Elephant Lovey

I saw a picture on Ravelry of a really cute elephant security blanket. I thought I could recreate it without the pattern. I sort of did, although my version leaves a lot to be desired, and the scale of the elephant to the blanket is definitely not the same as the inspiration picture.

To properly make amigurumi I need to have tighter tension so it's a more solid fabric. I also need to be more consistent in where I place my stitches. I tend to drift from placing in the stitch, only in the back post, only in the front post, between stitches, etc. With this one at least I used white stuffing and white yarn so you can't tell as much how bad my stitches are. I also should have made the elephant slightly smaller to make the granny square blanket seem bigger. Making the flower for the elephant's ear was fun though and it looks pretty cute.

Jane loves the elephant and has been dragging it around some.Maybe I'll try again. I've still got plenty of this rainbow worsted weight yarn left...

Putting the Free in Freelance

I've been volunteering for my church for about a year, helping with their website and social media. They did a big redesign last summer and I helped get the content in shape and over in the new template. (I am a content person and writer, and there were designers in charge of coding) Then the site went live and the web design firm went MIA, and I was basically left on my own to sort out different issues.

The site is built on WordPress. I am not a WordPress expert, but I can figure things out and follow online tutorials, etc. But I was panicky about doing any updates without clear instructions from the web firm about backups, even just as part of a hand off of responsibilities to me, but no instructions ever came. No matter how many times I asked.

So what happened IS my fault, in that I wasn't more vigilant in updating WordPress myself. Things seemed to be OK so I just let it lie. Bad idea.

I'd noticed the site coming up as "potentially dangerous" in my browser's security bar, but I didn't look into it until the church accountant got a message from a member to that effect. I first updated WordPress (and it didn't break anything!), and then I contacted our host.

The host flagged our site as suspicious and said they would shut down our account if we didn't delete a certain file in 24 hours. Ruh, roh!

But since they told me the file I could go in and clean out the malicious code. I also updated all of the themes, plug ins, etc. and changed all the passwords as directed. BUT when I updated the theme ... POOF! Goodbye theme customizations.

*SOB SOB SOB*

The host does backups of the site and keeps them for a few days, so since I caught it soon enough I knew I could get an old one and then upload an old version of the theme via FTP. Well I didn't know that at first, but after I took Jane to the park and thought about it for a while the idea came to me -- and it actually worked, and the site went back to looking right with the customizations.

But that means our theme is not the latest version, leaving us vulnerable to hacks, and I'm not sure I've completely cleaned the site, and I'm especially worried that there's still a backdoor into the site and we'll just keep getting hacked and flagged.

I finally got a response from the web design firm. We're not active clients, and our contact there seems to have left the firm. But someone wrote back and said they'd look into it. I don't know what to expect (this firm also left tons of broken images and links throughout the site when they pushed it live from their testing server, among other unprofessional, frustrating things).

So I was feeling OK, thinking that at least we were stable for now. And then I tried to add a link to a post -- just updating it. And I couldn't edit the HTML and clicking "add link" icon did nothing. On top of everything else it made me want to beat my head against the wall. I googled, googled, googled and found directions to add a line of code to one of the files. And it appeared in enough of the WP help forums that it seemed legit. So I did that and it worked. I can edit the posts again. I still need to get used to the new version of WordPress and figure out if anything else got broken during the update.

I also don't know if maybe my computer is involved at all. There's only one other person who really updates the site, so I assume something could have gotten in through her computer. Or perhaps it was just through the site itself and a security breach within the theme.

My pulse has raced more times today than it has anytime since I haven't been working. I care SO much when I work and have projects/responsibilities like this. It's fun to figure things out and fulfilling to end up with a good end product that people like and use. But the process to get to that is so full of angst I can hardly stand it.

**I didn't really cry, but man I was a TERRIBLE mama to Jane during this ordeal ... which is still ongoing.

Green Eyebrows?

I have a green eyeliner pencil that I've never used. I bought it with the idea I might like to try an edgy makeup look sometime. Since I don't wear makeup normally going for edgy is a bit of a stretch. But it was a cheap-o brand so no real loss. But I was looking at it this week and the label says "eye and eyebrow pencil."

*Record scratch*

Oh, that's a whole new look I have never seen before -- colored eyeliner in your brows. How about that, trendy hipsters? Does anyone already do that? If they don't and then they start you'll know where you heard it first.

As for me, I'm going to try to wear mascara every day and work my way back up from there. There was a solid 6 months that I wore makeup daily for work -- starting in August 2010 until the "morning" sickness of 2011. I also flattened/blowdried my hair every time I washed it (not daily, but 3-4 times per week).

It's a good thing I don't care about how I look.

That's a "favorite" quote about me from a friend. I still haven't quite digested it or gotten over it -- more than 5 years later. I've decided it doesn't mean the same as not caring what people think about me but more me not thinking anyone can get the right impression based on the way I look so why try? Or something. Insecurity alert, I know.

UPDATE: Thanks to my mom who did a Google image search, apparently green eyebrows are a thing, possibly started by Lady Gaga. Surprised? Nah.

Things I Bought That I Love: Cool Towels

I had never heard of cool towels until my aunt came to visit this year. We spent at least one steamy day in New Orleans, and having the cool towel was essential for keeping the baby cool (not to mention dealing with hot flashes).

I've since bought two -- one via Amazon (referral link) and one that I found at my local grocery store (hello, Winn Dixie) on sale. Once you find out about something you start seeing it EVERYWHERE.

Anyway, these things are supposedly 20 degrees cooler than ambient air, and all you do is wet them, wring them out and then store in their plastic tube until ready to use. Pull them out, shake them for 20 seconds (I just do 20 shakes) and they really are cool. And they feel good for wiping off sweat

At the park Jane will say "coo, coo" until I give her one of the towels (she will also hoot a little like an owl, because towel=owl in Jane's world right now). Her poor face gets so red when she's overheated. I know the towel can't completely cool her down, so we don't stay outside long now in these hot-hot-hot southern Louisiana summer days. But it's nice to let us get out a little bit (and having one for me helps me be a slightly less cranky mama when outside).

I also think they'll be VERY handy in hurricane season if we lose power again. Last year we filled our tub with water to wash with in case we lost water too, so dipping the towel in that to recharge wouldn't be a problem (also, we never lost water). Here's hoping we don't need the cool towel for that now that we have them!

I really think there's a market for garments made out of this material. Think about maternity shirts -- or my personal favorite a poncho. I guess those would be harder to shake and activate...

Snug, Snug

Some outtakes from playing outside a week or so ago. How much do I love this face? These teeth? That mouth? Those eyes?!
 

One of Fifteen, Again

I wrote three sentences about this right after it happened.

The trial was this week. Guilty verdict. Death sentence.

