In the Teapot

Nora's New Dress [Flickr]

2012-05-13T19:01:40-07:00

dormousie posted a photo:

Made by following the Ice Cream Social Dress Tutorial.

Nora's New Dress [Flickr]

2012-05-13T19:01:39-07:00

dormousie posted a photo:

Made by following the Ice Cream Social Dress Tutorial.

[Flickr]

2012-05-07T11:59:10-07:00

dormousie posted a photo:

Links for 2011-04-22 [del.icio.us]

2011-04-23T00:00:00-07:00

WeightWatchers.com: Weight Watchers Recipe - Blue Cheese Chicken Burgers

Links for 2011-03-28 [del.icio.us]

2011-03-29T00:00:00-07:00

Links for 2011-03-15 [del.icio.us]

2011-03-16T00:00:00-07:00

Stylish Baby Nursery: Collapsible Storage Baskets - Sew4Home

Links for 2011-02-11 [del.icio.us]

2011-02-12T00:00:00-08:00

Better Butter Chicken (in the CrockPot) | dinner with Julie

Links for 2011-02-07 [del.icio.us]

2011-02-08T00:00:00-08:00

Chicken Shawarma Recipe : : Food Network

Links for 2011-01-24 [del.icio.us]

2011-01-25T00:00:00-08:00

Teething Biscuit Recipes for Your Teething Baby

Links for 2010-12-22 [del.icio.us]

2010-12-23T00:00:00-08:00

And yes … more baking!

2010-12-20T03:58:53Z

“Gee, Erin … how on earth have you not managed to lose the last of the baby weight? And the twelve pounds remaining from Seth?”

Gosh, I have no clue. Maybe it’s the extended breastfeeding, getting pregnant again, and now breastfeeding again. Maybe it’s the asthma that makes exercise much less fun. Maybe it has something to do with YET ANOTHER BAKING ADVENTURE tonight.

Just look at these … how could I resist?

Mom's Delicious Chocolate Cookies

My mom has a recipe – I forget where it’s originally from – that makes the best chocolate cookies ever. As well it should since there’s 1.25 cups of butter in these things. I decided I’d make them tonight so I could send some to my brother as a Christmas treat. Thus the mint Holiday M&Ms on top … quite a delicious addition. As I was mixing the batter, Seth asked, “Cimmanon?” So I added about 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon.

These are to die for, and incredibly easy. Since I’d like the rest of you to share my baby weight, here’s the recipe.

1-1/4 c. butter, softened
2 eggs
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 c. sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 c. cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. chopped nuts

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Blend well. Add dry ingredients and nuts. Bake at 350 for 8-9 minutes. Cool for one minute only, then move to rack.

If you’re going to add M&Ms to the top, do so right after you get them out of the oven. It makes it much easier to transfer the cookies … something about structural integrity, I’m sure.

Gratuitous baby picture!

Nora & Mommy, Hanging in the Kitchen

Originally published at treacle.net. You can comment here or there.

Status … (See More)

2010-12-19T04:21:19Z

Yesterday and today, per Facebook:

Erin: I need to go to Kohl’s and Target to finish Christmas shopping.
Will: I need to go to the post office and a few other places.
Erin: Well, we could split up the kids and each go …
Will: [nods] Okay. I’ll take Clive.

Yesterday, 8:13 a.m.

Ha, ha, funny ha. Clive, in case you’re new here, is one of our cats.

Seth was having a morning made mostly of Being Two, so he went with Will to hit the post office, the haircut place (for Will), and we’d meet for lunch. I’d take Nora and we’d do the shopping before the lunch. Yay! Except Nora slept until 11:30 and Seth needed to eat lunch around noon.

We did meet for lunch, Nora and I did parade through Target and Kohl’s with her bundled in the wrap on my hip or chest, and many people were delighted by her happy squealing and kicking. Any other Christmas shopping will be done on Amazon, because I’m done with being in shopping centers right now.

Apparently today is Naked Saturday for Seth. Any suggestion of clothes is met by “NOOooOOOO!” and running around the house.

Around 10 am today.

A friend commented, “Your house must be warmer than ours!” No, I’m just going to let the little goober run around until he’s cold and then he’ll put on his clothes! I don’t think he’ll get frostbite in Houston in December. When Seth did get dressed, it was in a miniature Dallas Stars jersey – number 21 for Guy Carbonneau. I still miss him.

Wrapped presents while watching “When We Left Earth” … absolutely fascinating! I was never a space geek (ironic), so a lot was new to me.

Probably around 3:30 or 4, just before the kids woke up.

The stars aligned and the children took naps at the same time. <Cue “Hallelujah Chorus.”> I put together a beef stew for dinner, watching the documentary on the laptop while in the kitchen. Then I hauled presents and wrapping gear into the living room and picked up the doc on the Wii. Netflix Streaming may be one of the best things to happen to us this year.

