Plain Speech - Speak Softly, And Carry A Hand Gun

The Amish are nothing if not consistent. Plain dress, plain worship, plain speech. It’s the last one I’m trying to tackle at the moment, and I don’t mind telling you that I’m a-gettin’ mah butt whooped. See, I’m not someone who speaks plainly (sometimes candidly, but that’s another matter altogether). Over the past few years, I’ve been sucked into all manner of Decidedly Un-plain Speech (shut up, grammar police): I’ve said yes when I meant no, gossiped, said things behind some people’s backs that I wouldn’t say to their faces, told fibs (okay, and a couple of whoppers), held my tongue when I should have spoken up, and started fighting passive aggression with (you guessed it) passive aggression. It’s created more problems than it’s solved, so what if I just… quit it? What would happen if I:

· Actually said what I meant? “No thank you, I’m not a big fan of Brussels sprouts and tomato aspic.”

· Avoided gossip? Oy – I may spontaneously combust.

· Always spoke of others as if they were in the room? (I ask you – where’s the fun in that?!)

· Told nothing but the truth? “I’m late because I was watching “The Real Housewives of NY”. And that sweater makes you look like a hooker.” (Hmmmmm…… gotta figure out how to NOT say things too…)

· Refused to get sucked into other people’s messed up dynamics? Hey – just because you’re a passive aggressive control freak busybody doesn’t mean I have to play along. I have my own ego-mania with narcissistic tendencies to deal with.

Well, I’m going to give it a try. OK, tries. If someone doesn’t stab me, hey – it just might be a good thing! Now, about that sweater….

Viva la Difference!

A few years ago, in a fit of DIY Craft-astrophy Syndrome, I had the bright idea to paint our kitchen cabinets a vibrant, glossy, apple green. We have had to live with the results for five years - Marty even pretended not to hate them (why I married him, people!). So, the hubby and I have been thinking about getting new cabinets (actually, it's more me going, "I WANT NEW CABINETS OR I'LL DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE!!!!!"). Of course, it's never as simple as waltzing into Lowe's, choosing the goods, and slappin' 'em up there. Oooooh no. First, we have to get permission from the co-op board. Then we have to order samples. Then we have to decide on a look. Then we have to do the order. Then we have to hire a contractor. Then we have to demo & and figure out where Sebastian and I will hole up until the project is finished. Then (and here's where it gets REALLY good) we have to have two walls ripped out to replace the wiring, have the kitchen counters and plumbing moved up by one inch, rebuild the walls, put in the cabinets, and clean up. THEN I will have my new cabinets. So, I just opted for this:

Bilious Apple Green Cabinets.....

To this!



Simple AND thrifty (under $18!). And fancy. This will tide me over until The Great Kitchen Renovation, and was such a great reminder that a simple coat of paint can completely change the look of a room for a ridiculously small sum. AND, if you hate it, you can just start again. And again.

Turning Thrifty

I haven't ever been what I would call a "spender", but I won't lie to you and tell you that I'm super thrifty either (hey - wasn't thrifty the new forty? wait.... that's something else.). Well, Dear Reader, I aim to do better! I call it "The Economy Sucks Motivational Project", and Part 1 is (cue dramatic music) a SPENDING HIATUS!

Have any of you ever done this? I got the idea quite a while ago from some article in a magazine. A family of 4 went on a four month spending hiatus, purchasing only absolute necessities (food, insurance, strappy sandals deodorant, etc). It was so neat to hear how creative they got, using what they had on hand which normally might be wasted (the cotton from the Tylenol bottle, for example) or going without. Being as my life is decidedly more challenging with the hubby gone, I'm aiming to stay on the "fun challenge" side of this as opposed to "self-imposed hell". We'll see how it goes! I'm going for one month, wish me luck. And send presents.

Death By Clutter?

This happened a while ago, but, being somewhat behind in my odd news consumption, I just heard about the woman who was found buried under clutter in her home in Las Vegas 4 MONTHS AFTER HER DEATH. Wait - it gets worse - search dogs had already gone through the house, and her husband was still living there! GAH! Read about it here.

Clip from "Hoarders"

If you've ever watched the show "Hoarders" (and if you haven't, you totally should), it's easy to see that there's a thin line between your eccentric Aunt Dolly and her creepy marionette collection (that takes up four rooms and a quarter of the kitchen), and compulsive hoarding worthy of reality TV. Like any other mental illness, it manifests itself in varying degrees of severity, ranging from an irrational refusal to get rid of outdated documents to full on every-room-crammed-so-full-of-stuff-the-house-is-condemned compulsion. Here's a website that explains the ins and outs of the disorder.

I was surprised at how common it is - some experts believe it's about 1% of the population (that's a lot, ya'll!). I know at least two hoarders personally - one even sleeps on a small piece of foam beneath their desk because they can't open the door to their bedroom for all the clutter. I actually lived with a hoarder for two months while rehearsing a show in Boston (that was fun), and vividly remember having to inch through the small paths carved through mountains of papers, magazines, and other clutter to get from room to room. She also liked to talk. A lot. Fun.

I suppose I'm like the "anti-hoarder" - I'm readying bags for Freecycle as I write this. It must be truly awful to be so deeply attached to stuff that you can't tell where it ends and you begin.

My Final Post for Lifeclectic!

AND it's a topic near and dear to my heart - simplicity and de-cluttering! I'm going through such an I'm-ready-for-my-horse-and-buggy-now time, completely overcommitted. Um... didn't I promise myself I wouldn't be here again?! (the answer to that question is yes) But THIS time I mean it! Here's a link to the post. And some Amish photos from my trip to Lancaster county a few years ago - BONUS!

Hmmmm....

Lifeclectic #9

One of my final posts for Lifeclectic! Secret mommy confessions..............

Cold little monkey!!!!!

Lifeclectic #8

Sebastian will be TWO on Thursday! We celebrated with immediate family and a wicked good cake - he really enjoyed it (as you can see).

It got me thinking about birthday parties for kids, and managing their expectations. Whatever happened to eight close friends, cake, silly hats, and some games? Time to stop the insanity, ya'll. Here are my thoughts (such as they are) on the subject!

Day 108 - Fantastically Functional

I know I said I was going to do more on emergency preparation, but it really seems pointless when, if you're so inclined, you can get all the info your heart desires at http://www.72hours.org/ (it's phenomenally complete). Besides, I'm only about 15% done with my initial go-bag - it's gonna be a long-ish project!

