Archive for February 2009

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Seems that the new medicine is working and Vaughn is on the mend. 


I wish Carla wouldn't have taken Casey's suggestions last night. It killed me to watch her go down like that. She would have won if she stayed true to herself. The cutting of the alligator made my jaw drop...kind of like the nail through the eel's head. I don't think I could ever do that. 


Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Light for Sale!



Happy Wednesday! Let's talk about my powder room!

It's apparent that the original owner of this house liked things overdone. Matching fruit wallpaper and fruit tiles in the kitchen. Dark, heavy fabric window treatments on every window. Dark lighting everywhere. To me, it felt like we moved into a Medieval castle. 

So, it's really no surprise that when she saw this light fixture she had to have it. I think in the right place, it would be perfect. But the powder room is not its place. This mirror is just too big for the space and it does not give off any light. It's also hard to hang anything else on the walls because it's just so overpowering. 

This was one of the electrical changes that we needed to have redone. The hook-up is in the center of the mirror and it wouldn't work with another fixture. So hopefully that will be completed tomorrow and I'll have an "after" picture to share.

If anyone would be interested in the mirror, let me know. I'll give a great deal on it. 


In other Wednesday news, Justin returns home tonight from a business trip, Lost is on, and the finale of Top Chef. Go Carla!


Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Vaughnie woke up swollen and with a scary looking rash on her face. The doctor wanted to see, so we fought The Waiting Room again. We now know that she's allergic to amoxicillin. So, we've got a new medicine to try. Hopefully this one will work. 

The kids and myself fought the evils of the Doctor's Waiting Room yesterday. Well, really it was just me doing the fighting because Vance didn't seem to mind playing with the disregarded toys of an extremely snotty, dirty-faced little boy. Hello sanitizer! 

Turns out Vaughn has a double ear infection. I'm hoping that this is a one time thing and that it doesn't mean that she has inherited her father's bad ears. 

After Vaughnie's re-check in 10 days for clear ears, I think I'm going to look for a new doctor. I didn't really have a good experience yesterday. 





Monday, February 23, 2009

Weekend Update!

Updated @ 9:13: Just made Vaughn a doctors appointment for 2:45 this afternoon. Only our second time at this doctor - will see how everything goes. The first receptionist seemed to be clueless on the phone. She was having trouble finding us in the computer and asked 3 different times, "Are you sure she doesn't have any other names?" Yes. I am quite positive my daughter only has or goes by one name. 



A lot of firsts this weekend. Vaughnie has figured out how to crawl up the steps.
She has learned how to pull herself up to standing. (This was her actual first time doing so in the picture, taken by my shaky camera phone.)

And we took Vance to the Science Center. He's into dinosaurs right now so we thought he'd enjoy seeing Sue. He got really scared of the dinosaurs that move and growl and is still processing why the little one was lying on the ground "with red on his body". (The display he's standing in front of features a T. Rex and his newest prey, a triceratops with bloody marks on the side of his body.) He was so concerned when he saw it. He's a compassionate little guy.


Justin and I are thinking that we're catching the kids' cold again, so that's great news. We all keep giving different strains of it to each other. I'll be calling Vaughn's doctor today to schedule an appointment for her. No fever, just a running nose, a horrible cough, not much of an appetite, and trouble sleeping. I'm not one to rush the kids to the doctor every time they sneeze - I know a cold has to run its course. But it's been over a week now and she's not showing any signs of improvement, so hopefully the doctor can help. 

Saturday, February 21, 2009


Thursday, February 19, 2009

No more Racecarts

First things first, we did not get to see Lost or Top Chef last night, so no spoilers. 


However, last night, we did get to push the Racecart with a bad wheel at Home Depot filled with two cranky kids. Actually it only held one kid. We didn't know the seatbelt was broken, so Vaughnie kept sliding out, so we had to hold her. Sounds easy, but she's squirmy and hard to hold when both parties involved are wearing winter coats. Ever try to make decisions and make sense out of things while holding a slippery and cranky infant, repremanding a 3 year old who keeps climbing in and out of the Racecart, keeping the cart clear from the other customers, and it's like 500 degrees in the store?  

Yup, we were that couple last night. 

Turns out the bathroom fixtures we picked won't work with the plumbing that we have, so we either find new fixtures or he has to tear walls open. And it's never easy because the brand we need doesn't make certain fixtures that we need. So we have to mix brands therefore try to match styles and shop for them at different stores. Should have totally went to a plumber's supply shop in the first place and am paying the price now. After I drop Vance off at school this morning I will be making a bee-line to Lowe's in Chesterfield. Turns out that the shower/tub fixture that I need for Vance's bathroom is in low supply there. And their the only ones that carry the kind of Roman tub fixture that I need. My sanity depends on those fixtures being there today.  