It really is fascinating to watch and think, “I know who these people are. I go to buildings named after them. I go to THAT building. We ask that guy to come speak at certain events.” My generation in America couldn’t help growing up with NASA … it was just part of the common experience. I’d never really looked into the history of manned spaceflight, though, and this is really eye-opening. For some reason it’s also more meaningful than if I’d watched it when I first started working there.

And now … time to get a little girl back to sleep, then to sleep myself. I mixed up some white chocolate popcorn tonight for Seth and Nora’s Sunday School teachers, and I’m tempted to go eat it all myself.

Originally published at treacle.net. You can comment here or there.

Sweet Tooth Factory, right here.

2010-12-18T15:27:55Z

We’ve been busy little people around here, thus the lack of actual updates!

I’ve been stretching out my maternity leave (unpaid Family Medical Leave) by working 20+ hours a week and taking the unpaid leave the rest of the time. While it’s good to have the time with Nora and at least some sort of a paycheck, it does make things a little harried trying to balance what needs to be done at work and at home. Then there’s the stuff I want to do, too … most of the time that gets shunted aside in favor of sitting on my butt on the couch, relaxing with Will while we watch something on Netflix.

One thing I wanted to be sure and do was thank you gifts for Seth’s preschool teachers. I absolutely love them. My mom was a preschool teacher for a while, and I know from her that they love the little gifts from their kids. (Except really, they probably don’t need another candle or coffee mug. But they’ll love every one they get.) I wanted to add gift cards but that just wasn’t in the budget this year – see the aforementioned half-paycheck since this summer. So we baked and melted.

Christmas Tree Cookies

I had seen kits for making cookie Christmas trees out of star-shaped cookies, but I already have three sizes of star cookie cutters. We used this Sugar Cookie recipe from Cooking Light, and it was pretty good. I actually ran out of sugar and had to substitute agave nectar for part of the sugar, so who knows what that did to them. They were still yummy!

We made the frosting in the recipe, put it in a piping bag, and then Will lowered the cookies into the can while I drizzled frosting over each cookie. The frosting did help glue the layers to each other – three of each size cookie, alternating points – but we had a couple of anxious moments when we thought one tree was going to slide into the side of the paintcan container. (Which came from Hobby Lobby and are food-safe, btw.)

Hot Chocolate on a Stick

The other, chocolate-y things are Hot Chocolate on a Stick. I’ll warn you about this: reading the very precise directions on tempering chocolate got me stressed out beyond belief. It turns out it wasn’t that bad, and you just suck it up and add some oil or shortening (my mother’s recommendation) if your chocolate gets ugly. Ta da. We used Semi-sweet chocolate and then dipped them in melted white chocolate bits. We put some in candy molds (the shaped ones) and the rest in a mini-muffin tin. I actually liked the muffin tin ones best! And don’t get all “fancy” like I did and think you can pipe in white chocolate first so you can skip the second round of melting and dipping after the chocolate cools. You don’t see the wrecked second batch where the two chocolates separated from each other when I took them out of the molds. Whatever!

The chocolates are delicious, and as I shared on Facebook, make great mochas if you stir them into your coffee with a little milk. We’ll definitely be making these again! Actually, we might be making them tonight to give to some more people …

And yes, Seth helped me with the cookies. That was an adventure in itself, but he does love to cook with us. It’s worth the mess.

Originally published at treacle.net. You can comment here or there.

Strangest thing in the room … baby corral or the cat?

2010-12-10T04:01:28Z

Today’s Holidailies prompt is to talk about the strangest thing in the room. So I ask you: which one would you say?

Baby Corral

Clive - December 2010

The Baby Corral is, well, a corral for babies. Okay, it’s branded as a SecureYard, but it’s really a baby corral. You put it up inside, you put it up outside on a blanket, you unhook it and make a really long gate, or you unhook it and make two long gates. It keeps happy but stupid Black Lab/Great Dane mix dogs off your little baby. It contains your precocious little boy or girl who has learned to roll and rolls all over the living room. It cordons off the living room so your baby can explore to their heart’s content and still be safe. But it’s a baby corral. People use them for puppies, too. I’ve seen them at pet adoptions at the pet store. It’s true. Right now ours has ribbon draped over it that I’m too lazy to get on the Christmas tree tonight.

Then there’s Clive.

Clive is as old as this journal. He’s really been the star of it, if you ask some people. He was raised by a dog, so he acts like one. He comes when he’s called and he has been known to go for walks on a leash. Clive likes people food. I found him at a Chick-fil-a when he was a kitten, and he’s displayed a fondness for chicken nuggets ever since. He also likes to pull lettuce from the drain board after it’s been washed. He’s kind of fond of green beans.

It’s a toss-up, really.

Originally published at treacle.net. You can comment here or there.

Saying “Thank You”

2010-12-09T04:01:31Z

One of the things I never expected thirteen years ago, back when I started being online, was that I would get married “late” (based on when almost everyone I knew got married), that I would have a child within two years of being married, and that I would be a working mother.

