first day I got SO much done before 10am I couldn’t believe it! The high wore off though by morning #2, particularly by night #2 when I was exhausted by 10pm. (I’m a night owl, so this is usually the time that I get a second wind and start cleaning for the evening.) I survived and here I am in the middle of week two. Also, she has given me some good cooking ideas.
We are taking the kids to the Dells (of Wisconsin), and so I’ve been talking about it. I am so surprised at how many Iowans have never been there! It is much better now that there are water park options for rainy days! The kids are going to love it! It isn’t Legoland California, but it’ll still be fun! This summer has been so crazy with the move, that it will be the only time we camp this summer. (We normally camp 5-7 times over the summer.) We will be able to try our our Therm-A-Rests out that we got for Christmas.
Another baby was saved in Iowa today because of the Safe Haven law. This is the law that allows a baby to be dropped off at a hospital and left without consequences to the person dropping it off. This, of course, prevents babies from being abandoned in unsafe conditions.
Iowa’s golden girl, Shawn Johnson, is off to the Beijing Olympics and is on lots of national commercials now. She is a 16 year old gymnast and current World Champion. Jack thinks she is on the commercials because she is from Iowa, not because she is an Olympiad. Unfortunately, our camping trip is scheduled during part of the Olympics. 
At least my world traveler friends, Carrie and Bob, are taking their kids to China for the Olympics!!! They will be taking in some gymnastics, track and field, BMX and much more! I am so jealous!!! The kids even are missing the first week of school!
Last aside…I love that Aaron, Jack and Troy all know how to properly use “well” (instead of “good”). They have no idea why (one is an adverb and the other is an adjective).
I just saw that The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd has been made into a movie! I just read the book this spring and absolutely loved it. I can’t wait to see the movie…I hope it is true to the book which is hard to say with movie adaptations of books. IMDB.com says its release is in October 2008 and that Queen Latifah is in it. I love her. She is an incredible role model for women of all ages.
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold is due out in October of 2009! It seems like I’ve been waiting for this movie for a long time. I was so excited when I heard Peter Jackson was making a movie version. I just added this book to the Good Reads page…I cannot believe I didn’t have it there already. I listened to the audiobook which made it even more powerful in my opinion because it was as if Susie was speaking to you from heaven. UGH!! Stanley Tucci is playing the George Harvey; Stanley Tucci is such a great actor. How can you not love his work? One of my favorite movies of his is Big Night. It is about family, frustration and food. I just love the ending.
This week the kids are with grandparents, so A and I get a date!!! We NEVER hire a sitter which is terrible seeing as how I once gave A a gift of dates (lining up the sitter once a month for one year). I thought it was a good gift because my intentions were good, but as it turns out, I suck at lining up a sitter. Evidentially, I also suck at being in charge of the Netflix queue if you ask A.
So, we are going to a farmer’s market, then to The Happening movie. I’m a baby when it comes to scary movies, so I’m hoping that I can watch some of it.
I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed of late because there is ALWAYS more stuff to find a home for in the new house. Right now, it is the little things that are bothering me such as stuff that we used to put into a cabinet that stayed with the old house, pictures, files, etc. True to my nature, I usually stay exasperated with the entire situation until about 9pm when I then enter a cleaning/sorting/organizing tirade until I am ready to collapse into bed anywhere between 11pm and 1am. In the old days, I used to decide at 9pm that I could whip up some curtains in an hour. Yeah right.
Speaking of sewing, I now officially have a craft room with a sewing table and everything!
All are happy that I will no longer have to hijack the dinner table in the middle of sewing projects. J is quite happy that he has a space to do his art as well. He really is turning out to be quite the artist!
Thankfully, Jakki came down over the weekend and we got some serious organizing and painting done. First on our to do list was organizing the kitchen cabinets. Our old house had really tall cabinets which increased storage room, while this one does not have tall cabinets. It also seems that all the lower cabinets are unfairly small even by my standards. Prior to Jakki’s arrival, we had a cabinet that even made A shutter with disapproval, and now, we have a beautifully organized and appearing cabinet.
Jakki and I also spent Friday painting the entryway a beautiful cranberry color. It was a tangy orange color that made you feel as if you should be in Florida, and we are not, so it is gone. I am not allowed to paint near ceilings for reasons demonstrated in this picture, and Jakki doesn’t do ladders, thus the orange stripe along the top that A will complete. (For the record, these are the only two ceiling spots that require A’s attention.)
The painting was a bit distressing because we used Ralph Lauren paint which splatters everywhere and has very poor first coat coverage. We were both very concerned that it would require three coats after seeing the first one. We were in luck though because the second coat covered very, very well.
We were able to take in dinner at the Cheesecake Factory that night and while I stuck with the original cheesecake, Jakki had an absolutely delicious chocolate coconut cream cheesecake.
Jakki dolled out advice on counter space and picture placement; I got to play the tooth fairy via telephone for her daughter who was very concerned that she’d lost her tooth when Mom was not home. I was quite good I must say and brokered a reasonable deal with Cate whose father referred to her as “beyond reason, into tired crazy girl logic” or something to that effect when trying to talk her out of calling the tooth fairy.
Since I found my battery charger, here is the checklist that J wrote the day we moved. I love it!
J and I have devised a system of security as well. His school is 1.5 blocks up the street, and since he likes to go when I am busy, we have discovered that our walkie talkies work beautifully. He calls me when he is at the corner prior to crossing the street, when he gets to the schoolyard, then when he wants to come home (usually only 6-8 minutes after having arrived). This system has provided much needed security for us both, and I am guessing that his 6-8 minutes away will gradually become longer.
T comes this week and will see his room for the first time. I am excited because I think he is really going to like it even though it isn’t organized as he’d like it. The idea is most of the fun!