When I allow myself to think about it, read about it I almost go numb and my heart breaks all over again. It's upsetting from every single angle.

It feels improper for me to write about it or even really have feelings about it -- although believe me, the feelings are expansive and painful.

I'm reading Adam Hamilton's Confronting the Controversies: Biblical Perspectives on Tough Issues (referral link) and coincidentally read the death penalty chapter the night before the sentencing. I've never tried to decide what I think, and even now my opinion is clouded by a personal connection. But I liked what he had to say (Google Books link to that chapter).

Purple Swing Set Cardigan

It's a purple party cardi for my sweet baby girl. I had made a mistake in the previous one -- there was an error in the pattern, in my defense. But really I just didn't read closely enough or I would have realized the mistake. On this one I didn't do the button hole placement perfectly and I had to spend 2+ hours unraveling the second skein of yarn (so annoying). But I'm happy with how it turned out. I'm thinking about making a matching hat because I bought three skeins of this yarn and don't want to buy anymore to use up the third one.

Cardi in action -- perfect for reading books and sitting on your gardening bench in the living room.

Photo Bombed by Brando

Crochet Lately: Swingset Cardigan & Gumdrop Roullete

Gumdrop Roulette baby afghan -- made earlier this year but just finished it by weaving in ends, washing and photographing it. I love the Red Heart super soft (that's what I used for the white because it was on sale after Christmas) ... I wish I had more! The rainbow stripes match previous blankets I've made, and I still have more to use for another blanket I want to make. Stay tuned.

This is called a swing set cardigan. It's supposed to be made in DK weight yarn, but I couldn't find any that I liked. My aunt was visiting and making it in sport weight, and I bought this pretty color worsted weight and decided to give the pattern a try if nothing else. It worked up quickly, in about 4 days with plenty of non-crocheting time. There are no seams, which made it even easier and it looks just darling. Because of the thicker yarn it made a bigger finished cardigan. I made 9-18 months by the pattern, but it's still too big for Jane. She'll grow into it, and I may try to find some DK yarn to do another smaller one in the meantime. It's too hot here anyway to be wearing sweaters, even if they are short sleeved. This also needs some buttons added at the top.

Railroad Curve

Near the Levee, Downtown BR

Drinking Water in New Orleans

At Smashburger in NOLA. Photo by Auntie Sue.

Azaleas in Bloom

Totally weird, two months after all the other azaleas bloomed around town and our bushes in front are covered in blossoms. What the what?

I didn't take pictures at the height of the blossoms, mostly because they aren't visible from outside -- because of a green bush that's in front of the azaleas -- and also because pictures through the window are a little iffy (see zoomed in shot at left for what I mean). They're pretty though.

I need to trim the tops of the bush -- they're sticking up all spiky looking. I'm not a good gardener...

Pumpkin CHEESE

Although out of focus and wearing a weather-inappropriate hat, this might be my new favorite Jane pic. Look at that ridiculous smile!

CHEESE!

Oklahoma Weather

I have mixed feelings about writing about what happened in Moore, OK, this week. I grew up in Oklahoma, have family in Oklahoma and identify with Oklahoma, but I don't want to inappropriately attach myself to Oklahoma just because it's in the news. (Similarly I didn't write about Boston after the marathon bombings, or Connecticut shootings, etc.) I still feel like writing though and I'm going to focus on my own experience with Oklahoma weather rather than trying to have anything worth reading about what happened this week.

So growing up I did have experiences preparing for tornadoes -- but it almost seemed like a joke. My little town is situated on a hill, there are some low mountains to the north and another small town to the west. The weather almost always travels west to east, so it just seemed unlikely that our town would be hit. So far in my life it hasn't been. Knock on wood, cross your eyes, etc.

The town is so small that there are no tornado sirens -- at least there weren't when I was a kid. We just watched the news -- or listened to the radio if the electricity went out -- and packed a bag to take to the cellar. Most of my bags were full of toys. And it always seemed exciting.

As a teenager it really was a joke. I had told my then-boyfriend about how we prepared for tornadoes with frantic packing, and it struck us both as absurd and funny. If weather hit while we were at school the line would be "You better go pack your bags!" What lame teenagers who felt invincible I guess.

Anyway, once weather did hit while I was at school -- I was probably younger than a teenager, but I remember filing down to the basement-level dressing rooms with the rest of the kids. We were down there but oddly not scared. Probably because we were just kids and unaware of the risks. It was hot and stuffy in the dressing room (it always was, but we were down there a long time). There wasn't actually a tornado but high winds messed up the high school roof.

The cellar at our house seems really awful now -- it's probably half-full of water most of the time (except during the worst parts of the drought I guess) and definitely doesn't seem safe. I don't really make it a practice to check on it when I'm home. Creepy crawlies down there too!

I love rain and storms though, even though they are scary and powerful. I find them so refreshing and somehow comforting. But then I've never lost anything after a storm, and I can't imagine the depth of that pain.

Jane-Go-Round

Christianity on The Mindy Project

I watch a lot of TV, and one show I actually really like is The Mindy Project. I like a woman-led project, and the show has laugh-out-loud moments and characters I care about (ish).

But recently there's a storyline with Mindy's "Cool Christian" boyfriend that has me scratching my head and wondering if I should stop watching. Instead I thought I'd just write about it.

Mindy has started dating a pastor, which on the surface sounds great. Christianity being portrayed in pop culture seems like a good thing. Christians are people too, etc. But the storyline unfolds bizarrely and in a way that is incompatible with my understanding of how Christians, particularly pastors, should believe (which flows into how I think they should behave).

Mindy goes to Pastor Casey's church service and watches as he is treated like a rock star in the pulpit (he wears a collar, and the sanctuary is typical pews and raised pulpit area, but otherwise seems like a contemporary-type service). I've never seen a preaching session or church dynamic like that, although maybe I'm just out of it/used to my traditional, methodical church experience.

But how Mindy and Casey's relationship unfolds is definitely weird when viewed through the lens of my expectations of Christianity and pastoral behavior.

There are sex scenes, including a shower one that would be funny if I weren't thinking about "what?!" He asks Mindy to convert to Christianity, breaks up with her when she won't and then changes his mind ("G" told him to make it work/that they can overcome the differences/that she's the one/etc.).

The season finale has Casey deciding to go to Haiti for a year and inviting Mindy to go with him. They're going to live together in a tent for a year -- with plenty of "making love" as he calls it. WHAT?! Would a mission trip anywhere be like that, with unmarried people living together as if it's not a thing?

So I still haven't decided what I think, other than "HUH!?!?" I also know that TV is not at all representative of what life actually is, so maybe that's just what this is? But it still bothers me more than any other ridiculous storyline on TV.

What do you think?

Substances Affect Aging

h/t to my cousin -- thanks!

