squish-able cuteness

how to be awesome

• set rice and water to boil, forget to turn down to simmer, do this twice
  
• leave your trash cans on the curb for at least 24 hours after they have been emptied
  
• never iron
  
• run out of toilet paper, curse, buy costco size and leave it in the family room for three days
  
• mac and cheese three times a week
  
• cut, organize and obsess over coupons, then let them expire 
  
• make a plan to eat less and move more, then immediately eat more and move less
  
• forget no less than 3 appointments each week
• reschedule those appointments and forget at least 2
• write yourself reminder emails and frequently send them to friends instead of yourself
• leave your cell phone everywhere and never know exactly where it is
• if you send birthday cards make sure they are very late or very very early
• stains and missing buttons
• weeds
• typos
• fat
• always forget at least one thing when leaving the house (so far, not one of the children)
• watch reality tv
• put at least eight holes in the wall to hang one picture
• never return phone calls

are you awesome?

i grew a flower!

yard work is killing us.  before we moved into our current home it was worked on for about 3 years.  the yard got very out of hand very fast.  we're trying to catch up.  

look!  i grew a flower!

and i love this little perrennial, i should have bought more.  the little pink flowers only come out when it's very hot outside.  then they squish back in when the sun goes down.  i think i'm going to film it and see how fast/slow it goes.

ew!

i made this for dinner the other night, kids loved to see it.  only one of them ate it but, he was delighted so i may do it again.  i think i'll call it hot ham water.  or hot dog octopi.  

note:  as you may already know boiling hot dogs will make your house stink for 3 days, open a window before you start...

tiny 007s

the boys were playing with toy binoculars and i had a camera so i decided to try a photo through the binoculars... and voila- two james bonds!

flowers!

last week was kind of crap.  it's been happening a lot lately, i'm trying to keep things to myself.  i've found when you try to discuss problems with people (just to vent) they generally tell you to think positive!  that kind of makes me want to smack them because seriously- you think i haven't thought of that?

anyhoo, ethan brought me flowers.  3 times.  i made a lovely arrangement with them and so far it's lasted 10 days!  

if you needed/received flowers lately and need to vent give me a call.  i won't tell you to brighten up, i'll just tell you "that sucks *$&#, i'm sorry.  let's eat ice cream."

Trouble me, disturb me with all your cares and your worries. 

Trouble me on the days when you feel spent. 

Why let your shoulders bend underneath this burden 

when my back is sturdy and strong? 

Trouble me.

Speak to me, don't mislead me, 

the calm I feel means a storm is swelling; 

there's no telling where it starts or how it ends. 

Speak to me, why are you building 

this thick brick wall to defend me 

when your silence is my greatest fear? 

Why let your shoulders bend underneath this burden 

when my back is sturdy and strong? 

Speak to me.

Let me have a look inside these eyes while I'm learning. 

Please don't hide them just because of tears. 

Let me send you off to sleep with a 

"There, there, now stop your turning and tossing." 

Let me know where the hurt is and how to heal.

Spare me? 

Don't spare me anything troubling. 

Trouble me, disturb me 

with all your cares and you worries. 

Speak to me and let our words 

build a shelter from the storm. 

Lastly, let me know what I can mend. 

There's more, honestly, than my sweet friend, 

you can see. 

Trust is what I'm offering if you trouble me

-Natalie Merchant

NYC to the rescue

must share the awesomeness

my sis in law maeve posted about the very difficult task of finding a modest dress to attend a wedding, i immediately thought of alyssa.  i hope she doesn't mind me posting her reply because good grief, it's great.

Sorry I'm so slow to respond. I wanted to find some time to hunt around for some suggestions but work has been crazier than usual this week plus I'm hosting a bridal shower tomorrow so my spare time has been spent looking at recipes online. Any good light salad suggestions?  

Anyway, I have a few places I always look and generally have luck with www.nordstrom.com, www.bananarepublic.com,  and www.bluefly.com.  I really do not like going shopping in stores because it is hard to get a feel for a dress in a dressing room. Both of these stores have great and simple return policies and come with pre-addressed return labels. Which means you can order some options, try them on when you feel good and send back the ones you don't want. Also, both bluefly and nordstrom have some great tools to narrow down the selection of dresses.

 

So I don't know your budget or how fancy/casual the wedding is so I just found a variety. Here you go:

 

From Bluefly: This one is pretty bold and a little pricier but if you google bluefly coupons you can sometimes find an extra discount. And they mark dresses down for one day periods at a time if you are on their mailing list they will tell you about that. This one might be a little sheer but could work for the right occasion. Another Nanette Lapore. This one is interesting but may be more of a work dress. This one intrigues me for some reason. This one is nice. The sort of drop waist on this might be weird but the color is great. This one is pricey but very unique pattern and a flattering cut.

