Another 25...

My stomach is growling at the moment, so apparently this will be The Food Edition of 25 Things About Me.

26. If I am cooking a meal, I don't want any help. If I want help, I will let you know. Otherwise, please stay out of my way relax and have a glass of wine.
27. It irritates me TO NO END when people come into my cooking space and start stirring things or movin' stuff around.
28. I bought a basil plant at Trader Joe's this summer and it is STILL alive. A little sparse, but still green and perky.
29. This is the first year I've been able to keep a basil plant alive for more than a week.
30. I have to breathe deeply and keep telling myself that it's ok if I buy rolls for Thanksgiving tomrorow.
31. I have to breathe deeply and keep telling myself that it's ok if I don't make a dessert for Thanksgiving tomorrow.
32. I find it virtually impossible to show up and just eat at any event where there's food; I must take multiple things to share.
33. I am confounded by women who don't cook.
34. I think I might have been Italian in a previous life, considering my obsession love of food.
35. My mom has always made homemade cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning.
36. And we always scope out and try to tag the biggest one for ourselves.
37. When I was a kid, we always got a can of Blue Diamond Smokehouse almonds in our stocking at Christmas.
38. We'd try to make them last by just eating a few, but they always ended up gone by the end of the day.
39. I have an awesome recipe for Rosemary Roasted Cashews that is to die for. (Courtesy of The Barefoot Contessa.)
40. If I must have chocolate, I prefer it to be dark.
41. With nuts and caramel in it.
42. I craved dark beer when I was pregnant with my son.
43. I'd never drank dark beer before that but now it's my favorite.
44. Contrary to the how the last two items sound, I did not actually drink dark beer while I was pregnant with my son.
45. Ok, so I did sneak a sip off of my husband's beer once or twice.
46. My son is perfectly normal healthy and does not have Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.
47. I always worry that there won't be enough food at get-togethers and holidays.
48. Maybe I should make a dessert for tomorrow. Just in case.
49. And get some appetizers.
50. I think I need a beer. Right now.

Updated To Do List

I've been feeling rather overwhelmed with all that I have to do in the coming weeks and seeing things crossed off my To Do list helps boost my morale immensely. I've already given myself a "Get out of jail free" card for my usual holiday doings, which makes me a little sad because I really enjoy the holidays and all the preparations and baking and cooking I usually do. But this year, between trying to finish the interior of our house and get it ready to move into, along with packing and actually moving, buying furniture, school transitions, Christmas shopping & wrapping, work, etc. I just have too much to do to indulge my Martha Stewart complex and make my English Toffee, homemade caramels and other Christmas goodies. I will however, still be attempting to write my annual holiday newsletter and send out my 60+ Christmas cards. Although they may actually be New Years' cards instead.

The state of my house has gone drastically downhill which further adds to my sense of being overwhelmed. I can't think clearly when the laundry is threatening to avalanche, or I can't walk across the kitchen floor barefoot for fear of my skin sticking to it and being ripped off, or my bathroom sink and/or toilet start to have vegetation growing out of it. All of these things just make me feel even more out of control. And while Hubby has given me permission to "slack off" for a while, it's just not that easy. I can't turn off my brain and my need sense of order (boy, don't I wish!). It's all just drives me deeper into crazy so instead I end up working myself into a lather, both from the rapid speed at which I fly around trying to DO! IT! ALL! and the frustration that I'm getting no help even though I've voiced my frustration and need for help. Hello? Is this thing on??

~ Make dentist appointment for kids for January.
~ Probably should make a dentist for myself and hubby too.
~ Call Sam's new school to get him on their roster & to try to meet his teacher and get a tour.
~ Order carpet for house; remember to change color choice! I tried to do this the other day and the gal I needed to talk to wasn't there.
~ Return library books.
~ Finish painting the stripe in Sam's room. I did part of this over the weekend, but still need to finish it up.
~ Paint master bathroom.
~ Paint master bedroom.
~ Order or buy Zoe some long sleeved shirts/sweaters.
~ Make vet appointment for Chewie.
~ Mail hair to Locks of Love
~ Mail book for Paperbackswap
~ Get flu shot
~ Clean out kids' closets/dressers for outgrown stuff.
~ Take kids' clothes to consignment store.
~ Balance checkbook & pay bills.
~ Figure out Thanksgiving plans and what I need to cook/bake. Rolls, deviled eggs, cornbread stuffing, cranberry sauce and a dessert. I may even cheat and buy rolls!

