Posted on | December 21, 2009 | 6 Comments
hree shopping days until christmas. am i done shopping? nooo. thanks to me and my innate ability to procrastinate beyond reason, my child got to see the inside of a Target yet again today. but if she could say more than “hi”, “bye” and a bunch of other words that i’m positive mean something to her but are unintelligible, i’m certain she would have thanked me. why? because it meant she would have to get dressed and out of these jammies:
whats that? hmm? oh, sorry, i can’t hear you over my daughters wildly out of season attire. apparently i’ve been putting “do laundry” right under “go christmas shopping” on my list of superimportant things to do. i have limited time left before i can’t do crap like this because soon Harper will start asking why she’s wearing pumpkin jammies when santa is coming (among other things like “where do pugs come from?” and “mama, why can’t i have some of your juice?”).
luckily we had clean and cute stuff for her to wear in public. pay no mind to the creepy fuzz hand because LOOK A BUNNY!
Posted on | December 20, 2009 | 9 Comments
noticed recently that a large majority of my tweets (yeah, i actually like tweeting, we can talk about that another day) and facebook status updates involve the word coffee, like, a lot. that i’m drinking it, enjoying it, needing it or NEEDING IT.
my love affair with coffee started young. my moms very favorite ever ice cream has always been hagendaaz coffee. i remember starting when i was 5 she would share her pint with me (seriously a loving gesture only a mother can do). she’d get the pint, 2 spoons, and wrap the container in a kitchen towel and we’d sit and watch whichever movie it was that week that i insisted on watching daily (it went something like this : bedknobs and broomsticks for 7 days, pollyanna for 5 days, mary poppins for 11 days, repeat repeat repeat and OMG i wanted pollyannas dresses and shoes SO BAD).
when Scot and i got engaged, i moved to a new town and quit my desk job that i’d had for 6 years. thanks to pension (yeah i was 24 years old and had a pension plan) and cleaning out my 401k (p.s. NEVER do this, it’s stupid and please for the love of tax penalties, promise me you’ll never DO THIS), i didn’t have to work for the 6 months leading up to our wedding. after the honeymoon, i had to get a job. but what to do? i decided it would be high time to try something new and fun. i became a barista.
kind of a weird choice at 25, as was reminded to me as i sat in tully’s orientation with highschoolers and college students, but i wanted something different. and different is what i got.
whilst i got seriously into coffee, how it’s made, how to make it, and how to steam milk to the perfect fluffy foam, i also got a one way ticket to crazy town courtesy of the people who buy coffee. after a few months of the insanity (i really do mean INSANITY, anyone who has ever been a barista before can back me on this), i began doing things really out of character for me. like burning shots when someone was rude, making decaf drinks for the guy who brought in a list of his co-workers drinks and then didn’t tip, and way overcharging the lady who wouldn’t get off her bluetooth long enough to order and pay for her coffee (you came in here, remember? i’m not interrupting you, you’re interrupting me). i promise you i am not a mean person, but these coffee drinkers? a different breed of people.
(please pay NO attention that i AM totally one of those people, however i am now an impeccable coffee customer. and you should be too : you think i invented any of those moves? uh, no.)
[this would be the part where i insert a photo of me being perky behind an espresso machine circa 2006, except i refused, refused, to ever have my picture taken because there is nothing flattering about khakis, a white polo shirt and one-size-fits all apron. nothing.]
there were days that were fun. i was in charge of the art on the chalkboard and would be unreasonably proud of myself for the puns i would come up with. “Oh my Ganache! Orange you glad it’s chocolate month?” and sending people off with “thanks a latte!” (the line to be my friend is over there…). but then there were the days where the homeless lady on the corner (who i unfortunately always gave free coffee to and repayed me by peeing standing up on our sidewalk in front of the store in broad daylight) would try to smoke in the store and/or try to take a bath in our sink. not to mention the 4:30am start time but, at least i had free access to copious amounts of caffeine and unlimited everything bagels (what? i gained 10 pounds while working there? what?).
these days i do NOT miss being a barista (well, except the free coffee part and the fact that no one can make my americano/breve chai/doppio con panna to my liking), and the extent of my coffee art is pressing “delay brew” on the mr. coffee. but when i do decide to pay someone to make some for me, i always ask for my drinks in the correct order, tip appropriately and never, ever, pee standing up on the sidewalk in broad daylight.
Posted on | December 17, 2009 | 14 Comments
if you’re anything like me, you have a list of blogs you check everyday or get excited when a new post pops up on your reader. some nights when i’m blogging or catching up on my faves, just clicking on one of their blogrolls takes me off in blog land for hours. hours. because sometimes you find one that pulls you in and next thing you know, you’ve hit “older posts” 37 times and you suddenly know the details of this strangers labor, what they ate for dinner on october 3rd and their grandmas special recipe for pot roast. many of you have probably clicked on some of these blogs from my list, but still, i wanted to share 10 blogs i have really enjoyed finding this year (in no particular order).
