Made up.

I have never felt pretty. It’s not a fishing for compliments thing or a “no one ever told me I was pretty” thing. I’ve just never really had that kind of confidence. I don’t feel comfortable without make up. I wish I had known how to do make up before about this year, because I’ve been wearing it since high school but it has always been slap dash: at least I’m wearing lipstick and blush.

The conundrum is that I also worry that make up makes me look like I’m trying too hard. I work in a semi-casual setting most of the time, but occasionally (like today) I have an out-of-office meeting which means dress clothes, and definitely the full face of makeup. But then on my drive in, I feel like I’m wearing too much make up. Foundation, eye makeup, blush, mascara, eyebrows filled, lipstick … I do my makeup in a natural look nearly always, but …

Eh, there’s always a but. But I don’t feel good without it. But I feel stupid for needing it. My husband likes me with or without, I know that. But I just don’t feel pretty.

This post felt so much more eloquent this morning in my head.

At least I make cute kids. 

Escape from Planet Home.

I’m sitting here wondering what to write that doesn’t feel so whiny, and I just don’t have it. So I apologize.

Henry got up again in the middle of the night last night, after nearly a week of no wake-ups. We thought we had it, we started giving him his allergy meds regularly and thought maybe it was just his sinuses that were waking him up and now that we had that down, we’d have a three year old that sleeps through the night (which he pretty much hasn’t done for four to six months). Thankfully, I guess, these days with the allergy meds it’s not a long wake up – he taps me on the shoulder, Daddy gets up and takes him back to bed and that is that. But nearly a week of no wake ups, and now again the wake ups.

Then this morning he crawled into bed with me at 5:29am, and I was awake anyhow because I fell asleep last night at 8:30 (!!!) and I told him to go potty, and he said he did have to. This happened three times, and then at 6:25am I hear yelling from the bedroom because he peed all over the floor, including several toys. Frustration. Just. Frustration.

I escaped to work. Oh! And Spencer has a dentist appointment today. So. Awesome.

But anyhow, here’s something I just found which really is kind of awesome: 

No boil-over disks

These are the ones I bought, through my son’s fundraiser, but there are several kinds on the internet. No boil-over disks. They are little ceramic disks that go in the bottom of the pot and prevent your pasta water from boiling over! I’ve used them a number of times over the last two weeks, and only once did my water boil over – when I put way too much in.

The Sound of Silence (and West Wing)

Mondays. Everyone hates, Mondays and for the mornings, sure, I agree. But at 4pm-ish, I leave work, head home and enter:

An Empty House.

It used to be Tuesdays, and for awhile it was Fridays. Now since school gets out early on Mondays, that is when my children spend the day (or part of the day) with my in-laws. They get to play, and ride bikes, swim and spend time with their grandparents and I get two hours (sometimes more) of quiet in my house.

I can do what I want and watch what I want. Most of the time that means making dinner at my own pace while drinking a glass of wine, watching a few hours of West Wing, folding a couple loads of laundry. Sometimes that means I sit and mess around on the internet and do nothing for a couple hours. Nobody looks at me wrong if the laundry is still there when they get home. No one minds if dinner is leftovers. I get to cook because I like to cook, for once, and I get to do the laundry simply because I hate to see the pile on the couch. I can blog, or read blogs, or just talk to my friends on twitter without feeling like I'm neglecting my family.

What I'm saying is, Mondays rock.

(BTW, last night I made leftovers manicotti: chicken, spinach, garlic, mushrooms, tomato, cream cheese, and cheddar cheese all stuffed into manicotti pasta with vodka sauce and the last couple slices of mozz and cheddar cheese baked on top. Sometimes I really love to cook)

(and some day I'll get through West Wing)



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Butter Beer, friends, and roller coasters - what's not to love?

Yesterday I phoned it in on the blogging – quite literally (and by the real definition of literally, not that stupid updated opposite definition.) By which I mean that I uploaded a photo to blogger and called it a day. It was warranted, it was butter beer! That, by the way, is the sweetest thing I have ever drunk in my entire life. Delicious, yes, but I think once is enough for a lifetime.

I met up with a lovely internet friend and her entire family at Universal Studios for a day of fun and Harry Potter. I was struck with horrible mommy guilt about not taking Spencer, but I rectified it by buying them candy and tshirts and spending money we don’t usually spend at Disney (no, you can’t buy something at the gift shop! We’re here every weekend!) They went with daddy to Magic Kingdom while I was out gallivanting. I took relatively no photos and no GOOD photos (and not a single one with Tara!) but it was a good time. We went to both Universal parks, I rode a heck of a lot of roller coasters (my favorite thing) with Tara’s family members because she doesn’t ride them. The girls were darling and it was just a good day. I’m so glad I went.

(this is every photo I took)

I left around closing time and ended up meeting C and the kids for dinner in Orlando before making the long drive home. Spencer rode with me and we talked all the way until exit 17 when he said “I need no more talking, Mommy” and wouldn’t let me listen to music with words so he could zonk out. I gave it five minutes before turning on something a little livelier to get myself home.

Butter beer for all!

Recipe: Brussel Sprout and Gouda mac and cheese

So last week I was looking for things for my meal plan, and Jennie linked a Brussel sprout mac and cheese that she was making. It sounded promising, but there were a couple things I was concerned about so I figured for my family, I would make a few changes. I ended up making so many changes I don't think it was anything like the original so I think I can officially say it's my own recipe at this point.