Waypoints

We took a road trip this week -- going home to see my family for Mother's Day. We had a difficult time finding playgrounds to stop at along the way, although we did find three eventually: one in Denton on the way there (no shade, and Jane got a small burn on some of the equipment!), a really nice shaded one in Mesquite on the way back and one in Shreveport on the way back that was partially shaded so she could only go down one of the five or six slides (we stopped at a non-playground park in Shreveport on the way there and tossed a ball around).

A friend told me about an app you can buy in the App Store for Mac, I think Ontheway or similar, but it's $5 and I don't have an iPhone/it wouldn't work without wifi on the road on my iPod. And I'm still "old fashioned" in liking to work things out on a big screen/use my keyboard and mouse. What a fossil, right? (I'm also CHEAP.)

I did find a website called Waypoints (which I'd never heard of as a term for places to stop along the way but which Shawn used in a non-website context), but the site was wonky and incomplete. I didn't get any useful information from that.

Anyway, Shawn did most of the work after I did some googling. He used satellite images to confirm which parks actually had playgrounds. We'll be making the trip again I'm sure, so we've saved the info and will hopefully find more to expand our options for places to stop that are kid friendly to get out the wiggles. Shawn's already spotted another park in Alexandria that has a splash pad of some sorts that could be really fun in the heat.

It just seems like it should be easier and that information should be available. I guess most people just stop at McDonald's and let their kids play there? I'm sure we would do that if it were raining or something.

I tried to pay attention to our surroundings while I drove, and I saw a water park in Canton, TX, that seems like it might be about halfway -- maybe my sister and I can meet there someday with our kids for a fun summer trip!

Skin

I went to the dermatologist last week. I hadn't been since our move here and the last time I had been dealing with beds bug skin effects.

This time I had a skin check and asked about what I thought was a skin tag in the corner of my eye.

Skin check was ok. Nothing dangerous yet. (I am young, no guarantees against future problems, etc.) But she was very critical of my arms, which "have seen enough skin damage for a lifetime." Lovely. They are quite freckled. I gotta get better about sunblock. I wrestle it on Jane more than I do myself!

Anyway, the skin tag was diagnosed as dry skin or sub? dermatitis. She gave me some hydrocortisone cream to dab on daily after cleaning. It looks and feels better but I swear I still see a skin tag that will keep cracking.

G-R-O-double-S!

Questions

I attend a Bible study on Monday nights, and our leader is amazing. She asks really good questions, including great conversation starters like:

• What was your best birthday memory?
  
• If you could shadow anyone for a day, who would you choose and why?

I've spent time thinking about those, so much that I remember them even months or more than a year later. And last night's question, while not a conversation starter but more of a heart starter, is still tumbling in my head.

What concrete difference in your life does knowing the end of your story make?

We all had to answer, and I rambled something about parenting/motherhood, how I don't think I'd want to be a parent without the end of the story, the Gospel, knowing and feeling God's love. What would be the point? It would be so hopeless and seem cruel.

I'm not sure that's what I really mean -- or my full answer or something. But I thought it was a profound question in any case and that you, my three or four loyal readers, might enjoy thinking about it for yourselves too.

Mom Praise

For all the gretching about moms on the playground I do (and believe me, there's even more I could do), sometimes I actually LIKE other people.

*Record Scratch*

There's a mom I have seen several times at the playground who has two children and frequently watches two others. Hers are 5 and 2, and she is so calm. She's younger than me but I know I could learn a lot from her just from what little I've seen of her parenting.

I love the way she speaks to her kids -- never disrespectfully but always clear she's the mom in charge. She gives them choices -- "we're not playing in the sand today, but you can choose what you'd like to play with next. do you want to swing? or slide? or ...?" It's just much better than my reaction of "NO SAND! ARGH! DIRTY! UGH!" She also plays WITH her kids and moves from pushing one to getting water for another, etc.

I don't even know her name (although I do know her kids' names), but I have gleaned some things about her, both in direct conversation and via eavesdropping (ask Shawn -- I pick up lots of info about strangers wherever we go). I know I just see a small slice of her life, but she seems pretty awesome in that slice.

Related: on Twitter someone sent me a link to a story about how making mom friends is like dating. I'm not sure if that Twitter friend reads this blog, but it would make sense, as she sent it after my mom gripe post. In any case, I haven't made it past first base with any mom friend, but I can't say I've actually tried either. Making friends is hard.

Jane & Mama

Baby Blocks

(By Daddy)

Mom Gripe: Playground Ice Pops

Yesterday I took Jane to the playground. Not an unusual occurrence. When the weather is nice we try to go once a day. I'm not sure if I'll manage that schedule once the temperatures soar, but I digress.

We got to the park -- a short walk away -- and there are a few other families there. Two moms with three kids between them have passed out those rocket-shaped ice pops that are startlingly red, white and blue.

It was very warm yesterday, and the popsicles were melting everywhere. While the moms lounged in the shade, the kids were carrying their melting messes of corn syrup and food dye all over the playground equipment.

I did have some wipes in the stroller, thankfully, so I wiped away in front of Jane while she climbed to the slide (and I was only half paying attention as I was invited to a new moms group by someone I knew who was leaving).

It was so stressful. Mostly the mess, but now that I think about it those sticks were a choking hazard. One of the kids is about 2 and another is probably younger -- about Jane's age. The oldest was 4 or 5 and talked to me while I cleaned -- saying her ice pop wasn't melting on the ground (it was just getting all over her hands and dress before it got to the ground).

The mess kept coming, as the kids stood and gaped at me, while the moms were oblivious. Jane wanted to swing after one time down the slide, so we did that while the other kids continued to get things messy and sticky -- not just the slides/climbing equipment but also several of the riding toys that are around the park.

The moms had a pack of wipes and cleaned up their kids a bit -- and finally told them "You've had enough. Three is plenty!" to much screaming and crying while the box with the rest of the ice pops was thrown in the garbage. But they didn't use the wipes to clean up the playground equipment. If it had been their stuff that kind of mess wouldn't have been allowed and the kids would have had to sit to eat, but since it's communal property who cares? (Their kids afterward got in the sandbox, so I can't imagine the mess their cars would be in ... or how they were going to get them cleaned up before going home since they were both driving luxury SUV type cars.)

I have seen these moms many times, and I know I'll see them again -- at the park, library, etc. So I couldn't bring myself to ask them to clean up the mess, in part because I knew I wouldn't be able to contain my venom. I really wish I had though -- even a simple "would you mind cleaning up the slides and tunnel? They're all sticky from the popscicles."

I did make a snide remark to a grandma who was pushing her grandson in the swing next to ours -- "I've never seen anything like this mess here." And she agreed it was ridiculous.