My plan was to get married around 25 or 26, have a child about five years later, and then stay at home with the baby while my husband worked. Instead, I got married at 29, had our first baby just before my 31st birthday, had our second baby just before my 33rd birthday, and my husband works from home and stays home with the kids.

It’s had various challenges, and I could talk about those at length. Maybe one of the biggest things has been trying to not be the stereotypical “working parent” who comes home and ignores all the wonderful things the parent at home has done during the day. I’m bad at this anyway; Will has an incredible tendency toward service, and he has taken care of our home, of me, of all the little things that I hate doing, and he does it all because he loves me and our children. I – not having that gift – tend to take it for granted, don’t reciprocate as much as I should, and I forget to say thank you.

I’m trying to be better about that. I’m grateful for the chance to play with the kids when I get home from work. I’m grateful for the dinner Will made for all of us, and the clean kitchen. I’m grateful for having clean clothes because Will took the time to do laundry. I’m grateful that when I came home, Seth (our two-year-old) was happily playing at the sink, “helping” Daddy wash dishes while Will made dinner.

So … I try to remember to clean the bathroom on trash day. It helps me to have a reminder like that. We both hate it, but there’s no reason I can’t do one of the things I hate so Will doesn’t have to. I try to remember to make the bed. (When I write it out like this, it seems pathetically small!)

And tonight we had a special little treat after the kids were in bed. (No, not THAT treat. I wouldn’t tell you about that … ) A French press of decaf coffee with a little pumpkin pie spice, some Laceys cookies, and the choice of decorating the Christmas tree or watching tv. He chose watching tv, which I was very happy with because I didn’t really feel like standing upright anymore today, what with being up since 3am and all.

And now … bed!

Evening Snack for Two

Originally published at treacle.net. You can comment here or there.

It’s 3 a.m. again.

2010-12-08T11:06:26Z

Nora woke up around 2:45 or so for her middle-of-the-night feeding, as she usually does. On a typical night Will, being an awesome husband and dad, goes and gets her out of her bed, brings her to me for her feeding, then takes her back to bed when she’s done. Lately I’ve been falling asleep (sitting up) during the feeding because Miss Nora is a gourmet eater who, true to her French roots, takes eight hours for a single meal. Fine, it’s more like 20 – 30 minutes, but whatever. Seth was a get-it-done, I-can’t-believe-you-starved-me-so-long sort of nurser; Nora takes her time and enjoys the experience. That’s fine, though, because usually I fall right back to sleep as soon as Will comes back from putting Nora in bed.

Obviously I didn’t do that tonight.

Instead I lay there with the random thoughts of the day swirling through my head again. You know how they say that dreams are your brain’s way of dealing with what the subconscious has absorbed through the day? Sometimes I feel like that happens while I’m still awake, usually at 3am or some other insomniac moment, and it GETS REALLY ANNOYING.

A sampling of the James Joyce-style rambling that rams through my brain at this time:

That manager today asked about the invoice for his training class … he shouldn’t have received one, did he actually submit the external training request, did I already approve it and forget about it?
Seth just cried out in his sleep — awake? Dirty diaper? Bad dream? He’s asleep again.
Why has Bonnie [black cat] claimed me as her own lately? She used to be just Will’s cat and now Clive sleeps on Will and Bonnie sleeps on me. She’s heavy. And hot.
I should really add some links to blogs I read.
Do people still check links on blogs? I mainly read through a feed reader and then click to comment. Would anyone even notice if I kept the actual site bare bones?
My back hurts. Maybe if I stretch it like this … no good.
Seriously, that manager at work. Did I forget that request? What happened to November?
I’m hungry.
I hate coming up with Truths for “Two Truths and a Lie.” Why are facilitators so bad at the activities/icebreakers we facilitate?
I am never going to sleep again.
What is Nora going to wear in the Christmas card pictures? I could reprise the Strawberry Shortcake dress with a long-sleeve onesie under it …
Why is it raining now?
I’m hungry.
Need to get that binder over to that other manager today.
I am never going to sleep again.

I finally gave up after an hour and got up for an apple, a book, and — since I obviously can’t sleep — computer time. I know that computer time is completely not supposed to help with insomnia, but whatever.

I’m hungry again, btw.

Halloween 2010: Strawberry Shortcake

Originally published at treacle.net. You can comment here or there.

5 Loaves, 2 Fish

2010-03-22T02:38:16Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I’m trying to write more, and that means writing more about what I actually do in my life instead of just what I think may be interesting to others. So … sorry if it gets boring.

One of the things that I do is teach 2-year-old Sunday School at church. It can be quite the challenge, trying to find a way to relate a lot of abstract concepts about God to something that makes sense to a preschooler. I realized today that it would be a good idea to have notes about what’s worked well for some of the recurring lessons that we have. I’ve tried looking up other Sunday School lessons online, but it’s hard to work through the truly horrible clip art and lessons that talk more about stories or characters rather than the character and actions of God (which is what the whole point of the stories should be).