My amazing hubby is home for 6 more days before he has to head back out, and I've been zooming around like a demented bumblebee trying to Get Everything Done before he leaves. We're contemplating getting new kitchen cabinets (WOOT! The ones I have now SUCK and are going to dump my dishes on the floor any day now), and poor Marty's Honey-Do list is a mile long. Sebastian is mostly potty trained (again, WOOT!), and gets mini marshmallows for his successes. He calls them "marsh-berries" - I love this. This is our lives in a nutshell at the moment.

My dreadful kitchen cabinets that don't close

All this talk of new cabinets brought up the topic of Functional Space, which, weirdly, I hadn't really considered much before. Living in NYC, we're used to packing everything up and moving every few years, so the routine is to stick everything somewhere and make do with whatever "eccentricities" your apartment might have - like a toilet in the kitchen, or the front door opening directly into your bed. A few years ago, we bought ourselves a small apartment in Queens, and, until now, have continued with this model. Why? I don't know either.

For the past week, I've been looking at our home with new eyes. In "Simple Home: Calm Spaces for Comfortable Living", it's photo after photo of uber-spare, clean, sparse rooms that I could just fall into and be perfectly happy. Clearly, no children live in this book (I would miss Sebastian!). Lesson gleaned: once you've purged down to the bare bones, store the rest conveniently where you need it, out of sight. Honestly - it was a revelation to me that I didn't have to keep my toaster on the counter, it could be put in a cabinet. Revelation, people. Of course, this requires Storage Space.

Europeans have turned functional space, from storage to multi-purpose items, into an art form. There's also a fun "Small House" movement gaining popularity in some areas of the country, where people are living in about 400 square feet (this fun episode of Design Star works with exactly this), which necessitates everything doing double duty, and some really clever space saving solutions. This totally gets me going, ya'll! How much space can we reclaim? How much easier can I make my day by putting things where I use them, and in an arrangement that makes sense?

If your space isn't efficient, then you will automatically procrastinate - it's harder to work, harder to clean, harder to relax, etc. I procrastinate with meal prep because knives are over here, cutting boards are over here, measuring cups are over here, you get the picture. I realized there are lots of places I'm wasting time and energy, so this is what I'm tackling next. What about you? Do you have any clever ways you've saved space or made it more efficient? Share - I need some creative ideas that don't include shoving things under a table and hiding them with a curtain!

Back to School?

Nope - haven't fallen off the face of the earth, just wrapping up my blogging for Lifeclectic and enjoying as much of a vacation as one can manage with a toddler. Homeschooling moms - lemme hear ya! Do you homeschool? Why? Did you try and decide it wasn't for you? Discuss! Click here for the blog I wrote about it - I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Sweet Baby Kisses

Sebastian had one of those days where I thought I would keel over dead if he were any cuter. It reminds me that he's not a baby anymore, and the days will start to fly by and then HE'S IN COLLEGE.... Sniff.... Here's my latest take on babies, toddlers, and wanting to stop the world to keep them right where they are.

Latest from LifeClectic - Kid's Music

Here's a little somethin' somethin' I wrote about the delightful children's music we're often plagued with and some alternatives. Click here!

Day 107 - Fill The Bathtub With Vodka - I Mean, Water! Part 1

HURRICANE! Well, NYC battened down the hatches, shut down the subway, and headed for the liquor store in preparation for Hurricane Irene. Our part of town fared well, but lots of folks down the coast are dealing with minnows in the basement and a swimming pool out back where none existed before. We all want to be prepared without building a freaky Armageddon cellar, so what do you really need, and what can you leave to the fringe polygamist sects?

Wish I could credit this photo, but it shows Irene rolling into NC. Truly humbling.

Step 1 - General Preparation
I found most of this information at http://www.72hours.org/ - it's a gold mine for disaster preparedness, and well worth checking out. Go get an old duffel bag or backpack, label it "EMERGENCY BAG", and store it near the main exit point of your home. If you have more than three people in their family, consider making each person their own bag & make sure there's ID in it. Have the bag(s) easily accessible, and fill them with: one large water bottle per person, assorted bars (granola, Clif, etc.) or other prepackaged snacks, can opener, two sets of disposable utensils (the little packs complete with napkins that you get from fast food places are perfect), first aid kit & instructions, copies of all important documents & phone numbers (+ copies of insurance & ID cards), change of warm clothes + trash bags (to be used as rain gear) for each family member, umbrella, heavy work gloves, unscented liquid household bleach + eyedropper & instructions for water purification, travel-sized toiletries, personal hygiene items (feminine supplies, hand sanitizer, toilet paper), bungee cords, blanket (one of those foil ones that folds up small is perfect), face masks (the kind you use while woodworking, not the kind you put on at Halloween, though that can be fun too), flashlights and batteries, battery operated radio, whistle, pocket knife, warm hats, local map, duct tape, permanent marker, photos of family members & pets for reidentification purposes, list of allergies to meds & food in a plastic sheet protector, extra eyeglasses, extra keys to your house & vehicle, special needs items for seniors/children/pets.

Then, get a waterproof bin that's easily moved and store: one gallon of water per person, ready-to-eat prepackaged food to last at least three days, full sized essential toiletries & hygiene items, one roll of TP per person, roll of trash bags, plastic sheeting + duct tape + utility knife for covering broken windows, basic tools (crowbar, hammer, nails, adjustable wrench, bungee cords), heavy blankets or sleeping bags, large heavy duty plastic bags, & a plastic bucket (to POOP in!).

Yes, I know - it's Monumental, I hyperventilated for an hour after I saw that list. Break it down into steps - lots of this stuff is probably lying around your house as we speak. Put everything else on your lists for Errand Day, and just do it.  If there's a true emergency, it could mean the difference between life and death for you or someone in your family. Once it's done, it's pretty much done! You'll just want to check them about every 6 months to make sure moths haven't gotten your food, a water bottle hasn't leaked, etc. It's also a great time to update children's clothes.

In the next post, we'll tackle what to do when we hear that the storm's a-comin', and the media goes into a gleeful frenzy.

DEATH TO TELEVISION: PART DEUX!

Here's part 2 of my screen time rant for LIFEclectic. I'll be doing a proper Practically Amish treatment of this topic at some point, just as soon as I finish this season of SYTYCD.....

Another couple of years and I can REALLY put him to work! (oh heavens, sometimes his cuteness takes my breath away!)

DEATH TO TELEVISION!