Thankfully Jane didn't want to climb anymore -- otherwise I would have had to waste more of my wipes cleaning up the gunk. Today it rained and rained and rained, so I'm sure everything will be unsticky when the weather clears and we next go to the park.

I should be less judgy, right? Meh.

Reading Lately

I haven't been keeping up with Good Reads, but I've been plowing through a few books -- mainly on my Kindle via the EBRPL Overdrive service. Here are quick hits about the last four books I've read (mostly this week, thanks to visiting childcare in the form of inlaws!):

• The Book Thief: World War II/Holocaust novel told from the perspective of Death, focused on a particular girl growing up outside of Munich, Germany. Her mom drops her off with a foster family -- I was never clear why, as she wasn't Jewish. Something about being Communist though. They hide a Jew in their basement, so the war and Hitler is an overarching theme and stress. It's not a very happy ending in most respects, I would say. But an OK read.

• The Life of Pi: a novel written as if it were a biography/memoir type thing. It's fantastical about surviving a shipwreck -- from India to Mexico via the Pacific Ocean. I couldn't put it down and was reading while getting ready to go out several times, and at least once I forgot my phone or something else vital. Another less-than-happy ending in some respects. But I really liked it. Not sure if I'll watch the movie that's been made. It came out last year and was up for a bunch of Oscars.
  
  
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks: LOVE. This has been on my list (and in my Amazon shopping cart) since it came out several years ago. I think I was leaving R!A when it was first published (or thereabouts). It's about the woman whose cervical cancer cells have been used for research breakthroughs since the 1950s -- without her or her family's knowledge or consent. It raises a lot of issues about research and privacy, but I think what I liked most was seeing another kind of life. It seemed to be presented truly, her family's life, in a respectful but honest way. I've kept thinking about it since I finished it last night.

• Why Have Kids? I picked up this book at the library after my mother-in-law spotted it on the New Nonfiction rack after story time this week. I'd heard about it and definitely heard of the author before. And a book is a book, so I checked it out (along with a Louisiana Lighthouse book that I thought would have pictures -- upon further inspection realized it was curated from Wikipedia articles ... is that a thing now?!). I guess I liked it -- I read it very quickly this afternoon. It was written like a book report or college term paper -- lots of references and footnotes. The author has a child, so there are some personal anecdotes included (you know me, loving the nosy business of knowing about others' lives).
  
  I'm still not sure what her thesis was -- other than women should be allowed to choose whether to have children and society should support either decision equally (as of now society doesn't do a good job supporting either, depending on how you look at it).
  
  What I didn't like was the chapter that basically said women who don't work are doing a disservice to womankind and to themselves (because eventually their partner/husband will die, leave them or lose his job and getting back to work after an extended leave for kids is impossible/difficult). She wasn't saying that herself, but "reporting" on others' research/writings/findings. But she was wishy-washy in her critique, indicating that she initially took issue with the idea but now supports it/agrees with it. She definitely states her belief that women shouldn't solely depend on another person financially for any long period of time. I hesitate to state an opinion of my own, although my actions speak for my own situation at this point in my life, so I couldn't help but feel like it was a bit of a personal affront. I also see the logic in the thinking. So there you go.

I have a couple more books in my Kindle and a few things I'm still looking for that I'll probably have to get in hard copy at the library. I read The Paris Wife a couple weeks ago and am interested in reading some actual Hemingway (I have a feeling I've never actually gotten through any of his works entirely before). I've enjoyed a couple books by Jane Smiley, the 18th Stephanie Plum book, a couple by Laura Lippman one of which I loved (What the Dead Know), a bunch of David Sedaris and Billy Graham's Nearing Home on my Kindle. All free thanks to the library.

Egg Hunting

Eggs on the monkey grass

Finding eggs to put in her basket

I am getting a TON of spam comments lately. Any ideas how to put the kibash on that? Ugh.

We had a little back yard egg hunt for a baby girl today. About 80 eggs to find. It started getting buggy -- yuck -- so Daddy had to help clean up the last ones. She's been playing with the empty eggs inside anyway. Plastic fun ... oh, I'm sure they're not BPA free. Stressful.

Hope you've had a great Easter!

Cousins

Owen came to visit this week on his spring break. The cousins had a great time playing together, and I know Jane is missing him. I wish we lived closer to each other to have a more regular physical presence. We get by with visits several times a year plus weekly webcamming sessions.

Nothing like a cousin hug though!

Red Stick Gators

Hope you're having a lucky day.

I'm processing my weekly Jane photos and found two gator photos I took at the zoo this week. I have been to the zoo three times before this and never seen these guys. Were they always there and I never looked? Are they new? Whatever the case they kind of creeped me out.

Azaleas

The azaleas are blooming in Baton Rouge, and they have been for at least a month. I think they hit peak blooming last weekend.

One thing I really regret that we did at our house when we first moved in was cut down three big azalea bushes in the back yard. I didn't know what azalea meant, or how beautiful they were, and I was pregnant, emotional and my house was full of guests. I wasn't thinking straight.

We have a small bush in our front yard next to our front window. It doesn't bloom much, although there are probably 10 blossoms now. Nothing like the lush displays I see when driving down Highland or in the Garden District.

You live and learn I guess. Wait at least one full year before doing any major landscaping if you can help it.

Pictures of Azaleas at church -- about a week after peak bloom but still pretty.

Goodbye Google Reader

Sad news from Google. They're doing away with Google Reader, the RSS feed reader I've used for ages, probably since it was launched in 2005. I know there are other readers available, but they aren't as good. And this is the one I know, where all my feeds are and what I'm comfortable with. Slowly I'm losing my loyalty to Google, since it probably IS somewhat evil. I should consider moving my blog to WordPress.

I'm not sure how the RSS capabilities for my blog will be affected -- I use FeedBurner, another Google product that may be axed if it isn't already on the block. It's also how my daily emails are sent out (to all two subscribers, me and my mom) -- so that's a bummer although not a major one I guess.

Grrrrrrrrr... How am I supposed to keep up with my blog voyeurism now?! Not to mention my news reading. Waaaaah!

WHINE!

Read: Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake

Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake by Anna Quindlen
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I checked out this e-book somewhat randomly. It was recommended on the same magazine page I'd torn out to remind myself to look up another book (not sure which one now). When I was perusing the EBRPL's Overdrive site I searched for this one and it was available: check out!

Because it's labeled "memoir" I thought I would love it no problem. I love reading people's personal stories -- I'm nosy that way (I do read a lot of blogs, for that very reason) and I just love a good story. But I wouldn't classify this as a memoir at all. It's a collection of essays without the overarching life narrative. At times it's preachy, and it's definitely the work of a journalist, which isn't a bad thing, but it quotes other people a lot and generalizes more than being personal for most of the book.