My favorite so far has been when the lesson was about Jesus healing a sick boy. I tell the story in a couple of ways throughout the morning and then ask the kids questions to see if any of it sticks. So I told the story (Jesus healing the centurion’s servant), and asked, “Who was sick?”

“JESUS!”

Um … no.

Anyway, today’s lesson was about Jesus feeding the huge crowd with food shared by a little boy – the five loaves of bread and two fish. If you’re not familiar with the story, a huge crowd of (around 5000, according to traditional tellings) people were listening to Jesus teach all day and didn’t bring any food. Jesus saw they were hungry, and wanted to feed the people. The disciples told him that not even a year’s wages would feed all these people. One boy had two small fish and five barley loaves, and offered them up. Jesus thanked God and then told his disciples to start passing out the food. They ended up with 12 baskets of leftovers.

What I loved about the lesson today was that it focused not on the boy and how he shared (which most tellings do), but instead on the fact that Jesus saw that people had a need and wanted to meet it because he cares for people. Excellent, excellent message, and the miracle part of it is a bonus. We got to talk about ways we could help people when we see they need something.

Then we colored cut-out fish and bread loaf pictures and decorated paper bags to make baskets. We all put our fish and loaves in our baskets, and then we had a snack on a picnic blanket in the room. First we had five “loaves” (pretzel squares) and two fish (goldfish crackers), and then they had extras after they ate the first part. The craft and the snack actually seemed to help convey the idea of Jesus making a lot of food out of a little bit. It also let us talk about (again) how Jesus saw that people were HUNGRY and wanted to help. (We said the word “HUNGRY” very loudly.)

I’m just glad that this one went well. Some of the other lessons are just WAY over their heads, but we keep trying!

25 weeks

2010-03-21T00:29:09Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

</p>

23 weeks!, originally uploaded by dormousie.

Oh wow … it’s been nine weeks since I’ve updated, and that’s a long time in the life of a developing baby! The picture is from two weeks ago, but just imagine a little more roundness added to the belly.

How far along? 25 weeks, 2 days

Total Weight Gain: +11. Not too bad, since I’m mentally adding the 12 pounds I still had left from Seth. (Which would make it 23, if we’re all adding together.)

Maternity Clothes? Oh, most definitely.

Stretch Marks? No new ones! The Palmer’s Skin Therapy Oil has definitely helped reduce the ones I already had.

Sleep? Thank goodness for the Hypnobabies tracks. They help me get to sleep, stay asleep longer, and get back to sleep.

Best Moment This Week: Feeling the little tiny baby knees, elbows, or feet pushing out against my abdominal wall.

Movement: Lots of it!

Food Cravings: I still want bagels, but now I only want Everything bagels.

Gender: We still think it’s a girl

Labor Signs: No, but I’m definitely feeling the Braxton-Hicks this time. I never noticed them with Seth. I especially feel them when I walk or stand too much, or after bending over a lot.

Belly Button: Streeeeetching out. I may yet have an outie with this one!

What I miss: I still miss sushi alot, and the great weather is starting to make me miss margaritas!

What I am looking forward to: the end of the second trimester – it’s coming faster than I expected!

Weekly Wisdom: I shouldn’t expect to drive home from a glucose tolerance test.

Milestones: Starting to see and feel the little baby parts poking on the outside of my stomach!

16 Week Update

2010-01-15T03:23:38Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

</p>

15 weeks, 4 days, originally uploaded by dormousie.

How far along? 16 weeks today

Total Weight Gain: (?) since pre-pregnancy. I have no idea, really. My face is thinner, I can still wear most pants with a Bella Band, and I don’t think I’ve gained much, if anything.

Maternity Clothes? I’m definitely in the maternity clothes now or stretching my regular pants with the Bella Band. That’s actually starting to get really uncomfortable, though, so I think I’ll be switching to just maternity pants soon. The shirts are a definite; my regular shirts are snug across the middle or just not long enough.

Stretch Marks? I get occasional red marks but no lasting stretch marks. I started using the Palmer’s stretch mark therapy oil to at least help the ones I already have.

Sleep? I’m starting to wake up early in the morning and have trouble getting back to sleep.

Best Moment This Week: Going to bed early and getting a little more rest!

Movement: I do feel little jabs and squirms, especially when the band of the maternity pants presses against the baby.

Food Cravings: Einstein Brothers asiago cheese bagels, toasted, with a little cream cheese. Mmm. Otherwise, I keep getting strong aversions.

Gender: Still thinking girl

Labor Signs: Nope

Belly Button: Becoming more of a crater than a button. Seth likes to poke at it in the mornings.

What I miss: Sushi!

What I am looking forward to: Hearing the heartbeat again on Monday during our appointment.

Weekly Wisdom: You kind of have to remember to eat enough food, or you don’t feel good.

Milestones: Four months completed!

