merley_edithur

Just wanted to give people a head's up that grocery stores seem to be having a problem out-of-date products on their shelves. Not sure what the cause is though I could make some guesses, but the bottom line is please be sure to check the expiration dates.

Co-worker got food poisoning from a product he bought Saturday that had expired in early October. Yuck! That might be more extreme but I've noticed quite a few products either really close or past their dates at several different stores. Hope it's not a trend.

Stolen from white_jenna

* Grab the nearest book.
* Open the book to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions if you want to.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the cool book, or the intellectual one: pick the CLOSEST.

"I stood resolute, and whispered, 'Forgive!"

I'm going to miss the pool when it closes at the end of summer. So fun going with dd and spending hours splashing and playing. It helps that she gets exhausted and it makes naptime very easy. :)
Met some nice mommies there today that seemed pretty normal. That's a big deal in this area. The mommies that go on Tuesdays are really neurotic and pretty much a stereotype for annoying parents. People really shouldn't be hypersensitive about what pool tool their child gets. And one should certainly not stalk pool toys for their children, especially when the children aren't even interested in it.

I really am too much of a loner but people usually irritate the crap out of me. I'm not interested in competing with you and I'm not interesting in playing the "I'm better than you because we only eat organic food" game. It makes me want to say that I think children should be made to eat a spoonful of pesticide with dinner. It's amazing how often one can insert a comment about only letting their kids drink organic milk into a pool situation (where people rarely bring milk at all). So it was a nice change of pace to interact with women who weren't trying to one up each other for the best mommy award. In fact, one let their child eat a goldfish off the sidewalk when the 2yo dropped it. That made me love her.

I'm spending a lot more time at the pool now that my company had everyone take a 20% cut in salary by losing a day of work. I'm getting my portfolio redone and working on my resume but I really love the job I have and the whole situation is sad. Part of me thinks I could get away with staying at home with dd and somehow we could make it work financially. We probably could but there goes the dream of getting a house any time soon. And I don't think I want to stay home full time. I think I would become one of those neurotic women that doesn't have enough to do but obsess over their children. It would be nice to be able to only work three days a week and have four days home with dd.

I'm just rambling now as a way to put off working out. Better go make good use of the limited nap time and get my butt on the elliptical machine.

Spent Thursday night and Friday morning at the pool. Attempted to clean a little during dd's nap but that didn't really happen. Packed everything for the fireworks picnic and prepared Mar-a-Largo Turkey burgers to fire up over the weekend. It's not your typical cheeseburger but OMG, I love them.

Recipe here: http://www.oprah.com/foodhome/food/recipes/200805/food_20080516_burger.jhtml

Due to rain and an annoying park services order, the firework picnic ended up back at our house and not DC. Hey, at least we were dry and didn't have a screaming 2yo to console. It's the little things really. But had the family over and a good time was had by all. Note to self, it's very difficult to bend over and safely grab lit sparklers while keeping the hula hoop going. It can be done, to be sure, but it's tricky. :)

( cut for length )

( The Precious )

Had to share. This has to be one of the weirdest and coolest things I've ever watched. Animation on public walls? Amazing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuGaqLT-gO4

No, I haven't given up on my journal but things have been crazy recently on an origami project I've been working on. The next two weeks are going to be INSANE! So wish me luck and in the meantime, check out one of the pieces I will be featuring. This is all folded from a single sheet of paper. Amazing!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sipmab/755660732/in/set-72157600600465209/

He finally remembered my Happy Sandwich! It's my post Thanksgiving Sandwich, which is way more important to me than the Thanksgiving dinner. And although it may sound gross, it's the greatest sandwich ever. First, you start with thick white bread, toasted to a light golden brown. No whole grains here! Mayo on the top and bottom slice. Layer slices of cold, leftover turkey breast. Salt & Pepper. Then comes the best part: layers and layers of Ruffles Potato Chips. Lightly smash the top slice of bread down, just enough to hold it together but not so much you crush those chips completely. On the side are slices of Dill pickle that can be added to individual bites, no pickle juices messing up this sandwich.

Pure decadence and pure happiness. MMMMMMMMMM

I love sandwiches and there are certain ones that I get pretty passionate about. There is one that has always caused me to jump up and down with glee. It has to be perfect though. This is one sandwich that no compromises can be made. I've been this way for as long as I can remember. It's kinda obsessive actually. Last night I was shocked to find out that dh has no idea what this sandwich is. How can he not know my happy sandwich? I feel like our whole marriage is a lie.

My Favorites. (number 4 and 5 are actually tied)
1. ????
2. ???? (he couldn't remember the runner up either!)
3. Grilled Cheese with Tomato (true happiness requires tomato soup as well)
4. Zero's Grinder
5. Cheesecake Factory's Grilled Chicken & Avocado Club with Chipotle Mayo
6. Jack's Cloak & Dagger (pastrami with cole slaw)

I know, my job is weird, but I need to come up with animals (or plant/insects) that are amazing examples of evolution and adaptation. For example, the poison dart frog, the arctic fox, cacti, pitcher plants. What animals have specific traits that allow them to seriously thrive. They can be unusual and weird, but I need to be able to purchase photos of them and nothing scary. Bats for example. Very cool, but to the average person, they don't exactly have a positive connotation. I'm desperate. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I love February 29th. I always think of it as a rare, magical day much like the city of Brigadoon. It's like waking up in a parallel world where today doesn't count. It may be childish, but it makes be feel like today is enchanted and anything is possible.