OK, not really. But, I have to say that I watch way too much of it when Sebastian goes to bed, and I bet you do too. Yes, I'm always doing something else while I "watch" (sewing, knitting, etc.), but still... I'm pretty sure the Real Housewives are eroding my brain.... LIFEclectic time! Read more here.

A Problem With Mice

Here's a link to a post I wrote for LIFEclectic.com. What do you think - do the benefits of living in the city (ready access to culture, museums, street sense, etc.) make up for not being able to just run out the door and play in Nature? Lawzy, I hope so - cause we ain't moving any time soon. Click here.

Day 106 - NC Shindig

Do you hear that, folks? That's the sound of a whole mess of balls dropping. Our new website launched, Sebastian and I flew down to NC to attend my mom's ordination as a Deacon (shout out, Reverend Witwer!), and, to top it all off, I decided that right now was a GREAT time to attempt a raw vegan diet (it wasn't). Honestly, sometimes I wonder if I'm playing with a full deck (I'm not).

Anyhoo, I'll be jumping back into the fray, but I thought I'd post some pics from our time in NC. Cause my son is cute, ya'll.

Dive for cover! Sebastian's driving the tractor!!!!!



Dad and Sebastian feeding L'il Poo some fish food. Don't ask.



A really dreadful picture of my family! (L to R - mahself, Seb, my dad, my mom, my brother Tim)





Day 105 - A Tub of Spackle and a Pink Gloss

The day has arrived. I am now going to do what I have been putting off for over a year. I have procrastinated, avoided, delayed, dawdled, deferred, postponed, and prolonged. I have changed topics, and even denied that there was a problem. But today, Dear Reader, I face my Greatest Challenge Yet. I will pare down my makeup.

But first, my coffee.

Thank you for waiting. Would you like a cookie? How about some peanut butter toast? Can I get you... wait, I'm doing it again. OK - I am resolved. Here is a picture of my makeup box right now.

Oh my....

Close your mouth, you'll catch a fly. What can I tell you? I LOVE makeup! I have since I was little. For me, it's not so much about "correcting nature" as it is about expression and creativity. Don't get me wrong, that concealer is absolutely about correction, but the gold glitter eyeshadow is part of my little Steampunk phase, and the pink gloss is for when I'm playing "The Real Housewives of Orange County", and the black eyeliner is for when I wear my salwar kameez from India and want to get all exotic and oh for the love of all that's holy somebody stop me! Yes - I'm conflicted. My Amish self wants to be free of it, but my Creative Artsy For-Heavens-Sake-I'm-A-Circus-Performer side gets really sad when I think about giving up makeup. My compromise? At some point, not today, I will go one week without any makeup. But not today, Friends, not today....

Much better! The bottom is filled with unopened duplicates, I swear.

Day 104 - The Kitty Litter Facial

Confession: when I was in college, I was in possession of a book which supposedly contained 100 of the best kept beauty secrets in Hollywood. One of the suggestions was to use a 100% pure clay kitty litter as a face mask - I mean hey, clay is clay, right? Not having a cat, I never actually tried it, but I couldn't help fantasizing about all the women who did. You have to figure that, after this author made the morning talk show rounds, that thousands of women across America actually went to the store, purchased kitty litter, mixed it with water, and smeared it all over their faces. Did it make a difference? I'll never know, but here's another gem from the book: never eat anything bigger than your head. And use Preparation-H as eye cream. Good stuff, people.

Anyway, I've started making my own beauty products where it suits me, and I thought I'd share some of my "kitty litter facials" with you all:

• baking soda makes a rocking facial scrub - mix it with your cleanser & kiss that haggard, rough complexion goodbye (wait... am I the only one looking haggard these days?)
• make your own hairspray by combining one cup of boiling water and a tablespoon of sugar. Let it cool, pour it into a spray bottle, and voila! If you don't want to keep it in the fridge, add a few drops of rosemary essential oil - it helps keep bacteria from growing.
• salt scrub: salt + oil + skin-friendly essential oils = a greasy tub glowing skin
• honey makes an awesome (and delicious!) face mask in the winter, yogurt is a good one for summer

If this kind of thing really floats your boat, go here for 50 recipes for everything from beet tinted lip gloss to vodka hair shine, a hair product I can really get behind. And now, a random cute photo of my son from our week in the Finger Lakes.

A girl and her cow! This was taken at the county fair - it was just too great to pass up.

Day 103 - Podcasts Are Nifty

Guess what? My husband is home today, Wednesday, and Thursday while the BS tour is in town (that's Britney Spears, ya'll). WOOT! So, short post today!

Podcasts - awesome. For the reader who is not well-versed in Scary Techie Terms, a podcast is a form of internet broadcasting. They can be recorded by anyone (individuals, companies, radio stations like NPR, etc.), and you'll be thrilled at the scope and variety and the FREE-NESS of it all. You can learn Spanish, listen to radio shows you missed, catch up on news, even download the sermon from last week's church service that you skipped because you were watching The Real Housewives of New York sick.

You don't have to have an iPod to listen to them (though it's mighty handy) - you can listen via computer, or any device that can download and play back files. If you haven't jumped on the bandwagon yet, go to www.iTunes.com and see what's cookin' (I know there are other places to get them, but I'm not researching it right now - my husband's home). What's in my podcast library, you ask? NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me", Manic Mommies, some Joyce Meyer, Satellite Sisters, and more.

And WHY is this simple? I dunno, I suppose it's technically not. I just really love being able to select the media I put in my head - it's fun, and deliberate. Plus, I don't have to slog through commercials - BONUS! Now, if you'll excuse me, mah hubby is home, and I'm going to enjoy every second.

Day 102 - Poop in a Purse!

OK - run, right now, to your purse or diaper bag. What's the weirdest or funniest thing you've got in there? SHARE! Mine was a petrified banana peel from WEEKS ago that I had forgotten in a zippered pocket. Awesome. I also found three almonds, a thimble, and a teeny tiny steering wheel from one of Sebastian's trucks. If you had asked me yesterday, it would have been a poopy diaper, because that's what I've been reduced to.

Like many New Yorkers, I have a tendency to carry everything I own in my purse just in case (of what? an embroidery emergency? WHY do I have a thimble in there?). Time to lighten the load! Here's what I'm keeping:

*diaper bag only

• top pocket: cell phone, 2 pens, lip gunk
• side pocket: glasses case, small camera
• front pouch: keys, subway pass, iPod
• back pouch: umbrella
• inside pockets: wallet, Tshirt & shorts for S (in case of toddler disaster)*, 2 diapers*, wet bag*, couple of wipes*
• main: eReader, water bottles, snack bag, Hot Wheels car, Queen of Everything zippered bag (holds a tack of store cards, my business cards, a Tide pen for stains, a couple of pantyliners)

And that's all, folks! No more thimble, no more spare car parts. So, what's in your purse? Lemme see!