Brief Book review: Skin Hunger by Kathleen Duey

2009-12-28T21:00:55Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Skin Hunger by Kathleen Duey

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I think I set my expectations too high for this book. I thought the idea was fascinating, but that fascination didn’t carry throughout the book. The two main characters were just sort of “eh” for me. I sort of liked them, but I just didn’t care that much about them. It’s hard to be interested in a three-book story arc if the characters don’t grab you. I might give the second book a try just to see if the plot development helps me care more about the characters. It won’t be a huge loss at this point if I can’t find the second book.

View all my reviews >>

Merry, merry Christmas

2009-12-24T22:40:20Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

My Christmas cards went out a little late this year, but we were trying to time them to get to family first and then friends. However, I was later than I intended! To make it up to everyone who hasn’t received it yet, and to share with everyone online, here’s a special version of the card. Be sure to click through to the end!

Make a Smilebox greeting

Now with more infuriating power!

2009-12-23T02:59:20Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

About a year ago, an unhappy accident occurred in our house. My sweet husband accidentally knocked my laptop, an IBM ThinkPad, off a tv tray that I (or he – I can’t remember) was using as a desk. Crash, boom, bang, and the laptop wouldn’t boot up completely anymore.

We finally got around to sending it off to my uncle, a wizard at rescuing data and restoring broken machines to working order. (He should be a wizard at it; after all, that is his job.) He installed a new hard drive, cleaned the data up as best he could, and sent it back to us. We just got it back today, and I was so excited.

It boots, but it won’t allow me to reset my password. I logged in as the Administrator; it won’t even open the User Accounts window, or the Windows Update window, or pretty much anything else. I can, however, access all of the data files under my real profile. I’ll be backing those gobs (that is what GB stands for, right?) to DVD all night long.

You see, after gnashing of teeth and frantic Googling, I think there is only one option left. That is why I’m now creating recovery discs that will restore the laptop to factory settings.

The joy of machinery, eh?

Please don’t ruin my Christmas cheer by saying I wouldn’t have any of these issues with a Linux, Apple, or Sumerian Cuneiform system. Seriously. Why kick someone when she’s down?

Virtual reality

2009-12-16T04:17:07Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I don’t think that Twitter is really the death of blogging as we know it. I think that if anything is going to kill blogging, it’s going to be much more mindless:

Facebook games.

As I sat there, mindlessly “harvesting” circus peanuts from elephants, angora wool I can never actually knit with, and grapefruit that is fruiting next to red maple trees, I thought, “What the heck am I doing?”

I could be writing something fascinating or heart-baring, or I could be making Christmas cookies. Oh, well I can make cookies or pies or cakes in Facebook’s YoVille game, so that’s taken care of. And those baked goods won’t increase my hip size!

I could go visit friends, go dancing, or go run races with them. I forgot, though: that’s what Pet Society is for, because we can all do those things as our animal alter egos and wear cute costumes and live in a house decorated with things we could never afford in real life and have the added bonus of not needing dusting.

Speaking of Pet Society, I actually had a nightmare last night that was based on Pet Society. Not that I’ve actually logged into that game for months, probably, but I dreamed that it was all REAL and that people were living in this huge building with different tiers of suites based on progression through these levels and it turned out these levels were all based on some sort of worship of this weird alien/demon thing and it was my job to disconnect the server that was funneling all the propaganda material in and the whole place was watched over by a guy in drag with really heavy make-up and … well, I think it’s obvious that Will and I just spent a week watching series 2 of Doctor Who, isn’t it?

So if you don’t see me around for a while, stop by one of my Facebook restaurants or cafés, or check on my farms, and I’ll probably be by once in a while. Because, you know, that’s the easiest way to be brain dead and still act like I’m interacting with people.

The app ate my homework

2009-12-15T03:57:00Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

So last night I started this whole running commentary post while Will and I watched the first few episodes of the first season of Buffy. I typed along on my little iPhone, giggling to myself.

Then the app ate it. Yay.

It’s been a grey, foggy day in Houston- town. If it were cold, I’d think (as a friend said on Facebook) the dementors were circling.

I’d say more, but look at that: the app ate half my post again. I think that means it’s time for bed.

… and panic sets in.

2009-12-12T16:26:44Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I woke up this morning and realized that Christmas is in less than two weeks.

I don’t have Christmas presents for most of my family.

I just told Will, as he walked by, that I was trying to find another Christmas present for him and was having a hard time finding something I thought would be good.

“How many things are you getting me? You don’t need to get me a gajillion presents.”

“Honey, you know I love to give presents.”

“Okay, then how about … a super-fast car, that I can actually sit in to drive …” [He knows too well that I'd put a toy car in his stocking.]

“… or a super-fast airplane that I can actually sit in to fly …” [See above.]

“… or a million dollars!” [His standard request any time someone asks if he needs/wants anything.]

“How about something actually in my budget, honey?”

*pout*

I don’t have our Christmas cards addressed and ready to go.

We have a Sunday School Christmas party at our house next Saturday, and I’ve only had perfunctory thoughts about what that really means as far as preparation, grocery shopping, etc.

My mom gets here on Monday, and the guest room is still cluttered with laundry, my craft stuff, and Christmas decorations.