I don't think it's a bad book, and I'm sure I've liked Anna Quindlen's work in the past. I just think it's geared toward an older reader? I was turned off by some of the things she wrote about motherhood and aging. And maybe it was the honesty that made me want to turn away, but it just didn't do it for me.

I struggled to finish the book, if only to be able to post a review about it and check off another in an imaginary "books I've read this year" list. (Part of me wishes I did keep up with Good Reads so I had an actual record of what I've read. The Kindle keeps a record, including library books checked out. So at least I have that.)

View all my reviews

FWD: How to Write Good

1. Avoid Alliteration. Always.

2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.

3. Avoid cliches like the plague. They're old hat.

4. Be more or less specific.

6. Writers should never generalize.

Seven. Be consistent.

8. Don't be redundant; don't use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.

9. Who needs rhetorical questions?

10. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.

Thanks, Auntie Sue!

Read: My Beloved World

My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is more than a memoir -- sure it's the story of Justice Sotomayor's childhood and professional life, but it also has solid advice woven throughout. Advice for following your dreams, connecting with family and friends, and caring for your physical well being (as she has with her lifelong diabetes).

I think it's rare that a Supreme Court Justice would be this open about her life -- she even mentions her underwear at one point (a friend made fun of it and taught her how to shop better for herself once she had the means to do so). I can't imagine knowing about Antonin Scalia's underpants (although I did have a logic professor in college who had taken a shower with him when he saw him at his gym in DC ... just to say that he had!).

Anyway, I really liked this look at an inspiring life of dedication, even though the book ends once she becomes a federal judge and doesn't detail her life since. Hopefully she'll write a sequel about the rest of her life when she's closer to having finished it!

I read this as an ebook from the library, but I would love to have a signed hard copy.

(I've been plowing through a lot of books from the library -- the ebook options are amazing! Long live the library!)

View all my reviews

Breastfeeding on Modern Family

One of the shows I watch is Modern Family. It's a sitcom done in the faux documentary style that seemed to start with The Office.

Anyway, last night's episode (which I watched about a half hour after it aired and was tempted to blog about right away), included Gloria, the sexy second wife of the grandfather, nursing her new baby while she signed for a package. They digitally pixilated her boob, and the dialogue made clear that the baby was nursing/not like it was popped off and it was just a boob that she was showing. There were jokes about her breasts, that she is too free with her body, etc.

Most of the time they were making those jokes she was clothed -- with the low cut tops she wears in which you could see even more of her breast than what was pixilated around the baby's head. I really don't understand why the breast when used for its intended function (even fictionally) is something that requires digital alteration lest we be scandalized. But when it's on display for sexual purposes we have no problem with it.

Furthermore, I don't know why depictions of breastfeeding have to be like that -- somehow shameful or sexual. And I guess it stuck in my craw even more because this particular show uses boob humor on a regular basis.

I know my thoughts aren't fully formulated or useful, but I had to put it out there since it struck me as just wrong and distasteful.

Jane Street: August 2010

In the waning days of our time in NYC I took pictures of things I wanted to remember. I was looking through them today. I had such a dumb camera then that most are blurry or weird. But the series of photos I took of the Jane Street mean I wanted a baby named Jane for a long time.

Upgrade Ya

When we were in New Orleans this weekend Jane and I checked out a furniture store on Magazine Street. I scoped out this little nightstand on Friday when we were on foot, fretted about it and went back on Saturday to buy it when I had the car. It's super turquoise and super functional.

I had been using that chair as a nightstand ever since we moved into the house. (The chair was theoretically an upgrade from the rubbermaid-type drawers I had been using for ages before that.)

I had been waiting until we got a full bedroom suite, but realizing that isn't a priority but that I still wanted more function beside the bed I started the hunt. I'm really happy with this and if we ever do get a matching set of bedroom furniture this can always go in Jane's room. Although I can't imagine I'll ever want to give it up!

We're also in the market for a china cabinet -- and there was definitely a contender at this store. We're looking for small-ish footprint, dark wood, blocky/clean lines with drawers, lower cabinets and glass-front upper cabinets for display and glass storage. We might like to have a buffet surface too (the contender here didn't offer that). I keep checking Craigslist and maybe need to look at thrift stores and estate sales. I'm super cheap, which is why I didn't just buy the one at this store. It would be great to have something though so my fancy wedding china wouldn't still be sitting in a box in our utility room. Oh me.

Mardi Gras Aftermath

Took this from the car yesterday in New Orleans -- what a mess, although beautiful in a way.

On the streetcar someone asked me where the beads come from -- like who pays for them. I have no idea, but I'm glad I can pass for someone from Louisiana ... I think?

Then I heard a story on NPR about a company trying to make "throws" locally. They're more expensive but would be less petroleum-based and less disposable/of nicer quality. Weird, weird.

Edit to clarify: we were not in New Orleans for Mardi Gras itself. Rather we were in town the weekend after, before the beads have fallen from the trees. I'm not sure if they ever clean them up entirely. 

Paperman

Found via This Was Supposed to Be My Symphony.

Teddy Bear's Rainbow

I made this blanket for Jane. I didn't make her one before she was born since I was sick and/or lazy. Her favorite word to say right now is "BEAR" so I thought this was a perfect choice.

I had yarn leftover from making another rainbow themed blanket (which I'll post about once I actually give the blanket to its intended baby!) -- instead of orange it was supposed to be peach, but I could never find that in worsted weight. This made the rainbow less baby-ish than the pattern picture. But I think I like it better this way.

The white yarn was on super sale at JoAnn's -- 50% off for Red Heart Super Soft because it was somehow Christmas themed? It’s pure white though, and oh-so-soft.

The filet pattern is great, and I love the look of adding stripes to fill out the blanket. The ruffle edging was a treat too.

Very happy with how this blankie turned out. Jane loves it too!

Nielsen Rater

Our household was chosen to fill out a TV diary for the Nielsen company to determine ratings. I'm sure everyone gets to do it once in a while.

Jane never watches TV, and Shawn rarely does, so it was mostly my TV watching ... and it pretty much mirrored my November 2012 project to write a post about every show I watch. Lovely.

I just wish Psych were on -- for reasons other than being recorded in the dumb TV diary.

I got $30 cash in return for completing the diary which is nice. But I was more than a little annoyed when they called the house TWICE during the week of the survey at almost 9 p.m. Fortunately Jane slept through both jangling rings, but I was pretty aggravated.

This is what it's come to I guess.

SLICE!

I made some pesto sauce this week, using some pine nuts I inherited when a friend moved away. All was going fine as I put the nuts and basil into the food processor. Then I realized that the basil was covered in dirt. Whoops!

So I started trying to pull out the leaves. Uh... bad move.

