I’m so excited to get to participate in Family Recipe Fridays over at Vanderbilt Wife. Jessie’s been hosting it for a few weeks now, but I haven’t been organized enough to get a recipe posted. Plus, I don’t have a lot of passed down family recipes. I come from a long line of amazing cooks, but there aren’t a lot of recipes floating around. My mema learned from watching her mother-in-law (her mom died when she was very young), my mom learned from watching my mema, and so on… When I ask for a recipe for something, I usually get a laugh.
And while I’m using trial and error to recreate some old family faves, I am building up a little repertoire of favorites for my little family of four. So, I thought I’d start with sharing the most requested by my peeps:
Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/3 cup shortening
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg, well beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 6 oz package milk chocolate chips
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla (yes, it’s expensive, but it makes a difference)
Cream shortening; add sugars and cream together until fluffy. Mix in the egg. Add flour, salt, and baking soda and mix. Stir in chocolate chips and vanilla. Drop by tablespoon (I use this medium cookie scoop) on baking stone. Bake approximately 13 minutes (probably less if you’re using a cookie sheet).
This doesn’t make a terribly large amount of cookies. You’ll want to double the recipe if you’re baking for more than just your family.
For more fun family recipes, head on over to Vanderbilt Wife.
So, if anyone asks, you can say that you read a very inspired post today.
This post by Oh Amanda really made me happy. I love the whole back to basics blogging thing. I love the standards she has set for herself. It’s so easy to get caught up in your stats and what companies are sending which bloggers to random exotic locations. It’s enough to make those without the moxy to self-promote quit blogging. (I should know. I quit.)
I am definitely not knocking those bloggers who are well-oiled, finely tuned marketing machines. It’s part of the mix. Just as the photographers, the comedians, and the inspirers are. What shouldn’t be part of the mix is all the hatin’. Mommy bloggers versus those who are “something more”… whatevs. Posers versus the real deal… whatevs.
We can’t all be the same.
I will never be as funny as Boomama. I’ll never be as crafty as Candace. I’ll never be as pure of heart as Amanda. I’ll never be as cool as Steph. I’ll never be as gosh darn cute as Trina. I’ll never be as talented as Carrie. I could go on. I probably should go on.
Ok, maybe I’ve gotten away from my original starting point. Let’s pretend I just constructed this kick-butt transitional sentence in which I have both sufficiently proven the last couple of paragraphs were relevant and brought you back to my original though, shall we?
My “manifesto” is this. (It’d be grand if you could pretend to care. K, thanks.)
1. I’ll review a product if I think it’s something I’d like to try or have tried.
2. I’ll offer a giveaway every stinkin’ chance I get. It’s just WAY fun to me.
3. I’ll sugar coat my thoughts only when I feel that *I* need to in order to maintain my sanity. (Or to prevent profanity.)
4. I promise to never give a red rat’s beehind about my stats. (I don’t even know how to monitor that sort of thing!)
Basically, I’ll be me. Maybe you’ll like it. (I won’t even lie, I desperately hope you will). But maybe you won’t. And that’s ok. (Oh, heck, who am I kidding? It’s really not ok, but I’ll manage).
…or catch up, if you must. Ketchup just kind of seemed to have a little more zing. And I like zing. And something on this blog should have some zing, since the design is about as far from zingy as a blog design could get. **Cough cough… hint hint… Mr Blog Designer, do you even read this anymore?!**
Lots of things going on at the Shoe house right now, but I have so very little bloggy mojo. (Could it be the design bringing me down? **cough**) Lack of mojo demands a list, right?!
1. Wog’s birthday party was a success. If you count success as paying $50 to rent a park pavillion, then having to share it with another group who didn’t pay and took up 4 of the 6 tables. The city did refund our money, but scolded us for not calling security to have them removed. Wog and his little friends had a blast though. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a single picture of the birthday boy that didn’t have his friends in it and editing them has proven me completely Photoshop deficient.