Most of my Christmas decorations are either still in their boxes or are halfheartedly arranged around the house. I love a decorated home, but I really just can’t make it a priority to do it myself, it seems.

I’m dreading the idea of the other side of the interstate where Wal-Mart, Target, and the mall cause an unholy vortex of traffic, rude people, and lost days of your life.

Then I remember something that will make a lot of this life a whole lot easier:

Thank you, Amazon.com, for being my virtual mall and delivering to my door. You’re my bestest favorite.

And at least the grocery store is this side of the interstate.

Shifting around

2009-12-11T03:02:00Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I came home to a fabulous surprise today. The picture at the bottom is our living room, and there used to be two overstuffed bookcases on each side of the tv cabinet. Those bookcases are now in our bedroom, and extra clothes (stashed in bins for donating/giving away) are out of our room. Now I have three stocked bookcases at easy access when I suddenly need a book in the night. It happens more often than you’d think!

One of my goals for December is to finish the knitting projects I’ve had on the needles for too long. One is a baby sweater for a friend; I also have two sets of socks I need to finish. My motivation is simple: I want to actually knit something for myself, for Will, and for Seth!

Thus the view from my lap tonight: a blanket, a pile of yarn, and some NCIS or Doctor Who.

Chilly day, warm noggin

2009-12-10T02:42:00Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

It was a chilly sort of day in Houston. Will and Seth went outside for a bit, giving Seth a chance to try out one of the hats we got in a Ravelry swap. Seth wasn’t too keen on coming inside, so he thought he’d try the door. Hmm. I guess that’s one more thing to baby-proof.

Catching Up – Workish

2009-12-09T03:29:54Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Since the last substantive update I posted was in August, it might be time for a little catch-up! I sat down to write about September and took a look at Flickr to see what happened. Well, apparently not much. Or, rather, SO much happened that I didn’t have time to take any pictures! What a conundrum.

What really happened in September is that I started a six-month rotation in a different area at work. I moved out of my comfy nest in the Chief Financial Officer’s directorate and into the brand new but not really so new world of Human Resources.

Before you ask: no, I cannot get you a job. I have nothing to do with hiring and firing, employee actions, or other things of that nature. The best pointer I can give you is to check recruiting events at your school, should you still be in graduate or undergraduate programs, and to look at USAJOBS.gov every so often if you’re interested in a federal government career.

The new but not so new world of HR isn’t all that new because I’m doing essentially what I was doing before: working with employees and organizations to develop in new, fabulous, and wonderful ways. Okay, so that’s slightly overstated, but it’s really pretty close to what I do. Whether everyone thinks their development is as wonderful and fabulous as I think it is, well, that’s another story. I won’t ever post specifics here about what I do, and I probably won’t get much beyond the generic level I just established. I think that what I and my colleagues do helps to improve the work environment and long-term careers of our employees.

I’m just a rosy little Pollyanna, I know. I understand that many employees don’t want to bother with development and would rather just get their paychecks. You know what? That’s fine with me. If you’re satisfied with your career, then have at it and enjoy. I don’t like programs that force development on employees – you know the sort, with the required soft-skills training*, the endless personal assessments, and the ladder that shows career paths that you don’t want to take. That should all be your choice. However, I also don’t like are people who bad-mouth those things only because they don’t want to participate in them. Those developmental tools can be very beneficial to people who actually are interested in changing their career path, finding a career path, or simply getting more out of what they do every day.

Obviously this is something I care about, right? So it shouldn’t be a surprise that I’ve loved my new but not so new world. I get to work with different organizations and get new insights into what happens at our workplace. I get to be with more colleagues who speak my language and can help me learn new things or learn more about things I already know. It’s been so great, actually, that I officially transferred to the group at the beginning of November.

So that’s what’s been happening, work-wise. I still feel like I’m constantly running to catch up, but I”m also settling into my new role. It’s a good place to be.

*I’m not talking about diversity or ethics training, conflict management, or basic communication/interpersonal skills. Yes, you do actually need to pay attention to those. If all we can do is lead the horse to water, that’s an important trough to be at, Horse.

Against my better judgment

2009-12-08T03:33:16Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Against my better judgment, I actually listened to Shmuel’s annual reminder about Holidailies. Obviously I haven’t been feeling the blog love for months! Maybe this will spark some creative thinking again … or maybe I’ll fizzle out again this year.

Let’s start fresh! I’m Erin. I’m wife to Will, a fabulous French man who moved to the States to marry me. He also happens to be the brother of one of my best friend, which is nice because it guarantees I’ll keep in touch with at least one good friend.

Will and I are parents to the magnificent Seth. Seth is almost sixteen months and amazes us every day. He is a funny, funny little boy.

We live in Houston, where it’s either snowing (seriously?!) or sweltering. Good times. None of us actually love it here, but I have a great job and the job is here. What can you do?

I think that’s enough for tonight … I have to save something for other entries this month. Well, that and I’m really fed up with this WordPress for iPhone app.

I so hated this book.