My father-in-law gave me a wise piece of advice though. He said the only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time. Sage advice, but damn I'm gettin' full.

He Huffed & He Puffed...

...and he blew the (out)house down.

Flashback Friday

Hey! It's Friday! That means two things: PAYDAY and time for a Flashback.

Two years ago, I had the pleasure of attending the baby shower of one of my very best friends. While any baby shower is exciting and special, this one was especially so. For the baby we were celebrating was SO very wanted, had been wanted for a very long time before he ever became a reality; a baby that truly was a dream come true. To this day, when I remember the day we were told that this dream was becoming a reality, I still get teary. Michelle will tell you what a big spaz I was about the whole thing. Every. time. I. saw. her.

Anyway, at the shower, we went around the room sharing how we knew the Mother-to-be. So it came to my turn, and I told Michelle that she stood to make some money that day because I'd made a bet with myself that I wouldn't cry and if I did, I'd pay her $10. So I started sharing how I knew her, and how excited I was about this baby...and damnit, I was crying. Of course, she was laughing at me, as any good friend would do, as I shamefully handed over the $10. But they were happy tears and I refuse to apologize for them.

Happy Friday!

Proof

Yesterday, I picked up Sam from school and upon climbing into the van, my sweet son presented me with a handmade card. I confess, I got a bit teary as I read it.

The boy has obviously been listening and knows me pretty well. "My mom likes me. My mom likes red. My mom likes the sun." All very true.

I was so touched that he remembered these things about me that at first I didn't see my favorite one of all:

Thanks buddy. You'll never know how much this means to me.

Anyone know where I can get this laminated?

Box House - Wordless Wednesday

What happens when you get new kitchen cabinets and end up with lots of big boxes?

Daddy makes you an enormous box house to play in!

It's Wordless Wednesday!

Tidbits

There is much wailing and gnashing of teeth in our house right now. Zoë, an avid lover of her "poke" (aka pacifier) has been parted from it. I couldn't find it yesterday before going to work, and Hubby couldn't find it last night so put her to bed without it for the first time EVER. Today, she randomly starts crying "I want my poke. I need my pokey! I need you to find it Mama!" She's 3 years old now and it's time for it to go bye-bye. But she's way more attached to it than Sam was and is so pathetically sad to not have it.

psst...I have a secret. I actually found one of her pokes on the floor in Sam's room this morning. And promptly hid it in my underwear drawer. But I'm still telling her it's lost. Mean? Maybe a little, but it's time. She's still got her other "loveys" (aka comfort items) so she's not lost everything that's near and dear to her heart.

*************************

In other exciting news, I have an eye infection. My right eye has been kind of gummy and gooey the last couple morning, but I just chalked it up to a good night's sleep (ha!) or allergies. But yesterday my eye actually hurt so I called my mom, who is the office manager of an eye dr's clinic, and she said "You doofus. You probably have an eye infection." So she got me in to see one of the doctors who shone (shined?) a bright light in my eyes, oogled my irises from up close, flipped my eyelid inside out and declared "You have an eye infection. In both eyes." So I got some antibiotic eyedrops and have been banned from wearing my contacts for a week. SEVEN WHOLE DAYS of four-eyesedness. I HATE wearing glasses, which is why I got contacts at the age of 13. I'm not happy about this, even though I do look kinda cute in my glasses. I just hate having something on my face and having my vision limited and only in focus directly in front of me. It's icky.

************************

The best news of the day, however, is that my parents' break ground for their house today!! My mom has been extremely hesitant about building this house, even though it truly is in her best interest (and the only way she'll ever be able to retire), but my dad is forging ahead. And he thinks that, barring any extreme weather and delays, they could have it done by April. They're not going to be doing any of the work themselves and are checking into have their walls pre-made so that the carpenter just has to stand them up and nail them together. That'd save a bunch of time for sure. Anyway, I am thrilled beyond words that all of us living out there together, on our very own little compound, is going to be a reality. As much of a blessing as it is to have our house almost complete, I would always feel like something was missing if we were out there alone. It's always been our dream (mine & my dad's) to live out there, near each other, sharing a garden and fruit trees, the joys and rewards of our labors. We've got all kinds of plans and dreams cooked up and it looks like we'll finally be able to start making those happen.