Why is it that some of the easiest and simpliest jobs are the ones that drive you crazy? Have a project that should only have taken 20 minutes tops and now it's sucking up my entire week because of other people's stupidity.

GRRRRRR!

Does anyone have any favorite veggie side dishes that are really easy to make? I'm falling too much into a steamed broccoli/squash rut. I would consider microwaved sweet potatoes with cinnamon a brilliant suggestion.

It's hard to believe my dd turned 2yo today. Time seriously just goes too fast. Lame as it is, I was tearing up this morning thinking my baby wasn't a real baby anymore. It's just not fair!

Okay, enough whining. I'm just going to have to accept my baby growing up until that growth stunter I ordered off ebay comes in. In the meantime, I'm thinking chocolate chip pancakes for dessert tonight. Her party isn't until next week but you have to have something special for your big day! It's either that or French toast.

Yes, I know, I'm lame BUT I'm really excited that I just ordered a hula hoop! Someone stole my hoop in college and I haven't done it since. I wonder if I can remember any of my old tricks. :)

Oh, and if you are interested in trying this, don't get a kid's hoop. You need one that is adult sized a comes up to your chest.

Not to be mean because I love my dentist, but there must be something a bit off by someone who can enjoy drilling down someone's teeth. The noise. OMG, the noise just makes the hair stand on end. I just had my first capped tooth (actually, it's a temporary cap right now). That grinding sound is horrific. The whole time I was thinking of scenes from Seven and from The Alienist. He's humming "You Raise Me Up" and grinding my teeth down at the same time. Not a fun day at the dentist, now I know why people get freaked out going there.

I didn't manage to make a card on Friday, but I did secure a great playlist, sushi and a kitchen torch for some amazing homemade creme brulee. I even got the house in decent order so I could relax. I think that was the real reason I was stressing out. I just can't relax when the house is messy. We had a fantastic Friday night. Saturday night was all about surprises when dh arranged for the grandparents to watch dd and made reservations at a restaurant we hadn't been to before. It's such a rare treat to go out that I think we get into a bit of a rut of going to places we feel are safe choices that won't disappoint. After dinner, it was off to see Argonautika which was a fantastic play about Jason and the Golden Fleece. We had so much fun that I think I will have to dedicate a series of letterboxes to the story...besides, there are so many possibilities for cool stamps and clues. I was looking for some inspiration and this is perfect.

I know Easter is far away but these things take time to plan! Inspired by The Washington Post competitions, we are making peep dioramas a tradition at our house. Would love if anyone wants to join in. I'm just beginning to think of concepts so suggestions are welcome as well. And in case you have no idea what I'm talking about, here are a couple links. You won't be able to see the Post one unless you are registered though.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/moocow/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/gallery/070402/GAL-07Apr02-69859/index.html

I've been really bad. Things have been so crazy at work and I've had to do a lot of extra hours that I don't have my valentine's day playlist finalized (it's close but the order isn't completed), don't have a card made and only vaguely have a plan for tomorrow that involves sushi. Thankfully, I have tomorrow off so there will be a trip to Wegmans. I've got to also find a kitchen torch because I'm making creme brulee and dh has wanted a kitchen torch for some time. No idea why really but I guess there is something cool about owning a flame thrower? He mentioned a surprise tonight and now I feel guilty because I wasn't planning on doing anything today. Hopefully I can get that done during lunch today. I know he has set up a babysitter for Saturday night so something is going on there and right now, I'm not enjoying the excitement and anticipation as much as I'm stressing over getting everything done tomorrow. Deep breath. Time to relax and just enjoy the holiday because at the very least, I'm getting some wasabi tomorrow! Hmm, perhaps I should pick up some oysters too?

Turns out anti-tv girl has gotten sucked into the boob tube. I've been feeling really disconnected with the things I enjoy doing. Working and having a 2 yo eats away a lot more time than I imagined possible. Seems like I have the TV on every night recently. It started out so innocently: snuggly on the couch with dh after a long day at work and putting the baby to bed. We just don't go out as much as we use to and over time, this has led to watching more and more TV. I've got to get back on track because honestly, it's boring to only have an episode synopsis of Lost to account for my evening. I've been really good the past week working on some illustrations for dd's room and a huge origami project at work. The origami is fascinating and I've become completely obsessed with it. Check out some of these guy's work below. Amazing!
I've really let too many things I love doing slide. Just working on those illustrations this week has made me realize how much I miss actually creating something so my goal is to turn off the TV and bring more creativity to my life. Since it's too cold to go hiking, now is the perfect time to plan some letterboxes and stamp designs. There are plenty of things I could be doing and I've just got to stop using our dd as an excuse to not do them. I'm really disappointed that I allowed myself to get this way but on the plus side, I'm excited to get to work on some projects and I haven't felt that way in a long time.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sipmab/sets/72157600600465209/

http://www.langorigami.com/art/gallery/gallery.php4?name=scaled_koi

Oh, and just to clarify, dd only gets to watch the occasional meerkat episode so thankfully I'm not rotting her head with it.