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Today is Day One of construction for us. Mr. Fix-It is here and has been working all morning. Today he's working on the electrical. I have been doing my best to keep Vance off the ladders that are sprinkled around the upstairs. We've played all sorts of things imaginable, made a batch of granola bars (if they come out good I'll share the recipe), and have played games on the computer. I'm pretty much out of good ideas and do not know what to do with the kids now. The afternoon is not looking up.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Vaughn ran out of sleep around 4:15 this morning. We've fielded a bunch of other issues this morning and I'm feeling like it's going to be a long day.


Sunday, February 15, 2009

Butternut Squash, Bacon, and Goat Cheese Pasta



This is one of my favorites. Cutting the squash is a bitch, but it's well worth it in the end. This recipe is from the Real Simple December 2004/January 2005 issue.

6 slices bacon (I tend to use turkey bacon, but whatever)
1 butternut squash - peeled, seeded, and diced, 4-5 cups
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1.5 cups chicken broth
1 tsp. salt
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1 lb. cooked linguine (I've used spaghetti and even penne - the squash won't mind if you don't)
1 tsp. olive oil
black pepper

Cook your bacon. If you use real bacon, leave 2 tbsp. of the grease in the pan. Turkey bacon won't leave much grease, so just add some olive oil to your skillet for the next step. Crumble or cut the bacon and put aside. Add the squash and the garlic to the skillet and saute over medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Stir in broth and salt. Cover and let simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. (Mine always cooks a little faster, when it's soft, it's done.) Add half of the goat cheese and stir well to combine. Add mixture to cooked pasta and toss to coat. Drizzle with olive oil and add bacon, remaining goat cheese, and pepper. Enjoy.

I'm not joking about cutting the squash. If you're not careful you could lose a digit. I wear gloves which makes the task even more tricky. Not because I'm going for extra difficulty points, but for the stickiness. I've cut a ton of squash, but one left my hands sticky for days, so I error on the side of caution.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Vaughnie



Silly picture of Vaughn. 9 months old. Still no idea who she looks like.

Valentine's Day

So. What's more annoying than baby gates? Having a 3 year old who knows how to operate them. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. If Vaughnie starts crawling toward the gate Vance will stop what he's doing, run toward it and suddenly decide that he needs something on the other side. I know his excitement will wear off soon, but it's driving me nuts! 


We're gearing up for Valentine's around here. Vance and I got crazy with potato stamps and construction paper yesterday, so the house is looking festive. Our plans tomorrow will be based on how Vance is feeling. His cold is in full swing. He's coughing, dripping, and all around nasty right now. 



Hope everyone has a great Valentine's Day tomorrow! 

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Why was Top Chef foggy last night? Does this make sense to anyone? The set for the elimination challenge looked foggy. Bad lighting or something, I guess. Their chef whites seemed to be illuminated and it was hard on your eyes. I love Carla and Fabio. 


Survivor starts tonight and I'm pretty excited about it. I'm also excited about pizza tonight, as I've been craving Papa John's for quite some time now. 

The running is killing me and after each run I call my sister to tell her how awful it was and how I'm wavering about wanting to do a 3k. I know to many a 3k is nothing, but I don't like to run at all. So why am I continuing to run? Peer pressure. And I like how I feel after I've completed each run. Hmmph.....

Vance is home from school today. He has no fever, feels fine, but has a sporadic cough that sounds nasty. It's one of those coughs that would make me cringe if I heard another kid doing it out in public. So, I'm keeping him home to not infect his classmates. He really wanted to go to school today, so it was a tough decision. We didn't leave the house yesterday, so today is probably going to kill me. I have 2 or 3 errands that I have to run, so hopefully that will be enough time outside the house to keep me sane today. I may have mentioned that Vance does not play well by himself, so it looks like the Kickety Kick Ball tournament will continue today too.

Time to get moving.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Gated Community

Vaughnie has mastered the crawl. Two baby gates went up yesterday, and the third one for the stairs will go up this weekend. She was into everything yesterday and it's obvious the house isn't ready for a small explorer. Tot Locks will probably have to go up this weekend too. I have a feeling Daisy's food and water will have to find a new home outside the gates too. 


I remember how excited we were when we took down the gates when Vance was old enough to open them. Like the Berlin wall! Freedom! No walls! No eyesores!   