To Do

Ok, so I don't have the brain power to write an entertaining, witty post but I want to honor my "commitment" to posting every day (hardee har har) for NaBloPoMo (yes, I know I missed a day the other day). So therefore you, my faithful readers, get a peek at my "To Do" list. Thrilling, I know.

~ Make dentist appointment for kids for January.

~ Probably should make a dentist for myself and hubby too.

~ Call Sam's new school to get him on their roster & to try to meet his teacher and get a tour.

~ Order carpet for house; remember to change color choice!

~ Return library books.

~ Finish painting the stripe in Sam's room.

~ Paint master bathroom.

~ Paint master bedroom.

~ Order or buy Zoe some long sleeved shirts/sweaters.

~ Make vet appointment for Chewie.

~ Mail hair to Locks of Love

~ Mail book for Paperbackswap

~ Get flu shot

~ Clean out kids' closets/dressers for outgrown stuff.

~ Take kids' clothes to consignment store.

~ Balance checkbook & pay bills.

~ Figure out Thanksgiving plans and what I need to cook/bake.

~ Call Dr. and get prescription for HIGH DOSES OF XANAX.


Help me.

Arrival

I became an auntie again today.

It's an old schtick to me really. I first gained this title in 1986, when I was a mere 14 years old. I again was blessed in 1992, then 1994 and again 1997. I got three nephews in succession, then finally a niece. I remember all their birthdays and can tell you how much each one weighed.

Today, a new nephew joined the family. Kieran Roderick finally made his grand entrance at 6:41pm, weighing in at 7lbs even and standing 20" tall.

I've spent the evening waiting for him at the hospital, which would have been fine had it been the hospital he was actually born at. But no, I'm at my hospital, the one I work at, 90 miles away from him. This? Is killing me. Killing me dead.

For there's nothing I like better than brand new, straight from heaven, babies. I love their pruney pink skin, their fresh & powdery smell, their confused and startled movements. I love the feel of their feather-light weight in my arms and hearing their tiny sounds. (sigh...) I just love babies and have since I was a very young girl.

So this small boy that has just arrived already has a place in my heart even though I've only seen his sweet little face in a fuzzy black & white cell-phone picture. I can't wait to get my hands on him and kiss those sweet peach-fuzz cheeks.

Kieran, Auntie Kate loves you and will always have cookies when you come over. Welcome to the family sweet one!

Somewhat Shaken

I had an interesting experience today. I still don't quite know what to make of it.

Zoë and I did some shopping today at Costco and since it was lunchtime when we finished, I grabbed a hotdog for us to share. We found an empty table, sat down and proceeded to eat. At the table to our left there was an older man sitting there, leaning back against the table. He was just sitting there and didn't have any food or purchases with him. I looked over to see him handing a little girl a balloon animal. When he saw us looking his way, he looked at Zoë and asked "Would she like one?". Zoë nodded her head shyly and he proceeded to pull a balloon out of his coat pocket and quickly make her a purple teddy bear. We thanked him and smiled, with him smiling back with a gleam in his eye, then we finished our lunch. I couldn't help but think that the man reminded me of my favorite uncle who passed away two and a half years ago. Because he was sitting alone at the table with no food, a couple came along and asked if they could share his table, to which he replied, "Of course. I'm just waiting for my wife." Since we were done eating, I stood up and said "We were just leaving. You can have our's if you like." We gathered our garbage and went over to our shopping cart, which was about five feet away. I turned back towards the man to smile and say thanks again, still thinking how much he reminded me of my uncle.

And he was gone. As in, vanished.

I couldn't believe my eyes and actually blinked rather purposefully several times, not believing what I wasn't seeing. I turned in a full circle, scanning the entire area for the man, who couldn't have gone far in the 30 seconds that had passed. He wasn't near the checkouts, he hadn't gone up to the food counter, he wasn't heading for the exit. He was nowhere. Even as I frantically searched for him, a little voice in my head said "You're not going to find him Kate."