SLICED my middle finger on my right hand. Just a cut, but deep and painful on the tip of the finger. Ugh.

It got blood all over the pine nuts in the food processor. SO I had to dump out everything, wash the basil and start again (there were plenty of nuts left for that at least).

The pesto turned out OK, although I probably needed more basil. We ate it with bowtie pasta and an Italian herb and cheese chicken breast (I had a coupon for some new Kraft seasoning shake-and-bake type thing ... meh).

My finger is still healing. It reopened itself when I was washing Jane's hands, and I've been trying to keep it covered with a band aid BUT it's pretty tough given the location of the cut and the shape of a finger, you know?

Just keeping you posted on my latest injury. Oh me.

New Favorite Pic

I could mush this face all day. And most days I do!

A Couple Firsts

Oh sure, firsts are par for the course for Miss Jane Pie. But I still have some firsts of my own. On Monday I got a two-for-one. And only one was pleasant. I went to my first movie since Jane was born, and I survived my first truly plugged milk duct.

I woke up Monday with a sore boob, and I knew it could be trouble but I thought some pumping, extra nursing and extra water would keep it from getting worse.

I had been looking forward to Monday -- Shawn had agreed to let me go to a movie while he watched Jane (since it was a holiday he didn't have to be in the office). All week while taking care of Jane solo I had been planning my mini break.

In the movie -- Silver Linings Playbook -- I held my cup of cold soda under my arm to help with the soreness/pain, and it worked. I got home, Shawn went to the office (holiday or not ... you know the drill), and I took Jane to the park. Everything was fine until we came home. I was feeling fine and then WHAMMO!

Fever spiked to 102.5. The pain in my boob didn't worsen, but I got so cold. Shawn came home and I went straight to bed, covering up with all the blankets in the house (practically).

The fever broke in the night (so it only lasted a few hours), and I kept drinking water and nursing like they were going out of style. Jane was a trooper, and for once her constant night wakings didn't bug me, because I needed them to get better myself!

I was better on Tuesday and by Wednesday afternoon was pretty much back to normal. Today I'm feeling just fine -- and I kind of wish I could go see another movie on my own without the pain-in-the-boob! Actually the part I was most upset about was missing my Bible study -- for the second week in a row since I didn't have child care last week. DRAT.

Usually plugged milk ducts happen to new moms while the supply is getting established, and I'm so glad this didn't happen then. I really think it would have threatened my resolve to nurse. But I'm pretty sure why it happened to me now was also related to my solo parenting venture ... while Shawn was away I stayed up too late (not enough rest) and didn't drink enough water (not enough hydration). Together that's a recipe for mastitis, which thankfully this didn't develop into.

I'm keeping after myself to drink more water and we're on our same general nursing schedule. This may be TMI to share with my public facing blog, but I couldn't not write about it.

Christmas Tree Skirt for Myself

I completed this Christmas tree skirt in less than a week (as opposed to more than a year it took me for the other one I have made). I loved the striping and the zig zag. I definitely want to make a baby afghan in this pattern (different colors, of course, and without the hole in the middle!). Lots and lots of double crochet...

Here is the pattern for this skirt, from Smooth Fox's Blog, http://smoothfoxlover.blogspot.com/2009/10/smoothfoxs-christmas-tree-skirt-free.html. I followed the colors exactly, although I couldn't use the Hobby Lobby yarn (my HL was out of the colors I needed) so I used Red Heart.

The Countdown

Shawn is finally on his way home. Jane and I have been on our own since last Friday while Shawn has been at a conference -- out of the country. Without family or a real sociable nature it's been pretty tough.

I am exhausted.

Jane is still not asleep for the night, but she's in her crib trying to get there. I'll go back in for more rocking soon I'm sure.

The first part of the week it rained -- and rained and rained and rained. It was also cold, so we mostly stayed inside. We did get out for one small errand every day -- Target, delivering a meal to a new mom, etc.

Once the weather broke on Thursday we were able to get to the park and have gone three days in a row. Playing outside is good -- and it wears her out -- but just like her mama she gets a second wind.

My second wind keeps me up far too late after she finally goes to sleep -- and with broken night sleep still an issue and somewhat early wake calls, I am exhausted.

I love being with Jane. I even love being with her all the time day and night. But I also really appreciate not having to be sole comforter and care provider all day and all night. I like getting a break or breather, and I like to go to the grocery store by myself!

It will be so good to have our family back together for so many reasons!

(Have I mentioned I'm exhausted?)

News Sense

Since September or so I've been listening to a lot of NPR -- as in a few hours a day. I've come to know my station's schedule, what I like and what I don't. I know the local announcer's voices and the station's donation number.

And usually it's just something that melds in the background and I only actively listen a little bit. But a "story" caught my attention this week that I thought was verging on the absurd.

The news was about the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, so that's probably why my ears perked up. It was a local news announcer (reporter?) interviewing a national justice reporter about the Transocean guilty plea and settlement.

The conversation was so bizarre to me in that the national reporter was treated as a source -- not really attributing her information or saying she'd talked to anyone, just being authoritative and answering questions, including very speculative ones about how the case might proceed, etc.

I don't doubt that her information was as correct as could be found, but it was the reporter-to-reporter conversation presented as reporter-to-source that was so bizarre to me.

It's really par for the course, and the economy is hard on everyone and everything, but it just struck me as odd a lack of real reporting and talking to people actually involved in the process. Especially on a story that has had such a big local impact. (In my mind I would think the local reporter should be treated as an expert ... although based on everything I've heard they're not very expert on anything.)

So there's probably an explanation, like this is a thing that happens and is no big deal. I'm not sure anyone would actually have picked up on it. But this is me, putting my high-dollar journo degrees to work. Uh... or not.

Hotel Room de ja vu

We are in Memphis visiting an old friend of Shawn's (both in the fact that they've known each other for a while and that he's old -- around 20 years older than me). ANYWAY.

We're in a hotel room covered by points I earned while traveling for my last job. And this room looks almost exactly like the last one I stayed at in Silver Spring, MD, -- down to the furniture placement and artwork. And that was when I was at my SICKEST "morning" sickness with Jane.

It's a bit of a weird feeling to be in such familiar environs, but instead of being tied to the bed and/or toilet we've got a pack-and-play taking up half the room and toys strewn all about.

How lucky am I?

---

On the Memphis front we haven't done much touristy. We ate some fine BBQ for lunch -- Corky's. But we haven't seen Beale Street or the Mississippi or Graceland. Maybe next time. (We're going home tomorrow.)

End of 2012

The last day of 2012 and it's actually chilly here in Baton Rouge. Jane and I have many errands to run. I have lots of things to do around the house too -- being at my mother-in-law's house was inspiring to purge and organize (although the turning of the calendar also has something to do about it I'm sure).