Day 101 - Practicing Safe Sun

WARNING: Please do not view this author without proper eye protection: her blinding whiteness may result in permanent eye injury. You have been warned.

Oh Dear Reader, the luminous-fish-belly-pale expanse of my skin is a sight to behold. Or not. And how do I maintain that near-blinding degree of pasty whiteness? Why, with my trusty sun cream, of course!

Once upon a time, porcelain white skin was a sign of nobility - if you aren't toiling in the sun with the common folk, you must be rolling in cash. In fact, women used to spackle their faces with lead-based cosmetics and arsenic powder to accentuate their ghostly pallor (what's a little poison slathered on your face? please - don't be a wuss!). We can blame Coco Chanel for the beginnings of the tanning trend, and it was all downhill from there. I remember greasing myself up with baby oil in the 80's and laying out in the sun until I sizzled to a golden red brown; for the record, I also had Sun-In sprayed in my hair, which resulted in fetching orange streaks. Such were the 80's.

Now, the only person subjected to my luminosity is my dear hubby, and he ain't complainin'. I'd rather paste on the sunscreen and keep the wrinkles at bay than have to have my face cranked up in 15 years. And, for Sebastian, I don't want to get the call one day that he has malignant melanomas all over his body because mama didn't protect his skin (guilty guilty guilty.....). But what kind to choose? Chemical sunscreens are easy to put on, but, predictably, I have my fair share of questions about the safety of said chemicals. The natural stuff is indeed natural, but man - that zinc oxide is le poo to put on and you practically glow in the dark. The other option is to wear a sassy burka.

After researching the pros and cons of making your own sunscreen (ad nauseum, I might ad), I came away with this: let the pros do it or you'll end up looking like Frosty the Zinc-Oxide plastered snowman. Find a brand you like (California Baby has a nice one, and Yes to Carrots is very spreadable, and 97+% natural - that's not bad at all). I road tested Burts Bees, but I have to say that it wasn't my favorite (though I LOVE their other products). Long sleeves when you can, sunscreen when you can't. Add in shade whenever possible (duh), and a big floppy sunhat to make you look all glamorous (you're going to need it to cover the white zinc line around your forehead). Put on huge sunglasses and pretend you're famous. A French accent helps.

Day 100 - Part 3 - The Final Chapter

Oh sweet heavens. Are you baking? And by baking, I don't mean pies, I mean honest-to-goodness broiling in this steamy soup of a heatwave? Let us all take a moment to give thanks for the air conditioning that is keeping many of us from going postal. OK - let's wrap this review up!

• still love my VitaMix, and my cabinets have not reverted to their Doomsday state (woot!)
• still cookin' the beans, makin' the salad dressing, etc. I could do more, but I could always do more. A little slacking is good for the soul.
• I would love to tell you that I'm all caught up on my virtual scrap booking. I am not, and Sebastian may never know that he used to climb up on the coffee table nekkid and shout, "SO BIG!!!!" at the top of his lungs. I really must catch up, because the teenager-embarrassment fodder here is just. too. good.
• let's just say my kitchen is still a work in progress, but I'm hopeful.
• I'm managing to choke back at least two glasses of green juice each day. Actually, it's growing on me (like a fungus - mwah hah hah!).
• still not stressing about Sebastian's development/intelligence. The kid's doing just fine. In fact, he's shouting, "BIG GIANT POO!" from the other room. That can't be good, but his sentences are coming along nicely!
• if you do nothing else, put all your spices in identical stacking containers, or something similar. This has been awesome.
• rocking the hippie crystal deodorant! But oh - heaven forbid you forget to apply it one morning, you go all Paris 1963.
• getting really good at letting things go - stuff, projects, etc. At it's core, it's letting go of the person you thought you would be a) if you did it and b) when you finished it. It's OK to be a person who doesn't read Dickens.
• I'm awful about taking a day off, and I really NEED to start. Making this a priority, stat.
• still enjoying a news fast. If it's important, I hear about it. If I want or need to know more, I look it up.
• still enjoying my paired down jewelry and wardrobe
• sewing a little girl's dress and a corset (for me, not the little girl) - sewing is awesome
• tried the Diva Cup, total convert
• coffee is awesome. Totally guilt-free environmentally goody-goody coffee is better.
• black socks come with a lot of lint, so my feet sometimes look alarmingly dirty (and, truth be told, sometimes they are alarmingly dirty), but I love the no matching.
• laundry is as easy as it's going to get, and I'll keep you posted on my detergent making adventures
• getting goooooooooood at letting the phone just go to voice mail
• Dr Bronners and avocado oil seem to be doing my skin good, only time will tell....
• routines are good - we get more done
• babysitter = new best friend
• haven't fired up my oven in a good long while - getting creative with not cooking has actually been kind of fun

Aaaaaaaand.... I'M DONE I'M DONE I'M DONE! What possessed me to do a retrospective? I won't do that again. All in all, my little experiment is working well for me, and I'm a-gonna keep going. I have a lot more time now, which is being filled with other things, but it's stuff I've chosen, not stuff I'm saddled with. Next up? That purse/diaper bag is too darned full. Please don't ask with what...

Sebastian's first look at a polar bear

Day One Hundred - Part Two

Before we jump back in, I must tell you that Sebastian is eating wasabi peas. While wearing noise-canceling headphones. In the nude. It's just so awesome.