2. I’m about to dip my toe into the world of cloth diapering. I’m a little nervous. It could save us a ton of dough (like a ton), but what if it’s hard? I don’t do hard very well.
3. Wog is still doing great with the potty. The only problem is now he’s figured out that he doesn’t have to actually ring the potty. It’s just gross. If you’re looking for a stock tip, buy Clorox now!
4. I’m currently reading In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto by Michael Pollan. It’s totally changing the way I grocery shop. The premise is Eat Food. Not Too Much. Mostly Plants. I’m not finished with it (non fiction is such slow-going for me), but I would recommend it. Unfortunately, it’s making it harder for me to plan menus each week. A lifetime of consuming preservatives and relying on commercials to tell me what’s healthy, well that is a hard habit to break.
5. I usually rely on the library for all my fiction reading needs, but it’s also a GREAT place to test out a cookbook. If there’s a cookbook that I think I want, I check it out and take it home for a test drive. The most recent one I had to peek at was Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. It did not disappoint! I’ll be purchasing it in the very near future. And I hope to be sharing stories of all my homemade bread with all of Bloggyland.
I’m reading back over this post and wondering who is this girl who speaketh of cloth diapers, making her own bread and buying fresh vegetables?!
My mom might have me committed.
That might not be a bad idea.
Four weeks ago, when MDO ended for Summer break, we put Wog in big boy underwear and hoped for the best. You see, I am a very structured person and lover of rules and guidelines, except when it comes to parenting chores (and, yes, potty training is a chore and if you enjoyed it, I might be inclined to call you strange to your face). I’ve found that the occasional strong-willedness of my children can reduce me to an pile of inconsistent mush.
So, enter my “let’s try this and see what happens” method of parenting. (It’ll be all the rage soon–you’ll see.) And WOW, were we surprised! After the first day, there were no accidents of the “tee-tee” variety. And after four long, excrutiatingly messy, tear-filled days, he was dropping twosies in the potty like nobody’s business.
I’m almost embarrassed to tell you that he didn’t even wet at night. He started off sleeping in a Pull Up, but it was dry every single morning. So, when he started asking to sleep in his underwear, I let him. Two nights ago, he woke up at 11:30 at night, found his daddy, and enlisted him to help find the potty in the dark. I may have teared up with pride.
Before you hate me with my innovative parenting techniques and my genius child for our easy trek to freedom from the grips of Huggies, you should know that the Shoe house is not without it’s casualties. My uber cool shower curtain, the only one in existence on the planet that matches the icky green tile in my bathroom, was lost in one of the great Wog/poo clean up of 2009.
Rest in peace, fair tropical stripes.
My birthday is this week. The Big Three-Three. I remember when birthdays were a big deal. Sixteen, my first car. Twenty-one, hell bent on damaging my liver (legally). Those were big deals. Thirty, when you “really” become a grown-up. Wow, was that a big day, spent in a hospital attached to various and asundry monitors, nervously awaiting Wog’s arrival?! (Talk about plunging head first into adulthood… sheesh!) Thirty-three. Notsomuch.
Even though I’ll spend the day blowing up inflatable monkeys, counting paper plates, and buying bananas and juice boxes, all the while pretending that it doesn’t bother me in the least that I am not propped up in some spa, reading whether or not Rob & Kristen really are a couple, while someone rubs my feet and paints my toes a racy shade of red for my night out on the town with a very hot geek, I’ll be dreaming of of a day that’s all about me… a day that includes:
1. Weekend (or at least overnight) admission for two to Camp Spoilalot (aka Grandmama’s & Grandaddy’s)
2. Some sort of spa package that includes mani/pedi/massage.
3. The Mystic Tan
4. This dress
5. These shoes
6. This bag
7. This necklace
8. Dinner here
9. Drinks here
10. 10 to 12 hours of uninterrupted sleep
Yeah, I just tweeted that. I figured it’d be a good working title since I’m not even sure right now what this post is going to be about.