It also occurred to me (and it was requested) that perhaps I post something about this "recipe". The only problem is that I didn't do it ahead of time, so I'm going to do my best. Please feel free to ignore me completely. This is just how I did it. Also, I shaved the Brussel sprouts and shredded the cheese the night before because I only had about 45 minutes to cook, and I used 3 pans so I could cook all of it at the same time.

Ingredients:

4 slices of bacon, chopped (raw)
1/4 yellow onion, sliced very thin
1 lb brussel sprouts, shaved on a mandoline
12 oz Gouda, shredded
1 cup parmesan cheese, separated - 3/4 cup and 1/4 cup
1 large clove of garlic, minced
2 tbs butter
2 tbs flour
1 can evaporated milk
1 can worth regular milk (I use skim, use what you like)
1 tsp ground mustard
1 lb pasta (I used corkscrew)
a handful of panko breadcrumbs (I don't know how much, it was whatever I had)

If you have a toaster oven, you will want to have available a pan which will fit in it for broiling. If you don't, preheat your oven for 400 degrees (ish).

In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil and cook pasta as directed, al dente or however you like it. Drain and return to the pot.

In a large pan, sauté the onions and bacon until fully cooked. Add the brussel sprouts and cook down until, well, well cooked.

In a medium sauce pan, melt butter and cook mince garlic for one minute. Add flour and mustard. Cook for a minute to cook the flour (making a roux). Add milks and heat to a boil, stirring often. It will not thicken as much as you would think but cook for about 5 minutes, stirring to make sure the bottom doesn't scald. Take off the heat and add all the gouda and 3/4 cup of parmesan, stir until fully melted.

Now add the Brussel Sprout mix to the pasta and mix fully until incorporated. Then add the cheese sauce, and again stir until fully incorporated. Dump mixture into pan and make the top flat. Mix panko crumbs with the rest of the parmesan and sprinkle on top of the mac and cheese.

Broil until the top is brown. The rest is already fully cooked so you don't have to worry about cooking through.

Enjoy!

(I hope this is a good enough recipe, it's the best I could do after the fact. But this was absolutely delicious, I swear. Make your husband do the dishes since we just used every pan you have (or maybe wash all the stovetop pans while it's cooking in the oven, which is what I did).


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Friday bits and pieces

1) Now that I am blogging so much and reading so many blogs (NanoBloMo means if you don’t read blogs in your sleep that you wake up to 21 in your feed eight hours later), I’m also trying to leave more comments. I don’t comment on every single blog, mostly because sometimes the commenting fails (I hate you, Discus) but I know that I love comments so I’m trying to be better about commenting on others.

Also, I relaxed the commenting on this blog it its max relaxation. It’s all, “it’s cool, man”. I even allow anonymous comments for ease, but it would be awesome that if that’s the way you have to go that you “sign” your comment like your grandparents sign comments on your Facebook. Anything that looks like trolling or spam is likely to be deleted.

2) The parent-teacher conference last night was great. Spencer is basically working through a first grade level in all subjects except listening comprehension (listening, no kidding). We talked about ways to challenge him and she’s going to give him paper with more lines on it (who knew they change the lines on paper for kids depending on how much they want them to write?) And also there’s a girl that is about the same level as he is, so they are in their own little reading group. They are already reading the hardest books kindergarten has to offer, so I’m assuming that once they get through those they will get some books from the higher grades for them.

There is a gifted program, but apparently the IQ parameters for kindergarten are wonky in the public school system and it’s very difficult to get in for K, much easier in first grade. I don’t care as long as he’s being properly challenged in his class, so we’ll keep an eye on that. I really like his teacher, and I do think it’s all about the teacher.

3) After the conference we picked up the kids and went back to the school for the book fair. Spencer ended up choosing a book about volcanoes and one about sharks, and I made the executive decision to get a Phineas and Ferb long book to read to them as well (MOM THERE ARE NO PICTURES IN THIS!). S really is interested in non-fiction – this morning he came to me with a book about the human body and was telling me (in his made up way) how pee is made before in leaves the body.

4) I’m super excited about this weekend. We’ve decided to go out for breakfast tomorrow to one of the best local places. Best. I think after that we are going to do some yard work, and then my company is having a “picnic” at a farm not too far from us. Fun for all ages! And THEN. Sunday I’m meeting an internet friend at Universal Studios to see the Harry Potter stuff for the first time. It’s been there for what, six years? Yeah, haven’t been there in at least eight. And I get to see Tara! My family is going to Magic Kingdom, because we still don’t want to spend the money for all of us to go to Universal when there are so many things they can’t ride yet.

5) I’m thinking about getting Spencer a Kindle Fire for Christmas. I want him to have more opportunity to read, but also to have a tablet for apps that is on a supported platform that won’t be obsolete in six months. I also like that since it’s mainstream, it is easier to find accessories like cases, which is impossible for C’s tablet. We usually get Henry something comparable so they don’t fight, but I don’t want to buy two Kindle Fires. Any ideas? I had thought C would want a new tablet and we could hand down his, but now he’s decided he doesn’t want to do that.