• still not sanitizing anything, and I'm thrilled to report that we haven't succumbed to The Plague
• still flying with Flylady and using the nifty natural cleansers
• I still hate strollers (though I use one when I need to... eh....), and have taken to using a baby leash. More on this (and the fantastically dirty looks I get) soon!
• I've abandoned practically all coupon clipping in favor of using that time to grow my business. Someday when I have an intern (or in a few years when I can really put the young 'un to work), I'll clip again!
• my sewing stash is out. of. control. I still have way too much fabric. I'm sewing my very first tiny dress for a friend's little girl. Sebastian doesn't know it yet, but he's going to be wearing said dress this afternoon when I have to adjust the fit and hem it. I might take pictures.
• I still maintain that you have to childproof for the child you have. We saved a TON by getting creative (shutting doors, hiding the toilet plunger on top of the refrigerator, etc.) and only buying stuff to fix long-term safety issues or things that were making us googly-eyed crazy.
• we've done pretty well keeping the toys to a minimum. Sebastian loves stupid little cars and trucks more than anything in the world, so that was easy.
• all my "things with cords" live in or around the charging station. Still haven't gotten around to putting everything on a power strip that I turn off at night to save electricity. WHY? Why haven't I done this? Maybe today.
• Sebastian still has a love/hate relationship with the vacuum cleaner, which he calls "The BACOO!"
• my desk is still clean!
• it's summer, so my hair is always up, but my cut is really good. Next, I'm gonna add a big blond streak (a la Rogue from X Men, NOT like Cruella DeVille or a skunk. I hope.)
• still think memories are the best gifts! Pictures, adventures, homemade love. Gimme!
• not baking quite as much bread now that the mercury is soaring, but ya'll - I got goooooooood. Can't wait for fall to really start in again! My very favorite? A velvety olive spelt loaf that was pure heaven when paired with a goat cheese Gouda from TJ's.
• my computer is all cluttered up again, but I've already started deleting files. More on this one soon - I can't be the only one suffering from e-clutter!
• I have gotten way better at taking care of the little drive-you-crazy things (the picture that needs to be hung, the pile of magazines, the petrified food bits clinging to the high chair, etc.)
• my hall closet is still (mostly) clean and clutter-free
• I broke every single one of my New Years Resolutions in a week and was totally OK with that

I'll be wrapping up this (no doubt fascinating) retrospective next time, and then it's back into the fray. Sebastian has just upended an entire bucket full of beans onto the kitchen floor. Don't ask. Happy Saturday, everyone!

DAY ONE HUNDRED! WOOT!

Nothin' like a little stomach bug to derail, well, everything. FUN-ity fun! Don't fret, I'm all better now (but skinnier - BONUS!). This is my ONE HUNDREDTH POST!!! (cue fireworks and can-can dancers... confetti canons...go!) Over the next week, I'll be taking a look back at what's worked, what decidedly hasn't, and where to go from here. And awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay we go!

1. Conditioner - Lube of All Trades! I've switched to coconut oil as conditioner/moisturizer/makeup remover, etc. Works great! For mowin' the walkers? Dr Bronners, baby!
2. Buh-Bye Books! I've used my friendly neighborhood library for everything from bestsellers and ebooks to audio books, and it's saved me a mint! Bought the young 'un a few, but that's because he liked to eat them, and I'm sure the library wondered who was gnawing on their board books.
3. Financial Failure - my finances are still way. too. complicated. Revisiting!
4. 6 Small Meals Per Day - ahem....revisiting this also (it's been more like 6 small meals per hour...)
5. Got rid of my face potions - just Dr B's and avocado oil, and danged if I don't look younger! Helloooooo twenty early thirty-something!
6. Down to Dr B's, coconut oil, a razor, & a hair brush in the shower. Only thing that would make it simpler would be to give up showering all together! Hmmmm...
7. Chucked a bunch of shoes - WIN! My feet might be ugly, but they're happy.
8. I laughed so hard I wee'd a little when I read that I was actually going to attempt to limit my internet time to three 15 minute segments each day. Good one. Perhaps that means I should look at this again? EEEW - I smell skunk! Sorry - tangent. It's just really weird to smell a skunk in Queens.
9. The pared down wallet thing actually stuck! Me likey.
10. I don't go to bed when I should. It just feels so Deliciously Naughty to stay up past my bedtime! Of course, it feels Totally Le Poo the next day, but still....
11. Still traveling spare, and trying to teach Sebastian how to load a luggage cart.
12. I still look like a Frumpty Dumpty, but only 50% of the time instead of 100% - that's a 50% improvement in my hotness, people! Score.
13. Slowly making the switch to nude and black undergarments only. Prerequisites: they must cover my derriere, be mostly cotton, and lacy enough so that if I'm in an accident, people won't say things like, "Poor dear, she gave up hope!".
14. I actually need to go get re-fitted for boulder holders, but what's the point until after the boobs are "retired" from active duty? (for those of you who've just tuned in, extended nursing. I don't make my living off them or anything. THAT is a funny thought.)
15. I wound up keeping my Shape and Oprah subscriptions (I actually read them), but someone keeps giving me a subscription to Rachel Ray Everyday Something and I can't figure out how to cancel it. Great recipes, but I only make one every 25 days, and we just don't eat that many burgers. Seriously - who eats that many burgers?
16. Lost my Gruve somewhere along the way. Saw that one comin', didn't you?
17. I still don't know where the hell all my time goes.
18. Will always love my crock pot, but it's lying cold and lifeless until fall, when it will be resurrected in all it's cozy, warm, yummy glory. 
19. Still keeping the meds to a minimum (bourbon doesn't count, right?).

More soon - it's a lot to slog through. Nite nite! And WHERE is that skunk smell coming from? Outside... definitely outside....

Day 99 - Doctor Drill-n-Fill

Remember Doctor Drill-n-Fill? The delightful flip top head which you could fill with PlayDoh teeth and practice your dentistry skills?

Dear Reader, Blogger just ate the rest of this post. It was good. It was thorough. And Blogger ate it. Now that it is gone, I am practicing letting it go instead of trying to recreate it - I'll just revisit the topic another time. Make no mistake - I am steamed. However, in my fury, I seem to have reached a weird Zen place of acceptance. I'm sure that in a few minutes, I'll snap out of it and swear a bit. Maybe eat a whole bar of something. Anyhoo....

Stay tuned because next time is my ONE HUNDREDTH POST!!! WOOT! I'll be taking a look back at what's worked, what has decidedly not worked, and where the heck to go from here. Join me, won't you?

Day 98 - How is the Weather in New Delhi?

I've been reading a lot lately about outsourcing your life. Well, not the good parts - the stuff you hate (why oh WHY can't we make this work with exercise?). Everything is fair game - from hiring folks to dust your knick-knacks and scrub your toilet, to having a virtual personal assistant from India research the best prices on walnuts; you can outsource just about ANYTHING. To get an idea of how far this can go, here's a great article by A.J. Jacobs, who took this to his usual hilarious extremes.