1] baby rabies :: if you’re a mom and you read blogs, this one probably comes as no surprise to you and i’m willing to bet you read it, too. i just really enjoy Jill’s writing, her honesty about parenting, and her sense of humor. rarely can i not relate to her, and that is what makes it one of my favorite reads. if it were acceptable and not annoying for me to reply with “omg, me too!” on every post, it would happen. one of my favorite things i ever read there was her description of the “heiney hoagie” and the perils of after-birth in her recovery post, because OMG, me too!
2] how about orange :: i pink puffy heart crafting. i’m not all that great at it, but gosh do i enjoy it. HAO has the cutest ideas and projects that are easy and freaking precious. download all kinds of goodies for free (my favorite!) like gift tags, desktop wallpapers, invites, note cards…the list goes on. plus tutorials on felt projects (love!), bow making, and tons of other ridiculously cute and fun things. i genuinely get a happy dance going when there is something new to try.
3] sesame ellis photoblog :: you know when you come across a blog and you’re like “how does she do it?”? enter rachel devine. she’s just…lovely. everything about her, her family, her photography just makes me smile. if i kept going in this paragraph, it would just a be a string of adjectives that could put me in weirdo territory, so i’ll just say : i love this blog.
4] scott, lorie, henry & ben…but mostly henry & ben :: i can legitimately say i have NO idea how i found this little gem, but holy adorable family batman. i also happen to think lorie is sweet and head over heels in love with her boys, which is more than apparent by her words. oh, and she’s pretty and funny, both of which help when reading and looking at pictures of someone. just saying.
5] rave & review :: really good giveaways and honest reviews on products for little ones. i’d love to see leanne’s garage, because of all the cool stuff she must have accumulated! someday i might win something, and trust me, you’ll hear about it.
6] this is the first day of my life :: one day earlier this year i saw that HH had been linked in a new blog. i went to check it out and found emily, who had posted the nicest words about my little ol’ blog. it made me feel gushy inside and since then, we have become fast internet friends. she is pregnant with twins who will essentially be born the same time her first little dude turns ONE! Hud-B is one of the cutest little guys i’ve ever seen and i know the twins will be little lookers as well. i have a nice little blog family of girls whom i adore and Em is one of them.
7] smonk you :: is there anything cuter than a guy blogging about becoming a dad? i think not. my husband would never blog in a million years (i had to make a facebook for him, and even then he never uses it), but i feel like if he did, it would be like this. also, love the other perspective of pregnancy. you know the side who might want to say we are crazy but knows better?
8] regretsy :: i mean, really people, there are no words. props to the moon and back to my friend Jessica for introducing it to me. it’s just so.good.
9. matt, liz and madeline :: ok, this one is a cheat because i did not discover it in 2009. i started reading when i was just barely pregnant with Harper. if you watch Oprah or have ever been on the internet in general, you have probably heard of Matt and Maddy. i used to cry (like, ugly cry) at every post Matt wrote at the unimaginable pain he must have gone through (and still goes through). he is inspiring, funny, honest and i appreciate so much his willingness to share his & Maddy’s life with the rest of us.
10] dear baby :: just darling. and envy-inducing.
what are some of your favorite blogs?
Posted on | December 16, 2009 | 6 Comments
osh, i’ve been selfish lately. so caught up in my own inability to get dressed and be a fully functioning human being, that i haven’t updated lately on the little reason why i’m having trouble (and i mean that very endearingly) : Harper Paige!
i remember in the early months when i thought things were hard. things like cleaning dr. browns bottles (hello, they have like 46 parts each!), leaving the house with an infant and thinking that her poop smelled (HA! her poop did NOT smell. her poops now SMELL). i look back and laugh because cleaning bottles was easy peasy compared to cleaning up the tornado that comes through my kitchen 3 times a day. leaving the house was easy when i could carry a car seat into the bank, post office and other places that you pop in and out of and rock it with my foot while i stood in line.
but now we have a 13 month old on our hands. a spunky, mobile, solid food eating, tantrum throwing, and hilarious 13 month old. here is what Harper is up to these days:
- walking. fast. she is really getting the hang of it, but still teeters over every once in while. luckily, she’s really tough (seriously the girl rarely cries in situations where i sure as heck would), and only says “ow” when she falls down. then gets right back up.
- being picky. while she is getting better, she still thinks she will survive on solely pancakes, bananas, mac&cheese, yogurt melts and mum mums. although she fully transitioned to whole milk with no issues, i am giving her formula (good to grow) because i worry about all the nutrients she might be missing with her hatred for all things green.
- wearing size 3 diapers and 6-12 month clothes. girl has got some stubby little legs and still hasn’t reached 20 pounds. still getting the “9 months?” guess everywhere we go. gnome status, i tell you.
- loving beyond all reason the word “HI”. i would consider this her first real word, because she actually understands how it is used and when you say it, as she does “bye bye”. but hi? she will say it over. and over. and over again until you acknowledge her. this makes for funny interactions in public. and when she is talking to the cat.
- not a fan of “no” or even a stern voice directed towards her. has thrown herself on the ground a few times screaming. no comments necessary from any family with things like “that’s what you get” or “wonder where she got it from”.
- sporting 7 teeth.
- essentially the cutest, silliest, most unique little nugget i’ve ever known. i absolutely love being her mommy.
« go back —
keep looking »