2009-08-19T17:39:39Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Forget Me Knot by Sue Margolis

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

We stopped by Borders on Saturday so I could pick up a birthday present for one of the other August 2008 babies. Right in front of the door was the “Buy One, Get One 50% Off” table. There on the table was Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential. “Hurray!” I exclaimed (in my head). I quickly grabbed another book that looked cute and would be fluffy entertainment. “Hmm,” thought I, “This looks appropriately light yet not stupid for a ‘ChickLit’ book.” Fast forward to last night, when I needed a new book for my read-to-sleep ritual.

Oh my STARS. What an awful jumble of chicklit clichés and shallow characters. The main character was the too-good-to-be-true Abby, who reads like a Mary Sue from schlocky fan fiction. Every single character is predictable, boring, and shallow. Most of the book describes events, backstory, and character “insights” instead of using dialogue or action to let the characters live, breathe, and develop.

As for the clichés, let’s see:

meet “cute” with devastatingly handsome and charming man while engaged to another man
get dumped; surprise meet “cute” again with DH&C man
gay best friend/co-worker
forthright female best friend who thinks so main character doesn’t have to
cutesy occupation for protagonist
rich boyfriend turns out to be a jerk
protag’s mother shocks the world and becomes world-famous
protag almost ruins new relationship with DH&C man because of Secrets
DH&C man turns out to be rich so we can all be happy while still being socially aware and righteously middle class.

Did I miss any?

Extra non-bonus: sudden appearance of graphic sex scenes in the latter third of the book. Where did that come from?

Street vs. Treadmill

2009-08-04T13:57:06Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I just could not face going out into the Houston humidity this morning (typically 82 degrees and 97% humidity) for a run. I did a quick check on the Y’s hours and decided to go run inside. My poor dog was so disappointed; she’s already adapted to the early morning run schedule! She was so excited to see me out in the living room at 5:30, and the poor girl had to stay home!

I may be one of the very few who actually prefers running on a treadmill. That might change as I get more experienced, but I really do love it! I can completely zone out, keep an eye on my heart rate, and just pace along with whatever music comes on the iPod. Street running can be nice in the quiet, dark hours. I do love having Josie with me in the early mornings or Seth, Will, and Josie with me when we go out in the evenings. But it just takes a lot more concentration, and I like to turn off most of my brain and relax through the exercise.

Regardless of method, I did get up and get out there today. I’m still very much a baby in this whole running thing, but I was proud of my 2.22 miles in 35 minutes. I’ll do my best to keep going!

Destined for Mission Control

2009-07-17T21:47:04Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Destined for Mission Control, originally uploaded by dormousie.

I guess someone has already absorbed a lot from where Mommy works …

While our Finnish and French friends were here, we went to Space Center Houston a couple of times. Well, Will went a couple of times. I went once since it was a Saturday when the Frenchies went. Will bought a season pass and I, well, I get in free. Woo!

If you haven’t been to Space Center Houston recently, it’s pretty darn cool right now. In addition to the NASA stuff – films, rides, T-38 “pilot” simulations, and a huge model of the Shuttle Orbiter that you can climb in around through – they have a George Lucas Films exhibit. There’s a ropes course for the truly adventurous to experience, Star Wars “training” exercises, and some other stuff I forgot because it’s not really baby friendly. There were props exhibited, too, and there are character sightings at certain days.

So while Seth and I waited for the Frenchies to get back from the long, hot tour through JSC (take a lot of water), I tried to find ways to amuse the littlest man. We looked at some Droids, marveled at Orbiter scale, and wandered around. I knew there had to be something with lots of buttons for him, so …

… we went to the Mission Control area in the Kids Zone. Really, there’s not a whole lot for babies to do at SCH. Toddlers and bigger kids can have fun in the play zone, but these little ones are too overwhelmed. But! Seth LOVES to push buttons. He had a fabulous time clambering over the Mission Control set-up (which has remote cameras in the play tower/slide thingie for interactive fun), and pushing every button he could find. I wish I could have taken a picture of him standing on the counter, hitting every button in site, but I thought it better to be safe and hold on to him while he whacked the buttons.

Every few months …

2009-06-20T18:33:02Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

… I get the chance to sit down at a non-government computer without more pressing distractions like a fascinating baby, a wonderful husband, knitting projects that have taken six months or more to get halfway done, cleaning I’ve avoided, dishes that I try to do sometimes so Will doesn’t, and food that needs to be prepared. Oh, and general fun I’d rather have instead of typing at a computer yet again. It gets really old after eight or more hours a day.

So here I am, and ready to at least do a “Here’s what’s going on with us!” update! Wow. The last time I updated really was almost exactly three months ago. Oops.