This year Jane went on five airline trips -- a total of 20 flights (takeoff and landing). I had miscalculated before and said 18. Glad I recounted:

• BTR --> DFW --> LAX
• LAX --> DFW --> BTR
• BTR --> DFW --> OKC
• OKC --> DFW --> BTR
• BTR --> ATL --> CDG --> TXL
• TXL --> CDG --> ATL --> BTR
• BTR --> DFW --> LAW
• LAW --> DFW --> BTR
• BTR --> CNT
• CNT --> BTR

That's a well traveled baby!

Jane's vocabulary is expanding. She doesn't say Mama very often, although it is what we consider her first word. Dada is her favorite word hands down. During our trip to Virginia she picked up "Popeye" or "Paba" for Grandpa. So that's been pretty cute.

Our New Year's Eve this year will likely consist of soup and going to bed. I got a few Crock Pot recipe books from my sister and am going to give one of the soup recipes a try (gotta get started soon). Shawn and I go to bed pretty early these days, so I'm not even sure if we'll push ourselves to stay up until 12. If only we could sleep in ... maybe in a few more years.

Whatever you're doing, have a Happy 2013!

Christmas Tree Skirt

This is the Christmas tree skirt that I crocheted for my mother-in-law this year. It took me over a year to finish because it was so many pieces. They're asymmetrical granny squares whipped together with a border -- from a pattern in a book Gran gave me. The number of ends I had to weave in was something else.

Unfortunately she doesn't have a tree that can make use of the skirt. (Hers is a small jobber that sits on a table.) But it's sort of draped around the tree anyway.

I'd like to make myself one, but I might look into a different pattern. I love green and red for Christmas, so this is perfect ... but I also like the idea of a filet pattern in white. For our tree this year I used some buffalo snow.

Christmas Cooking 2012

It's been a hard working Christmas for me in the kitchen. Since the day after we arrived in Virginia I've been making something every day. And nearly every step of the way something has gone wrong.

It started with the cake. I'd seen a recipe in a magazine and didn't think it seemed too hard. But the payoff looked gorgeous -- like it always does in magazines. After making the cake batter to perfection I was thwarted when the cakes rose over the sides of the pans and made the bottom of the oven super messy. Luckily there was foil on the bottom of the oven so cleanup wasn't too difficult. But the cakes were pretty much useless -- too soft in parts and crusty in others.They really seemed like brownies in consistency.

After pondering a while I gave up and decided to bake a regular box cake in two layers and go ahead and make the cream cheese frosting. With the excess frosting I mixed the half of the ruined cakes to make cake balls (kind of gross, and I never bothered to cover them in chocolate candy coating like you're supposed to ... so they ended up in the trash ... maybe it only works with store bought frosting?).

But the box cake turned out OK -- domed but OK. I iced the two layers and then did the decorating -- pressing crushed candy canes around the sides. I also made peppermint red-and-white meringues for the top. While the meringues dried, I left the cake on the counter with the candy canes in place. It was covered in the cake carrier and when we got back the candy canes had melted, leaving the sides of the cake pink and a puddle of goo underneath. YUCK.

Little did I know that cream cheese frosting must be refrigerated. SO that solves the mystery of the melting candy canes (I think?).

We went ahead and ate the cake at a family party and it didn't get an awful reception. It was just sad sitting next to a pristine bundt cake that was on a plate made out of actual peppermint candies. Pinterest much? Oh me.

There have been similar fiascos as the cooking has continued. We never had exactly the right tools -- missing a rubber spatula, no big mixing bowls, it takes more than 30 minutes for water to boil on her stove, etc.

In addition to the cake I also made cream cheese cutout sugar cookies. I've had that recipe from my aunt for 10 years, so they turned out fine -- although it didn't seem like it made enough because I used such a giant cookie cutter (I brought one from home just in case ... and lucky for me because my m-i-l couldn't find her cookie cutters either).

Other desserts included banana pudding pie, pumpkin pie and pumpkin cheesecake. As of this writing we've only eaten pumpkin pie -- and it was only OK. I think a problem is that Shawn's grandma's recipe calls for "milk" and I'm pretty sure she means "evaporated milk" -- which is a game changer. It still set up and tasted right. It just wasn't as dense as it should have been.

The banana custard for the pie was difficult, and I'm not sure I did that right. It said to bring it to a boil after it thickened ... but with the stove not being hot enough it thickened and would not boil. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to keep cooking it until it was a thick unmoving block ... but that's where I was headed so I stopped. I'm not sure if I overcooked or undercooked it. In any case it doesn't look like the picture (let's be honest, none of my recipes do).

For dinner we had

• cranberry salad (my mom's recipe -- easy, tasty and one I've made before ... a rare win for me this season)
• 3-cheese scalloped potatoes (all you magazine ... turned out OK EXCEPT the bottom got too brown because the casserole dish was metal and we didn't use the baking sheet underneath because there was no room)
• mashed sweet potatoes (mainly for Jane -- easy enough I didn't mess it up)
• broccoli and mushroom salad (real simple magazine -- yummo)
• deviled eggs (m-i-l made these ... needed mustard!)
• creamy corn pudding (real simple magazine -- yummo except that it too got a little too brown around the edges ... and it was in a glass casserole so it may just be the oven was too hot or overcrowded? she only has one rack in the oven, which made timing everything super difficult)
• turkey (m-i-l did this too and it got a little dried out ... we didn't have a deep roasting pan so I wasn't able to get many juices/drippings for the ...
• cornbread dressing (Shawn's grandma's recipe ... I got close. Consistency was almost right but it was missing some flavor, probably from the lack of turkey juice)
• store bought yeast rolls (the bottoms got too brown ... there is no timer in her kitchen!)

I am wiped out. Still need to make whipped cream for the pies. 

I don't think I want to be making this meal again in any kitchen but my own. And even then ...

Hope you've had a Merry Christmas.

Crochet: A Granny Square

Finished this granny square baby blanket with the puffiest softest yarn, Red Heart Buttercream. It's bulky and worked up quickly. I interspersed some "Cupcake" purple yarn and embroidered an "A" in the middle (the baby's first name starts with "A").

I got it mailed off today. The baby was born 5 months ago, so I'm only a little late getting this finished!

The Spirit of the Season

I am fighting a losing battle with myself. I want to stop wanting THINGS and be content with all the amazing things I have -- and the people I have to share them with.

But I am susceptible to marketing and jealousy like woah.

It's Christmastime, so there are tons of "hot deals" and "buy now" messages pervading me. I have read so many gift guides and thought "oh, I want that!" And being at others' homes and seeing the beautiful decorations my tree doesn't seem like enough. And I want more-more-more.