I guess I could explain the title/tweet. That’d be a start. The Shoe family has been in what I call “hurry-up-and-wait” mode for a long time. A few weeks ago, that shifted to “what-the-heck-is-going-on-can-we-please-get-some-closure” mode. And that’s still where we are. Today is the day we’re supposed to get some answers. Of course, Friday two weeks ago had the same promise. Today could be pretty darn uneventful.
I’ll bet you are feeling super duper clued in now, huh?
Let me help get your mind off of all that.
My dear sweet, potty-trained in days (I know, that’ll get a post of it’s own once I’m not so put out) Wog has been replaced. Living under my roof is a perpetually dissatisfied, contrary litle boy. He wakes up mad and goes to bed highly ticked off. The span of time in between finds him pushing his sister, throwing his toys, and hitting his mommy. Disobedience and defiance are his super powers.
And Bug… dear Lord, please let it be more teeth coming in and not just a personality disorder. I’m just sayin’.
I’m really not sure who cries the most each day. I’m pretty sure it’s me.
Yeah, sure, there are little bright spots when the two make each other laugh. Or Wog tells a joke or does an impersonation– I so love seeing his sense of humor develop. Or Bug tackles me for a kiss– that little chunk has some strength and likes to use it to spread love.
But right now, all the drama is just draggin’ me down, man.
Maybe it’s just the rain.
Which I am SO over, by the way.
Because I love Oh Amanda and because What Mommies Need is giving away a Vado, I’d like to show off my mulitasking skills and share a completely selfish Top Ten.
Hey, I’m only human.
So, here are the Top Ten Reasons I Need to Win a Vado, People:
1. It comes in pink.
2. It would fit in my small diaper bag (and since Wog is progressing quite nicely in the potty-training, I’ll be sporting my small diaper bag soon enough).
3. Heck, it’d fit in my pocket & I’m ALWAYS sporting those.
4. When Bug took her first series of steps, HH had the video camera at work with him — that would never happen if I won a Vado (see #1).
5. I might post a VLOG or two or eleven. (Not that I’m that interesting but my Southern accent is QUITE entertaining. Seriously, when I go to Montgomery, I get “say that again” quite a lot. If you’re not familiar with Alabama, Montgomery is our capital. It’s a place where they say “MONT-gum-ry” and “th’ guv-nah” — and they ask *me* to repeat myself.)
6. My my life is $100,000 waiting to happen. (I’m pretty clumsy.)
7.
8.
9. We’re working HARD to get into a house of our own, with a yard, neighbors, and a good school system (see #7 and #8), so we sure as heck can’t BUY one.
10. Did I mention I could win it in PINK?
Thank you for indulging me in pimpin’ out my blog for personal gain. Let us never speak of it again. Unless I win. Then, I’m afraid you’ll grow nauseous with all the speaking of it that will be done.
Have you ever felt someone lose respect for you. Like physically? What about a room full of people? Well it happened to me several weeks ago when I, in a total whatintheheckwereyouthinking moment, announced to my Sunday School class that I had just finished the Twilight series and was currently watching the movie every stinkin’ night while I rocketh the Bug-girl to sleep. And that I thought the vampires were hot. And that I painted my nails black for three months after watching The Craft back in college.
Yeah, once I start, there’s really no way to stop the flow of randomness from my mouth.
This also may explain why I don’t really have many friends.
All that to say, like a few other cool chicks I won’t name (but will certainly link to) I bigfatpuffyheart Twilight. The books. The movie (while not cinematic genius- the cast is spot-on and, well, hunky). The soundtrack. Love. It. All.
My new fave thing– TwiMamas. It’s all you need to feed your Twilight addiction (what, I’m the only one addicted?) — pics, news, contests, even links to Etsy shops that sell Twilight themed stuff. (Feel free to get me this for my birthday!)
My other fave — my new candy and my Sunday School bff who, while doesn’t have one iota of respect for my choice in literature, thinks I deserve cool candy.