So, what do I want to outsource? Brace yourselves, Bad Mommy Confession coming up: I outsourced taking my son to the park. I KNOW! Bad Mommy! But I have to tell you - I absolutely loathe the park. The hovering and the screaming kids and the sunscreen and I JUST HATE IT. Now, if you have your Judgy-McJudge-erton hat on, you can kiss my luminous white behind take a moment to simmer down now. Because I will get all in your face (oooh - look out! She's throwin' attitude like she from Brooklyn!). I found a lovely college student who takes him to the park three days a week and it just may be the best money we've ever spent. Keep in mind that I make Marty do park duty when he's home, it's just when I'm pretending to be a single mommy that I pay someone to take my child away.

I love this whole idea of outsourcing! It's got me thinking about what else I could pay other people to do. Does ordering takeout count as "hiring a chef"? Perhaps it's a stretch, but when business is brisk and Mama's holding down the fort solo, I may "aspire to hire" a little extra help. Besides, it keeps those teenagers out of trouble and builds character! If you're a woman who does it all, God bless you. I don't want to hear about it.

Day 97 - Hell's Kitchen

Did you know that, in an attempt to gentrify the area, NYC real estate folks renamed Hell's Kitchen "Clinton"? Yes, Clinton. Ridiculous. HK got it's name from days gone by when it was so crime-ridden (by men with names the like "Owney Madden" and "Bully Morrison") that the cops didn't dare venture in unless in groups of two or three. It was "hot" with murderers, gangs, and thugs, and it's rumored that, one night, a cop proclaimed the area hotter than Hell, to which his partner replied, "No sir, that there is Hell's Kitchen". Ba-BOOM! That's how Hell's Kitchen got it's name.

I am trapped in Hell's Kitchen as we speak - not the neighborhood, but my actual kitchen, which is reaching temperatures of 1000+ degrees. I face this dilemma every year when summer rolls around: cook and roast (or turn on the $$$$$$$ AC) or eat a tub of ice cream for dinner every night. Sebastian votes for ice cream, but I have to set a Good Example, so Chunky Monkey is out. Until he's in bed. My new goal? No cooking. Well, to be fair, no cooking with the stove. The microwave is fair game (great for steaming and re-heating, but not so great for Cooking cooking). I figure with a little creativity, I should be able to off the oven for two months without having to eat salad for every meal. Cause that's so much fun.

I have my summertime standbys like gazpacho, smoothies, Cherry Garcia, and takeout (shut up, don't judge me), but to survive two months, I'm gonna need to call in the big guns. I found some great recipes at delish.com and Epicurious, and I shook two inches of dust off a raw cookbook that was shoved to the back of a cabinet - that oughta be good for something (sigh - something with SPROUTS and some sort of Asian algae). What about you? Share the no-cook love!!! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date with some Half Baked and a spoon - aaaaaaaaw yeah, it's Mama Time.

Day 96 - Get Off Yer Duff - Exercise Revisited

Sigh.... it's almost time to Make The Exercise Happen. If I put the amount of energy I spend groaning and procrastinating into the actual exercising, I'd be all perky and fit like Denise Austin (seriously - watch that whole link - you'll get an ab workout just by guffawing). As I've mentioned previously, I do not like the whole heaving-sweaty-bouncing-exertion part of exercise, but I DO love the results. Sad fact is, unless you're moving your tush vigorously for at least 30  minutes a day (or have a strenuous job like constructionn worker or stripper ballerina), you are categorized as having a sedentary lifestyle, which brings with it a whole host of Bad Things. True - it doesn't matter if you're going to Zumba or very actively stalking Ian Somerhalder your hottie husband, you gotta werk yer bod. Again, sigh.

Ian Somerhalder = healthy and very motivating

It's tough for me to actively stalk or work construction, and I'm certainly not going to pay someone $10 an hour to watch my child so I can go torture myself, so I did the unthinkable: I bought a jogging stroller. It was cheap on eBay, and here's why: it's a BOAT. This thing is huge (though it does fold down nicely), but it does have shocks for days, and Sebastian really gets a kick out of it as we go racing through the park at "top speed". I love seeing the Orthodox Jewish women in their long skirts and shirts jogging along or zooming by on roller-blades (that's the best), or the Pakistani ladies in full salwar kameez huffing and puffing with their hand weights. I love New York!

So, while it might seem to run counter to my experiment in simplicity, it's not just about seeing how much stuff I can live without. It's about living and consuming deliberately. This works because it gets Sebastian and I out of the house and into the park with TREES and BIRDS and NATURE (all good!), and gets my butt in gear (also good). Plus (and perhaps most importantly), it keeps him from making Mommy crazy with the whining and the whining and the WHINING. Your mission? Find some fitness-y thing that you enjoy and work it into almost every day, 'cause as my Auntie says, "If your body breaks down, where are you going to live?" True dat, peeps, true dat.

Day 95 - Is This The Party to Whom I Am Speaking?

I remember, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay back in the Olden Days before cell phones, attending third grade and being taught as a class how to use a pay phone. We were all sent to school with a dime (yes, you read that right) taped to a little card with our parent's phone number on it. One at a time, we marched up to the pay phone, stood on a chair, plunked in our dime, and had a conversation that went something like this:

"Hello?"
"Hi Mommy! I'm on the phone!"
"Yes dear, I can hear that! OK - I'll see you when you get home!"
"OK! And can we have hot dogs for dinner tonight?"
"Yes. Bye bye!"
"OK! And beef-a-roni?"
"YES! OK, time to go!"
"OK! And fudgesicles for dessert?"
....click.....

I don't know why I was surprised that Sebastian picked up a highlighter a few weeks ago, placed it against his cheek, and said, "Hello?" Oh yes, it was superty cute. But what's NOT superty cute? How many times my phone has rung this morning for Silly Things. BUT, Dear Reader, I have learned a thing or two in my many moons upon this earth, and I will share both of them with you now (and this is all I got, so don't ask any questions).

1. If you can't talk right now (you're up to your elbows in a stinky diaper, you're cooking hot dogs and beef-a-roni, you're trying to pry a Toddler off your leg so you can walk, etc.), don't answer the phone. Just let it go to voice mail.

2. If you don't know who's calling, there's no law that says you have to answer. Just let it go to voice mail. Are you seeing a theme here?

When did we become available 24 hours a day? My new rules: I have "office hours" between 8-6. If you want to talk to me about business, do it then - not when I'm getting ready for bed. The phone goes off at 10:00, and back on at 8:00 am. I'm checking voice mail & returning calls twice a day - pretend I'm out in the fields or banging my laundry against a rock or something. And that's how I'm stopping the insanity.

Just a side note, are you still using your land line? If you're not, consider cancelling it and using only your cell phone - you'll save a bunch. Just a thought. Speaking of potty training (oh - we weren't? My bad.), we're about to embark on The Great Potty Training Adventure soon. This oughta be great.