I'm still not really sure what to make of it. Was it my beloved Uncle's spirit? Or a weird coincidence? I don't really know. But today I was reminded of how much I loved him, how much I miss him and his bear hugs, and how anything is possible.

Delivery

Guess what arrived today??

CABINETS!

The pictures don't do the kitchen ones justice - they're GORGEOUS. I'm so excited. The cabinets you see there in the middle of the room? Ya, that's my enormous island. That sucker is EIGHT FEET LONG, which I knew it would be, but to see it and not just refer to "my 8-foot island"...wow. It's gonna be big. No wonder the piece of rock I want to put on top of it is so danged expensive! One small snafu is that the cabinet that holds my double ovens is drastically too small. The opening is about 5.5" too short vertically and needs to be about 5" wider, too. Josh confirmed that he sent the right information to the cabinet guy so it's their mistake. Which hopefully will be rectified SOON and at no cost.

Edited to add: My "editor" informed me that the oven opening is 15 inches too small, not five. Thanks honey!

In painting news, I still have a ways to go but am hoping to tackle it again tomorrow for several hours. The great news is that my attempt at cleaning up the stripe in Sam's room was successful! When I'd originally painted, the orange and the blue bled underneath the tape so when I peeled it off, the white wasn't a crisply defined stripe, but had fuzzy edges. After a tip from a painter, I outlined the white stripe with tape, smeared caulking over the edges, then painted the white. The caulking sealed the tape to the wall so that the paint wouldn't bleed down under the tape. Here's how it turned out:

A little bit of extra work, but well worth it. It looks pretty sharp. I only did one wall to test my technique, so now I need to do the rest of the room.

It's really starting to come together, although there are still a ton of things to do. We should be moving in before Christmas although I sometimes wonder how that would be possible with all that's left to do.

No Wonder

I've finally come to terms with my haircut and am even starting to like it. I've gotten lots of compliments on it and the initial shock has worn off.

Because I've made my peace, I decided this morning that I'm ready to send off my hair to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths. I figured I better check to make sure I had the prerequisite 8" of hair so I went and fetched my detached pony tails and my measuring tape. And I'll be damned.

The Hacker cut off WAY more than 8".

As you can see from Exhibit A above, I'm even being generous in my measuring, positioning the tape at the top of the rubberband, and not the hair. Stretched out, the top ponytail measures almost 12" (!@?!!) and the bottom is definitely 10". To say I am a little pissed right now is quite possibly the understatement of the year. No farking wonder I was so upset about my haircut! I specifically told her to cut 8" and NO MORE. I'm not sure what Neaderthal measuring stick she was using, but IT. WAS. WRONG.

She just lost herself a client.

BUT. Because I've ended up with longer ponytails than I wanted, I now meet the requirements for Locks of Love (which was 10" of hair and my original plan). So at least something good has come out of this.

Sharing the Love

One of my favorite bloggers posted a little tidbit the other day about a project called Operation Christmas Child. It's a project designed to give underpriveleged kids a surprise at Christmas. You can read about it more here. Basically, you pack a shoe-box full of goodies, include $7 to cover shipping costs, then drop it off at a designated location. Cool, huh?

I've been talking with my kids alot about how blessed we already are, how we truly don't need a bunch of new toys (aka every single thing they see) even if we do want them; how there are so many kids in our own country that won't wake up on Christmas morning with presents under the tree and how we can help make their Christmas a happy one.

I remember as a kid my church youth group distributed boxes of food to needy families at Thanksgiving one year. I must have been about 9 or 10 years old but I very clearly remember the surprise and sheer joy on the family's faces when we knocked on their door with a box of food. It was such an amazing feeling to bring such happiness, and make such a difference, to a family with such a simple act as sharing food. I want my kids to have that same memory, even though we will never see the faces of the ones receiving our gifts. It doesn't matter. It still will feel good.

Boxes need to be dropped off November 17-24th so this week my kids and I will be putting together at least one box to donate. Money isn't so tight that we can't brighten a little one's Christmas morning. And it never will be.

Fall Fun

I went browsing thru old pictures trying to find something to post about tonight and came across these from November 2006. Sam and Daddy were raking leaves in the backyard and having a blast.