Oh, and if anyone in my Sunday School class asks, I’m totally reading C.S. Lewis now.
If you’re fairly new around here, you should know that when I worked full-time, I worked for a department store group. My job was to keep the cosmetics counters of each store properly assorted and fully stocked. And while the discount was sweet, the vendors were even sweeter. They kept me swimming in the fanciest of eye cream, lip gloss, and fragrance. They pretty much turned me into a cosmetic junkie.
Of course, when you lose the discount and 50% of the family income, the COSMETICS line item of the budget is the first to go. I dreaded the day that all my freebies ran out and I would have to , *gasp*, shop at the drugstore. Slowly, but surely, I have started running out of my necessities. And slowly, but surely, I am loving the drugstore.
Yes, L-O-V-I-N-G it!
So, I thought I’d share my Top Ten Drugstore Finds (so far anyway):
1. Caress Exotic Oil Infusions Cream Oil Bodywash - Keeps my skin SOFT even in the dead of winter with gas heat blaring!
2. L’oreal Sublime Glow in Fair This has a very subtle color for pasty folks like me and very minimal self-tanning smell. It’s there, mind you, but very minimal.
3. L’oreal EverPure Moisture Shampoo Sulfate-free, 100% vegan, preserves your hair color better…yay! The best thing about it, though, is the smell. Just like Aveda without the price tag!
4. Clean & Clear Soft In-Shower Facial OHMYGOSH! My skin feels amazing after using this. But it’s pretty scrubby and menthol-y, so if you don’t like that sort of thing, move along.
5. Burt’s Bees Lip Shimmer - Fig This is moisturizing, smells like peppermint and the fig color is a wonderful natural color!
6. AcneFree Purifying Cleanser I found this by Googling “Proactiv knock off”– seriously. My skin was getting out of hand, but after two days of using this it was clear. I kid you not. It’s pretty strong and can be drying, so I use it for a week to 10 days and then switch back to a gentle cleanser for a few weeks. What’s also great is that you don’t have to buy the whole system. I found it at Ulta for $5.99 (plus I used a 20% coupon from the paper), but CVS and Walmart both carry the cleanser as a stand-alone purchase, too.
7. L’oreal Bare Naturale Concealer This covers so much better than I was expecting it to. After about a month or so I thought it started settling into the creases under my eyes a little, but I LOVE it for covering blemishes since it’s not at all cakey.
8. Maybelline Define-A-Brow Eyebrow Pencil I credit Moriah (via Chic Critique) with this find. It’s awesome… even if you’re not an artist!
9. Curel Life’s Stages Comfort Moisture Cream - Pregnancy & Motherhood To be honest, I think Curel has discontinued this product. I saw it at Wag’s seriously marked down (and bought every last cotton-pickin’ bottle they had). So, if you see this, buy it. You don’t have to be pregnant. Or a mother. You just need skin that wants to be soft.
10. Vaseline Petroleum Jelly Cream Don’t bother with fancy foot creams, just slather this on and throw on a pair of socks before bed. The creamy formula is much less messy than the regular Vaseline. It’s a must for elbows too!
Even back in college when I used to write short stories and poetry (the cool kind that didn’t rhyme), I never fancied myself a writer. It was more of an emotion dump for me. Fortunately (and yet, strangely enough, unfortunately), I haven’t been dumped in eons so I don’t really get the out the old notebook for a daily or even weekly dose of alliteration.
These days find me with feelings of pride over a dinner that’s turned out to be both delicious and healthy, elation that Bug is walking all over the place, nervousness about potty-training Wog, frustration with not being able to find time to do a simple exercise DVD, ticked off ( -edness) because Wog woke Bug up from yet another nap, hope that maybe we’ll be homeowners soon, and sadness that I missed One Tree Hill yet again.
So, I blog.
Because, really, who wants to hear a haiku about pee on my couch?
**chirp chirp**
That’s what I thought.