Day 94 - Our LA-LA Land Adventure

I have a theory. I believe that you are either an LA person or a New York person, but you can't be both (feel free to disagree, but you're wrong). Me? I'm a die-hard New York girl - the grit, the attitude, the rhythm, all just feel like a comfy pair of shoes that you jump into at the end of a long day (and then go out dancing in until dawn, leaving them on as you collapse into bed for an hour before you have to get up). My only great love(s) in LA are my brother in law and his awesome wife & my superty awesome nephews - totally worth the trip.

Sebastian and I made the pilgrimage to to LA to see Marty before the Britney tour officially kicks off, which got me thinking about Simple Adventuring. I'll be writing about Plane Travel with Toddlers as soon as the violent spasms and tremors have stopped and the trauma has worn off enough for me to talk about it. But here we are in LA with hubby chained to his lighting console for much of the trip. What to do what to do?

Today, young S and I wandered down to Venice Beach where a little girl named Malia buried his toes in the sand. No pics of her, but here's Sebastian looking pensive.

We walked to the Venice Beach Boardwalk, which is kind of like the Canal Street of Los Angeles. It's listed as one of the top things to see in Venice (hang on - my eyes are rolling so hard it's difficult to focus & I'm scared they may get stuck), so please let me paint this picture for you. Imagine if you will stall after stall of "medical marijuana" dealers (when I first got there I did a double take at the big pot leaf business cards). Get your wacky-tobacky "evaluation" for $40 and walk out with some premium product. Note to California - you might as well just legalize it across the board - medical marijuana loophole = EPIC FAIL). Bob Marley blasting from the speakers, tattoo/piercing shops, fried food, day-glo spraypaint art. Here are some pictures, go turn on some Jamaican tunes so you can get the full effect:

Thank goodness I don't have to make an appt!

Muscle Beach

The one thing that would have me coming down here every day if I lived in LA is Schulzies Bread Pudding & Coffee. I have a real soft spot for luscious, moist, gooey bread pudding, and this was sublime. I thought I would try the Earl Grey flavor, but was convinced by the awesome folks at Schulzies to try some sort of double chocolate concoction that was absolute heaven on earth. If you're ever in the area, this spot is not to be missed.

We walked by the canals (yes, Venice CA has canals too!) which were lovely. See?

So, here are my thoughts on Successful Simple Travel. Apply and repeat as needed.
1. Do what you WANT to do, not what you think you OUGHT to do. If you are more of a white water rafting person and not so much of a museum person, don't go to the museum. Go white water rafting.
2. Walk whenever possible - you're more likely to find hidden treasures and grottos and pot dealers bread pudding stands if you're on foot. Plus you can walk off some of that deliciousness. BONUS!
3. Plan some time to get lost, explore, or just sit and stare off into space at a cafe (after you've had your "medical kush evaluation" perhaps?). There's a lot to be said for planning, but make sure there's plenty of flex time built in for trashy novels, an impromptu henna tattoo of some Chinese symbol the guy says means "luck and wealth" but you suspect means something very different, and assorted culinary adventures of the gelato kind.
4. With the exception of your bathing suit and that light-up negligee you bought for your honeymoon, if you don't use it at home, you won't use it on vacation. Leave it.
5. That 85 lb stone replica of an Easter Island head will not look nearly as awesome in your living room as it does in the shop. Do yourself a favor and think twice before you buy.
6. You do not need to buy souvenirs for people. No, you don't. Really. They throw them out when you're not looking, Send them a postcard if you must, but unless you KNOW someone simply MUST have a snow globe from Hawaii, skip it.

We'll see what the flight home brings - should be some good fodder. Tune in......

Day 93 - Upcycle It, Baby!

This morning, Sebastian found a cardboard box destined for the trash and made it his own personal subway tunnel. He then proceeded to eat a corner of it before I could stop him (there's gotta be a lot of fiber in cardboard, right?). Got me thinking about how one person's trash is anothers treasure! Or snack...

For those of you not familiar with the term, "upcycling" is basically taking something that is destined for the trash pile and turning it into something better and useful: Styrofoam into park benches, plastic bottles into fleece fabric, your husband's penny collection into fashionable jewelry you sell on Etsy while he's out on tour(don't read that last part, Marty).

What do you do with your hubby's old under-britches? Turn them into shorts for your ankle-biter, of course! Cha-ching! Now Sebastian has a full wardrobe of awesome (if unconventional) shorts for summer, and I didn't have to shell out a dime.

Some of them are reversible!



This of course got me thinking about what else I could work with, so I rummaged around and found a few projects:

- I'm going through a little steampunk phase (I go thru lots of phases, don't be alarmed), so I grabbed some old pants & jewelry destined for FreeCycle and I'm gonna make me some fancy clothes like this:

What can I tell you? Sometimes you just have to
let that freaky flag fly.

That's all I've found for the moment - what ideas do you have? Coffee can planters? Shredded paper as couch cushion stuffing? Tell me tell me - I wanna know! What do you do to make drabulous into fabulous? Trash into cash? Crappy into snappy? Perhaps I should quit while I'm ahead...
-

The Flats Challenge!!!!

Love this! Some awesome mama's are turning receiving blankets and whatever else they can get their hands on into cloth diapers and covers  and then hand washing them for The Flats Challenge. That kind of prairie can-do is right up my alley! That said, I'm juggling enough crap at the moment, so I will not be participating. But here's a great post from fellow mama blogger Pam Dayton about her adventures in poop-slings - love the part about the diaper churn. Check it out!

Cloth diapered booties are the cutest!!!!

Day 92 - Oh, Just Slap Some Goo On It Already....

Last week, I slathered an overpriced goo on my face that smelled like chemical death, had the color of charcoal, and the consistency of phlegm - all in the name of beauty. It promised to completely resurface my skin, make it glow, dissolve my wrinkles, and raise my IQ. Did it work? You be the judge.

Don't hate me because I'm beautiful. It occurred to me, as I was spackling this stuff all over my face, that perhaps I shouldn't be using things that smell like death and iron the wrinkles out of my skin. Maybe that's not The Way Things Ought to Be. And let's be real - even when a friend of mine got Botox, I didn't notice - I'm not convinced other people really notice these things anyway. Try this - the next time you get a zit, instead of trying to cover it up, highlight it with a marker & see how long it takes someone to mention it. So, banking heavily on the oblivion of others,  I tackled my skin care.