They're some of my favorite pictures because even though they aren't technically great shots, they so totally capture the beauty and joy of being a kid.

And the more often I can see this kind of face...

...the more I'm reminded how blessed I am.

100 Things About Me - Part I

Tonight I'm stumped as to what to write for my daily blog, having foolishly committed myself to NaBloPoMo. This does not bode well for the rest of the month seeing as it's only the 8th day of the month. In an effort to remain true to my commitment, I figured I would do the ol' "100 Things About Me", except that my belly is way too full of carne asada tacos right now to think of 100 things about myself. So tonight you'll get 25. And then, if I get stumped again, I'll have three other installments to bore you with share.

So, without further ado, here are 25 random facts about moi:

1. I am the youngest of three girls; my sisters are 7 and 9 years older than me.
2. Their names also start with the letter "K".
3. We couldn't be any more different if we were born on different planets. I often feel like we were.
4. I grew up in the Seventh-Day Adventist church and went to private schools from 2nd grade through high school.
5. I haven't been to church regularly since I was a teenager.
6. I still have many of the beliefs I grew up with although I question many others.
7. I will never cram religion down anybody's throat or force my beliefs on them.
8. I don't believe in soulmates.
9. Sometimes I think I want a 3rd baby.
10. I wish I had more adventure in my life.
11. I've been to 27 of the 50 states.
12. I've driven cross-country twice, both times with my Dad.
13. I'm DYING to visit Italy & Greece but fear if I go that I will never come back.
14. I have lived with cats my entire 37 years except for about 18 months.
15. I would love to go to culinary school, but only for my own enjoyment and benefit, not to make it a career.
16. I probably have 50 books on my "Want to Read" list.
17. I am fascinated by the Amish and am a bit envious of their simple, uncomplicated lifestyles.
18. I am also fascinated by, and a bit envious of, large families like Jon & Kate Gosselin and The Duggars.
19. I apparently am insane and a throwback to a previous century.
20. I'm not sure I believe in past lives, but if I did, I'm pretty sure I was a pioneer woman who came west in a covered wagon.
21. I still miss my big, black Chevy Silverado Z71 extended cab truck that my husband made me trade in three years ago for a {gag!} minivan.
22. While I don't believe in ghosts and spirits, I don't discount others' beliefs and experiences with them. I think the ghosts and/or spirits only reveal themselves to believers.
23. Every time a plane flies over a little too low, I look up in fear.
24. This did not start after 9/11 but after an Air Force cargo plane almost landed on my high school during my 7am class in 1989.
25. I make an awesome Thai Chicken pizza.

K, so there you have it. Twenty-five useless bits of information about me. I'm sure I'll throw more at you in the coming weeks, but first I have to do some soul-searching to come up with 75 more things I feel comfortable enough to share.

Before & After

Ok, I think I've whined & cried about my hair long enough and can face the pictures. So here you go.

Before:

It was alot of hair. And now it's gone.

After:

:

Other than the length, my biggest complaint is with the back. When The Hacker cut it, she separated it into two ponytails but not in the way you'd think. Instead of doing two sections, parting it down the middle like one might think, she separated it horizontally so as to cut 8" off the long part and then 8" off of the layers. Makes sense but it's left me with an absolute shelf in the back of my head. I'm not crazy about it, to be honest. But whatever. There's not much on my head right now that I am crazy about.

Except that, in an effort to somewhat placate myself, I colored my hair this morning (something I haven't done in a long time due to the sheer volume of hair I had). The pictures don't show much of a difference because of the crappy lighting, but it's a darker, richer brown. Think melted chocolate. I'm happy with that at least. Maybe I should have cut my hair myself too. Hurrrumph.

The Long & Short of It

I did something today on a whim. Although I've been contemplating and planning on doing it for quite awhile, the action I finally took today was completely spur-of-the-moment. I was bored. And things didn't turn out the way I'd hoped. The way I envisioned when I was imagining even doing it.

Right now I am alternately very sad and slightly mad.

I realize that, in the grand scheme of things, it's not a big deal. It could be worse. What I did was for the right reasons and for a great cause. But right now I'm not happy I did it. I'm regretting it, even though it was a selfless thing I chose to do. Part of me is happy because I know others will benefit, but right now I'm feeling regret.