This house really isn't compatible. It's very open and we'd need a whole wall of fencing to contain her where it would be ideal. Like that house in that silly baby magazine where they sell products to protect every single thing in the house, including a helmet for crawlers so they don't bump into anything with their heads! Silly! 

Baby up! Gotta run!

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

According to Vance, Valentine's Day is when the beaver comes and looks out his hole. 


His class Valentine's Day party is today, so we've been gearing up for that. We did simple treat bags for his friends and Homemade Oreos for the teachers. I love those cookies but will not make them again until the kids have moved out and can handle their own problems. (The cookies take FOREVER to make and not having a solid block of non-kid time makes it tougher.) The recipe is on the sidebar, if anyone is interested. In the original recipe I said to half the filling ingredients, but I take that back. I ran out yesterday and had to go thin because I didn't want to make more.

We had someone out yesterday to give us a bid on our laundry list of things we want to do to the house. It'll be interesting to see what the quote is. He said we should have something by Wednesday. 

Gotta run.

Friday, February 06, 2009

One year ago today





One year ago today, we were feeling the effects of our 2nd blizzard in Wisconsin. At this time we were also recovering from The Sickness of 2008. 

I was pregnant with Vaughn and was trying to beat a sinus infection without medicine. It was the sickest I ever remember being and I ended up taking the medicine. My teeth ached so bad I thought about removing them myself just to get some relief. Justin was also sick with a bad sinus infection. He even postponed a business trip and that's pretty big for someone who doesn't even take sick days. 

This was also the time that Vance was introduced to TV. Up until this point he really didn't watch. We found one show that he liked, taped every one and he'd watch them over and over. The show was Super Why and to this day, even in the summer, when I hear the theme song from that show I'm taken back to these cold days.  


Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Meal times have been tough with Vance lately. He won't eat anything.


I just poured out some elbow macaroni on a jelly roll pan for him to play with his trucks in and he's crunching away on the uncooked pasta. 

He won't eat it cooked. Kids...

Updated to add: I felt the OC Housewives were painful to watch last night. Gretchen's laugh is awful. Lynne is awful. Boring. Despite this we'll still be having "normal" tacos just as Vicki and Donn did. We haven't had "normal" tacos in quite some time and they looked really good.  

I guess I'll be sticking around because the dishwasher is in and doesn't appear to be leaking. I'm still getting acquainted with our newest appliance. The inside is a lot different than our old one and I don't like change. Sounds silly to be fretting over the placement of dishes in the washer, but that's me. Bottles and everything that goes along with them make things more complicated. 

Week 2, day 3 of running. I almost didn't make it through today's run. I'm doubting my capabilities. 

Vaughnie is a crawler now. She officially started on the 2nd. 

I need help with Valentine's. Paper cards or cute little gift bags with something simple inside? This is Vance's first year giving them out. I'm a little excited about it, but don't want to be that Mom. The info sheet about the party that he brought home from school yesterday specifically mentioned the word 'Card' as in, "Your child may bring Valentine Cards to exchange with their classmates. Please bring 10 cards." Hmmmm.......

This post sucks, I know, but it's this or nothing. I'm under the gun right now and have no time to revise! 

Tuesday, February 03, 2009

Since we've moved in to this house it's been one cluster after another. No time to go into too much detail, but every person we've had out to install or service something has had to come back once, twice, four times to fix a mistake that they've made. 


Today is New Dishwasher Day again all over. If this one leaks, or the installer can't hook it up properly in one visit, or if anything doesn't go as planned, I'm outta here. 

Monday, February 02, 2009

I'm loving all of this fabric right now. I think the mustaches are my favorite.  


Here Chicky, Chicky, Chicky


When we're in the mood for roasted chicken, I just buy one pre-made. Touching meat of any kind grosses me out, even more so when it's in whole animal form. At the grocery store I was ambitious. 

When it was Chicken Night, I gloved up and shook the innards right out. That's right, shook. There was no way I was sticking my hand up that chicky. I loosely followed a Tyler Florence recipe, but not really. I tossed fingerling potatoes and carrots in salt, pepper, and olive oil. I did the same with the chicken, added a few more seasonings and a few bay leaves. I put the veggies in the bottom of my pot, put the chicken on top and cooked it for an hour and a half on 350. While it was cooking I called my sister and told her I would never do this again. 

I took the bird out, let it rest, then cut it apart. It was really good. It could have used a few more seasonings, but I was happy with the outcome. The veggies were actually really good too. So, I'm thinking I might try it again. Maybe...

Sunday, February 01, 2009

Rock N' Roll



Happy Birthday Charity! Here's wishing you more Prickly Pear Margarita's at the Pink Taco!

 

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