1) Replaced my cleanser with good old Dr Bronners - face, body, hair. Awesome.
2) Replaced my Evil Smelling Charcoal Colored treatment/moisturizer with pure avocado oil (so far, I actually like the results better!)
3) Replaced my body lotion with food-grade coconut oil, and I am glowin', people!

So now, I'm slicking myself up with coconut oil, using corn starch as powder, hippie crystal deodorant rock on the pits, Dr Bronners as all-over soap, and homemade hair-styling products (another time - I found some great recipes). Hell, I'm probably days away from never shaving my legs again, dousing myself in patchouli, and taking a looooooooooong ride on the granola train. I've gone from 20+ personal care products to under 10, all costing less than $25 total, and it's all Natural-Like.

And now, for an amusing glimpse into this first week with the hubby out on tour:

Well, of course one wears a monkey backpack while
climbing into the toilet! Yes, I took the time to go get a camera.

Can you spot the toy that doesn't belong?

Completely conked out during rehearsal. He was so cute I almost ate him.

Day 91 - TV Dinners - Remix

My mom occasionally trots out the story of the first time she and her brothers were ever served a TV dinner. It was the night before a move - everything was packed up in boxes and shipping containers - and my grandmother served them the latest and greatest from Swanson: turkey with gravy, cornbread stuffing, mashed potatoes, and maybe a dollop of cherry cobbler. TV dinners were brand spankin' new in the 1950's (here's a neat article on how they came to be); if you wanted to eat, you generally had to cook and make things from scratch. Lawzy, how times have changed!

Can you imagine a life without prepackaged food? Can you remember the first time it was served to you? For better or for worse, it's here to stay. On the up side? Oh, the convenience! Open, maybe mix in a little water, heat, serve! On the down side? Well, for starters, is it even food? Or just an edible food-like substance? Even if it's mostly "food", chances are that there are Major Downsides - everything from the traditional offenders like freaky additives, preservatives, and enough sugar/salt/fat to land you in the ICU before Friday, to more recent concerns like where it comes from - factory farm, laboratory, manure pile in China, etc.

My mission? To streamline dinner without having to resort to Trader Joe's frozen enchiladas every night (though they are mighty tasty). It isn't so much an issue when Marty's home, but when he's on the road, it's way tougher to make myself cook, especially when Sebastian is being "spirited". I also teach aerial fabulousness two nights a week, which throws another wrench in the cogs. So, here are my options:

- there are times when it's easy to cook, like when you're hubby's NOT on tour. During those times, I try to cook double and freeze the leftovers.
- all hail the Crock Pot - King of All Kitchen Appliances! Not only does the CP cook while you're off preparing for world domination, you can pre-assemble your meals, freeze them, and when you're ready to do your thang, just defrost & dump it in! Dinner is served... 8 hours later.
- I absolutely HATE menu planning, but thankfully there are ways around this. My personal favorite is to totally outsource this most hated of jobs! There's an awesome book by Leanne Ely called "Saving Dinner" that plans your meals by season and even gives you a shopping list! Her website also has weekly "menu mailers" you can sign up for, and several great e-cookbooks that you can purchase and download. We became "flexitarians" awhile back (a topic for another post), so I got the vegetarian one for all four seasons and am loving it. Have a look, or do it yourself if you're so inclined. Either way, it makes life WAY easier if you don't have to wonder what you'll be serving for dinner (at 5:45 with only ketchup and wilted Romaine in the fridge).
- convenience food (mostly Trader Joe's - a lot of their stuff is higher on the healthy, lower on the crappy) on the nights when I just don't get it together for whatever reason. Or, there's always pasta and sauce!

So that's that. I'm also not getting terribly ambitious with meals while he's gone, so that's easier too. Do you have any super simple tips to get homemade food on the table? Shout 'em out!

My sweet loves, pictures with the Hated Orange Touring Suitcases

Day 90 - Time to Make the Doughnuts

Batten down the hatches, ya’ll, it’s a virtual tidal wave of preparation before my sweet baboo heads out on the road, leaving us to fend for ourselves. *sniff* I’ll tell you – I have a whole new respect for the mamas and the daddies at home while a spouse is deployed; I honestly wonder how they do it. One thing is clear: this household is going to have to be run with military precision until he gets home, or Marty will return to find me silently rocking in a corner while Sebastian goes all Lord of the Flies.

Routines! I need routines! And a schedule! And a, timer! And a lobotomy (!), cause as every mama with small children knows, the best laid plans are the first ones to go all to hell the first time somebody poops in the tub or upends your potted plant onto the kitchen floor and rolls in it.  So, in direct contrast to my OCD nature, I am choosing a soft focus here. My first impulse is to try to schedule my days down to the minute to make sure I get everything done, but it never works and I just wind up watching my Hulu queue with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, feeling completely overwhelmed. Routines – yes. Timer – yes, Soft schedule – yes. Here’s what I came up with:

-      I made a list of what needs to get done each day/week/month. What really needs to be done, not what my Inner Superhero thinks needs to be done.

-      As per Flylady, use my timer to help keep me focused

-      Also as per Flylady, make a morning, afternoon, and evening routine

This is what it looks like if you care:

Morning Routine – nurse Seb, everyone dressed, breakfast, kitchen ready for the day (dishwasher unloaded, re-loaded, bread set out to rise, etc.), emails, Bible study, take Seb out for a jog in the stroller, shower, story time, nap time

Afternoon routine – do stuff, lunch, pole dancing class (kidding, kidding), afternoon errands/rehearsal/park/outing after nap, playtime, dinner prep

Evening routine – dinner, kitchen close down, Seb bath, Seb bed, free time (woot), 10:00 Mama bedtime

Here’s hoping this will work for the most part, because what I usually do is stay up too late “getting stuff done”, wake up exhausted the next day, slog, slog, slog, vicious cycle, slog, slog, slog… you get the picture. I really can’t let that happen again, because please believe me when I say all parties involved are miserable. So, routines in place. Next up: food made redonkulously simple (no, Miss Snarky, it’s not “open can, pour, heat, serve!). Of course, it ain’t London broil and risotto, either! Here’s a hint: it involves the freezer….

Oh – and here’s a picture of my awesome Amish dress. Actually, it’s too fancy to be Amish (pattern), so it’s more Old Order Mennonite-y I think. Shapeless? Yup! Modest? You betcha! I’ll post pics of me in it as soon as I get around to sewing the apron and head covering. I never go half-assed.