Specific example: Christmas china. The idea of having special plates, bowls, cups, glasses to pull out for December is suddenly oddly appealing to me (although come January - November decidedly less so!). Bringing myself back to reality I remember that i have wedding china I've never used (and don't have a safe place to store so it remains in its box in the utility room). And I don't have people over to eat with any regularity anyway, even around Christmas (THAT is something I could change in good conscience though).

I want to have good habits and attitudes to pass onto and model for Jane. Not being so obsessed with gadgets and clothes and possessions. But I am tempted to shop-shop-shop all the time, including for her.

Of course I can't not shop for her at all -- she is growing and developing and needs bigger clothes, more challenging toys, etc., many of which I can get at consignment shops and garage sales (although it's definitely easy for me to still go overboard). But I can certainly work harder to reign myself in.

In our pre-parenthood dreamland, we were determined to limit her toys, especially plastic. And like everyone else said -- our living room is overflowing with baskets of toys and books ... and we've even boxed up a good portion of her toys to swap out in May. So even there, in what seems like it should be a concrete "in-and-out" system, I fail.

And even as I'm confronted by my blatant consumerism I feel some comfort in buying gifts for others this season -- picking out presents, wrapping and shipping them -- oh the efficiency. Until I come across blog posts and books that feature people giving up gift giving to those they love in favor of helping the poor and needy -- either entirely or half for family and half for strangers.

What does gratitude look like? How can I do better -- not just at Christmas but all year -- at being grateful myself and instilling gratitude in my family? How do you fight the "want-more-stuff" monster?

Voyeurism and Reality Blogging

The idea that blogging is similar to reality TV keeps tumbling around in my head (and I'm fairly certain I've written about it before...or at least I meant to). So while I'm adamant against watching shows like "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" and "Real Housewives,"* I LOVE reading blogs that give me a peek into someone else's life.

From the twee blogger writing about style and fashion to the mommy blogger presenting a realistic look at life with a toddler to the healthy food blogger who mixes in stories about her family to the trying-to-be-funny but missing the mark honesty of a decidedly non-crunchy blogger (brags about feeding her kids Little Debbie snacks; the feeding probably isn't uncommon but the unabashed pride in doing so certainly is among what I read anyway).

In some cases I know more about these women's lives than I do about my sister's! (To be fair I definitely know what's up with my sister's life, but I don't know the level of detail that some bloggers provide.)

And rather than be annoyed and unsubscribe, I find that I revel in knowing more about these people ... and they become characters in my mind. Sometimes I want to talk about them -- and I do tell my husband about some of the more ridiculous things that come across my Google Reader.

So that brings me to me -- and how I am documenting my existence online. Do I reveal too much? Not enough? Am I presenting myself as merely a character, or do I allow some of my truth to be seen in the posts? Most (if not all) of my non-spam readers are people who know me in real life, which makes me approach blogging differently than I might otherwise.

My blog doesn't have any commercial value, so if I am trying to create a marketable character I'm not doing so well. If my blog is just a place to communicate with people who know me in an unobtrusive way (read if you want, don't if you don't), then I think I'm on track. I also really like this blog as a record for myself. I can go read older entries and remember exactly what it felt like to write those words and sometimes even where it was I was doing the writing.

How much do I love this face?!

But this isn't a completely safe place either. Anything I publish -- including pictures of Jane -- can be seen by anyone. Am I doing her a disservice by writing about her and using her picture and real name? Could it have longer lasting consequences? Do I deny myself the joy I get sharing about her? Or just do it in a more contained platform (should I Facebook more? be content with my weekly email?)? No pictures? Use a pseudonym for her? (Some people just say "Daughter" or "Baby" or initials, etc.)

While I am thinking about these things, I don't expect anything to change around here -- I'll still write infrequently and think of posts I want to write MUCH more frequently. I'll keep reading others' blogs and think "I can't believe she posted that!" in a judgy mcjudgerson way. And there's always November...

*I confess I watched some of "Miss Advised" this summer ... because I am a closet "cat lady."

Christmas Movies

Something I didn't mention in my TV watching confessions was how much I like to watch TERRIBLE Christmas/holiday movies.

ABC Family, Lifetime, Hallmark. Those would be my channels in years past -- I can't count how many of the lame-oh, eye rolling movies I've watched. They're so bad they're good, at least to me.

I remember a particularly good/bad one we watched at Shawn's Aunt Diannia's house -- Wilford Brimley suddenly grabbed his left arm and Diannia shouted "heart attack!" And sure enough, that's what he had. Shawn and I still sometimes shout it out randomly and crack up, years later.

Last year I watched many while Jane was still small and sleeping all the live long day. But this year I'm not sure if I'll watch any of them. I've seen ads in some of the magazines I read -- which I'm letting subscriptions lapse as I can stand it, because seriously -- so I've seen a few I would LIKE to see. I think there's one with TorI Spelling. I mean, come on! Donna Martin in a TV movie with a holiday twist?

But I'll make due with plenty of Christmas tunes and a particularly annoying Jingle Bells-playing monkey (a gift to Jane last year at her Indiahoma shower ... not that I'll name names).

Whatever the case playing with Jane is always better than any old movie...

Read: MWF Seeking BFF

MWF Seeking BFF: My Yearlong Search For A New Best Friend by Rachel Bertsche
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I checked out this memoir digitally, which I think is the best invention ever (or not, but I really like being able to do that ... I'm not one to crave zillions of digital files of books I'll never read again, can't sell or give away and never remember to try to loan out to someone who has the same device as me, etc.). I would even pay a couple bucks to rent books digitally -- maybe like Netflix for Novels & Nonfiction or something? I do have Amazon Prime and can borrow a book a month that way ... but the available titles are mostly self-published things plus the Hunger Games trilogy, which I've already read. Meh.

Anyway, the book itself is about the author's year-long quest to make friends in Chicago because all her friends live elsewhere.

There's a fair bit of friendship/relationship research information included but I didn't really like those parts of the book and enjoyed more just the straight up story of her year and how it went on her "girl dates."

I've never actively sought girl friends myself, even though I do need those types of relationships. Girl friends don't come easily to me, and I'm not a very social person by nature. (See November 2012 television posts!)

I wouldn't want to repeat the author's experiment -- she went on 52 FIRST girl dates in the year, meaning all her follow up meetings with women she met didn't count toward that goal. I can't imagine going out every week even with people I know, let along with a new person every week plus old pals. Yikes.(Oh yeah, and she was in her first year of marriage too ... I don't know how she managed to also work full time or sleep!)

But the book could inspire me to be friendlier, talk to people more and maybe invite someone to do something sometime. I definitely say yes to invitations a lot more than I would naturally because I know how important it is to be connected to people even if it's hard to establish those connections.

Overall I liked the book and the author has a blog: http://mwfseekingbff.com/ that I might start reading too.

View all my reviews