It's silly I know, and probably largely wrapped up in vanity. But it's how I feel right now.

I don't expect the feeling will last, thankfully.

What is this awful thing I've done, you ask?







I cut off my hair today.

See? I told you it wasn't some earth-shattering act. But I don't like the results. It's way shorter than I wanted....WAY. My only consolation is that it will grow again.

I have two very lovely, long ponytails that I will be sending off to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths program. In partnership with the American Cancer Society, they make and distribute free wigs to women dealing with cancer and its effects. The sadness I feel right now at having cut off so much hair is nothing compared to how it must feel to lose all your hair, let alone deal with cancer. I know this. I know I sound silly and petty and selfish.

I'll get over it. Just give me a minute.

Wordless Wednesday - Naptime

It's Wordless Wednesday!

Shhhh. It's naptime.

A New Day

Halloween

Wish I'd gotten these pumpkins in focus! They were so cute.

Before the looting trick-or-treating began, Darth Vader and the Snow Princess posed for a few pictures.

The Snow Princess was tuning up her "I'm so adorable & sweet, so GIVE ME ALL YOUR CANDY!" smile.

Waiting oh-so-patiently for the door to open...

National Torture Month

What IS is about November that makes people want to commit to various forms of torture for an entire month?

A few years back, I stumbled upon an endeaver fondly known as NaNoWriMo, an abbreviation for National Novel Writing Month. The challenge is to write an entire 175-page novel (50,000 words) in one month's time. Why would anyone want to do this, you ask? Well, I suppose for the satisfaction of actually doing it. The emphasis is not on quality or thoroughness of thought; just the act of putting words on paper. If you are able to complete those 50,000 words by midnight November 30th, you can upload your novel for verification and then you are added to the Winner's Page on the website and get a certificate touting your accomplishment. And, as they say on the website, "Win or lose, you rock for even trying."

I don't know this for certain, but it seems other groups have sprung up with similar month-long goals, also using similar acronyms. (Is it an technically an acronym? Or some other -nym I'm thinking of??)

There's the ever-popular NaBloPoMo, aka National Blog Posting Month, wherein bloggers commit to posting every day of the month. Wailing and gnashing of teeth can be heard from all corners of the blogosphere during this event, especially from those that have chosen to participate and are kicking themselves as they struggle to come up with something at least half-witted to post about on a daily basis.

There's the photojournalistic endeavor known as NoBloShoeMo. This is a Flickr photo group where members post daily pictures of, what else? Their shoes! And there are some pretty darn cute ones being worn.

I'm sure there are other NaNo groups out there, but those are the ones I've stumbled across. I have to say, someday I'd love to attempt the NaNoWriMo craziness. I've always wanted to write a novel, and for years have been on the look-out for *just* the idea that will spark my creative juices and enable me to write the next Greatest American Novel.

But I digress. Life is too busy for me just now to attempt to write 50,000 words in the next 28 days. Even if those 50,000 words are in my native language. In the next month, I will be working, trying to finish building a house and then subsequently getting ready to move into said house (Squee!!!) , not to mention shopping for furniture & accoutrements for said new house. Then there's the issue of a certain holiday that will be occuring on or around the 27th of this month and requiring my culinary skills to be put to task. Not to mention my advanced eating skills. And with December lurking just around the corner, along with it's beloved holiday, there will be more shopping and purchasing that will need to be done. So, NaNoWriMo is out for me this year.

And while I love the thought of focusing my attention on fabulous footwear, I am not the owner of fabulous footwear and nobody wants to see my dingy New Balance slides or my disintegrating Eddie Bauer fleece slippers posted day after day. And considering my tootsies haven't had any much pampering lately, I am loathe to share pictures of them in my fabulous and much-loved collection of flip-flops. No NoBloShoeMo for me either.

I guess that just leaves NaBloPoMo. And I really don't have any excuse not to do this one. I mean, I have a blog. If you know me IRL, you know I always have something to say. It's just a matter of putting it down on paper screen. I'm sure there will plenty of excitement in the coming month that I can record and share with ya'll. So, what the heck. I'll give it a whirl and see what happens.

And yes, I realize it's November 2nd already. But this is such a long post, surely it counts as two. :) I do solemnly swear to do my best to post every day for the rest of the month.