I’m still working for the government (thus the not typing things while I’m at work), and it’s okay. Basically, I’m conflicted every day. I love who I work for, I love (for the most part) who I work with, and it’s just a good place to be. There are two issues, one sort of minor and one bigger: I’m burned out on what I do, and I hate being away from Seth. “They” tell you it will get easier to be at work while your baby is with someone else during the day. I think that’s true for a lot of mothers and fathers, but it is killing me. I am so grateful that Will is the one taking care of Seth, because I don’t think I could handle it if it were anyone else. We’ve even discussed postponing having another kid until our circumstances change and I can be the one who stays home. That’s not the ideal solution (because who knows when the circumstances will change) but neither is me crying everyday at work. So, until Will finds a fabulous job that he loves and can support us, I go to work and try to enjoy myself. I’m looking into ways to make it a better fit at work, so we shall see.

Will does get to be home with Seth, and he’s absolutely amazing. I love that Seth gets his daddy, and I love that Will is willing to do so much with Seth. Sorry, everyone, but I really do have the best husband in the world. Right now he’s rehanging our door because the house shifted and it won’t open/close easily. His “rehanging” means taking the doorframe completely apart, taking out the crap other people (read: “lazy builders”) put in, and making it work for now and the future. He knows so many things that are WAY beyond my comprehension. Plus, he’s hot. YAY! I WIN!

Now for the most important person in the family (or so I’ve been told): Clive. Just kidding. Although, Clive does tell me that every day. Clive, Bonnie, and Josie are all fine and dandy. Clive almost went to live with some neighbors or random passer-by after we came home from Alabama and found that he’d peed all over our bed, including the brand-new comforter, the quilt my grandmother made, and our seven month-old mattress. Fortunately, we got over it and got just about everything de-catted. The jury is still out on the comforter.

Back to the important person (who sounds like he might be waking up from a nap right now): Mr. Seth is just wonderful. He continues to be long and skinny. His five-month-old cousin passed him in weight about a month ago. Seth pulls up on everything, climbs everything, and cruises around the room, holding on to whatever (or whomever) is available. We missed uncle Logan’s $5000 bet that he’d walk at nine months, but oh well. We weren’t holding our breath on either part.

Seth is pretty much done with “baby” food now. He likes to feed himself, so we go for small bites of things that he can pick up. Today’s breakfast was half a banana (in pieces) and some oatmeal. Last night he ate banana, blueberry yogurt with shredded mozzarella on top (weirdo), and some Goldfish crackers. It was an odd combination, but since he’s refused to eat solid food for two days (teething), we let him eat whatever he would put in his mouth. He’s usually pretty good about eating what we eat, at least to some extent. We also think (as you can see) that the dairy issues are DONE! HURRAY! Mommy can have cheese and real butter again!! I still think I’ll avoid the real milk, though … I like coconut milk beverage so much. Anyway, Seth has five teeth already (two top middle, two bottom middle, one side bottom) and we think he’s working on the fourth bottom tooth and two more up top. Poor kid … poor parents!
The little baby is officially ten months old and almost close to his first birthday. I can hardly believe that!

A Little Night Music

2009-02-11T02:40:21Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Can you tell what Seth listens to in order to get to sleep?

Baby Einstein Lullabies

Change request, pls.

2009-01-26T15:04:29Z

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Erin: My email is down AGAIN. Every single Monday!!!

Adelle: OMG. I cannot believe they allow it

Erin: Seriously!!

Adelle: Why do my meetings start in the middle of good songs?

Erin: I hope Obama puts this on his list of things to change about the government. Because meetings are evil.

Adelle: HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! You should email him. Put in the subject: CHANGE ([Agency] Email)

Erin: HAHAHA!!! If I could email, I would!

In the Teapot

Nora's New Dress [Flickr]

Nora's New Dress [Flickr]

[Flickr]

Links for 2011-04-22 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2011-03-28 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2011-03-15 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2011-02-11 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2011-02-07 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2011-01-24 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2010-12-22 [del.icio.us]

And yes … more baking!

Status … (See More)

Erin: I need to go to Kohl’s and Target to finish Christmas shopping. Will: I need to go to the post office and a few other places. Erin: Well, we could split up the kids and each go … Will: [nods] Okay. I’ll take Clive.

Apparently today is Naked Saturday for Seth. Any suggestion of clothes is met by “NOOooOOOO!” and running around the house.

Wrapped presents while watching “When We Left Earth” … absolutely fascinating! I was never a space geek (ironic), so a lot was new to me.

Sweet Tooth Factory, right here.

Strangest thing in the room … baby corral or the cat?

Saying “Thank You”

It’s 3 a.m. again.

5 Loaves, 2 Fish

25 weeks

16 Week Update

Brief Book review: Skin Hunger by Kathleen Duey

Merry, merry Christmas

Now with more infuriating power!

Virtual reality

The app ate my homework

… and panic sets in.

Shifting around

Chilly day, warm noggin

Catching Up – Workish

Against my better judgment

I so hated this book.

Street vs. Treadmill

Destined for Mission Control

Every few months …

A Little Night Music

Change request, pls.

Erin: I need to go to Kohl’s and Target to finish Christmas shopping.
Will: I need to go to the post office and a few other places.
Erin: Well, we could split up the kids and each go …
Will: [nods] Okay. I’ll take Clive.