 

From Nordstrom: I think this one is great, I love the color. This one is pretty sophisticated if the wedding is really fancy but the color is kind of dark for summer. This could be fun, it comes in a few colors but I like Cactus. If you are feeling bold, here is a bright red one I like. I may want to get married in thisone but that is clearly not the current exercise. I'm just a little obsessed with shutter pleats. There are lots of shutter pleat dresses but I assume they are a little too black tie for what you are looking for.

 

Found this dress on sale at Ralph Lauren, it could work by pinning or stiching the low v-neck up - something I've become really good at despite my lack of sewing skills.

 

From Banana: this is a great dress that could be livened up with some colorful shoes. I like  this one and think it could be amazing but it may be a bit tricky so you will need to try it on to figure out if the front is going to gape open when you sit or walk - sometimes those can be tacked down as well.  This one is pretty but the color is a bit bland to me. Satin is tricky but this could be great - especially since it is on sale. Here is one more Banana dress on sale - the brown would need to be livened up with some color I think for a wedding.

 

I also found this dress from J Crew which I think is pretty and very similar to something I own.

 

BCBG dresses are 15% off this weekend and I like this brightly colored one.

 

I kind of think of Coldwater Creek for the older 40/50 crowd but this is great dress.

 

If you can wear yellow, I think this is really pretty and bright - from Antrhopologie. Here is a tricky one, these sleeves may or may not work, you would have to try it on. 

 

I realize you aren't supposed to wear black or white to a wedding but this black AND white dress seems like it would be fine. Especially if you wore some bright jewelry/heels.

 

That may be a bit of overkill for you but it was a great way for me to entertain myself on a mostly dull conference call this morning. Good luck and let me know what you decide to wear!

it IS a mad mad mad mad world

have you seen this movie?  if not, you really should give it a chance.  IF you like the old timey movies.  it's hilarious and everyone who was anyone at the time is in it. 

my favorite line...

J. Algernon Hawthorne: I must say that if I had the grievous misfortune to be a citizen of this benighted country, I should be the most hesitant of offering any criticism whatever of any other.

J. Russell Finch: Wait a minute, are you knocking this country? Are you saying something against America?

J. Algernon Hawthorne: Against it? I should be positively astounded to hear anything that could be said FOR it. Why the whole bloody place is the most unspeakable matriarchy in the whole history of civilization! Look at yourself! The way your wife and her strumpet of a mother push you through the hoop! As far as I can see, American men have been totally emasculated- they're like slaves! They die like flies from coronary thrombosis while their women sit under hairdryers eating chocolates & arranging for every 2nd Tuesday to be some sort of Mother's Day! And this infantile preoccupation with bosoms. In all time in this Godforsaken country, the one thing that has appalled me most of all this this prepostrous preoccupation with bosoms. Don't you realize they have become the dominant theme in American culture: in literature, advertising and all fields of entertainment and everything. I'll wager you anything you like that if American women stopped wearing brassieres, your whole national economy would collapse overnight.

wa-wee

people, behold the frog.  

2 year-old is entirely completely and embarrassingly attached to this thing.

new mamas, if you decide to give your child a special little toy, blanket or lovey make sure you BUY AT LEAST THREE OF THEM.

i would pay almost any amount of money for a backup wa-wee (froggie)!

alison, thank you for the perfect photo.

a poem

After an Absence

by Linda Pastan 

After an absence that was no one's fault
we are shy with each other,
and our words seem younger than we are,
as if we must return to the time we met
and work ourselves back to the present,
the way you never read a story
from the place you stopped
but always start each book all over again.
Perhaps we should have stayed
tied like mountain climbers
by the safe cord of the phone,
its dial our own small prayer wheel,
our voices less ghostly across the miles,
less awkward than they are now.
I had forgotten the grey in your curls,
that splash of winter over your face,
remembering the younger man
you used to be.

And I feel myself turn old and ordinary,
having to think again of food for supper,
the animals to be tended, the whole riptide
of daily life hidden but perilous
pulling both of us under so fast.
I have dreamed of our bed
as if it were a shore where we would be washed up,
not this striped mattress
we must cover with sheets. I had forgotten
all the old business between us,
like mail unanswered so long that silence
becomes eloquent, a message of its own.
I had even forgotten how married love
is a territory more mysterious
the more it is explored, like one of those terrains
you read about, a garden in the desert
where you stoop to drink, never knowing
if your mouth will fill with water or sand.