It's A Good Thing (174/365)

 
"I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond.”

Mae West (American Actress and sex symbol, 1892-1980)

TIME:  8:42 PM
PLACE:  Kitchen Counter
SUBJECT:  Carrot-Ginger Cupcake

I really was SuzyHomemaker today.  I ran several errands in the morning with the kiddos - Post Office, the newspaper to place the yard sale ad, City Hall to purchase a yard sale permit (our city requires one), the Library, Farm Fresh convenience store for our milk in glass bottles, the Farmer's Market for broccoli, carrots and nectarines, and the butcher for chicken breasts for dinner tonight.  Are you tired yet?  This afternoon, I went downtown by the library to meet a buyer for a Craigslist sale.  Then it was back home to make dinner.  We had Korean Grilled Chicken & Sesame Noodles with Vegetables.  For dessert I made Carrot-Ginger Cupcakes - the recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook.  The cream cheese icing is straight from my trusty Betty Crocker cookbook.  DramaQueen made a face when I was mixing it up, but she tried the batter and changed her mind quickly.  I'm sure there are no calories in these cupcakes, the recipe only called for 1-1/2 cups of vegetable oil...do you think that the oil counteracted the health benefits of the 2-1/2 cups of shredded carrots that were in there?
Nah, I don't think so either.

Eggs-xactly (101/365)

 
""A likely story indeed!" said the Pigeon, in a tone of the deepest contempt. "I've seen a good many little girls in my time, but never one with such a neck as that! No, no! You're a serpent; and there's no use denying it. I suppose you'll be telling me next that you never tasted an egg!"
"I have tasted eggs, certainly," said Alice, who was a very truthful child; "but little girls eat eggs quite as much as serpents do, you know."
"I don't believe it," said the Pigeon; "but if they do, then they're a kind of serpent: that's all I can say."

Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson] (1832-1898), British author, mathematician, clergyman. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, ch. V, Macmillan (1865)

TIME: 8:09 PM
PLACE:  Kitchen table
SUBJECT: Gratuitous dyed egg picture

I hard-boiled 34 eggs today.  10 eggs were eaten soon after boiling, by DramaQueen, her best friend and StellaDella.  1 egg was eaten by HandsomeHusband after dinner, and 1 egg was shared by DQ and SD after being dropped on purpose accidentally while we were dyeing them this evening.  So, if you've been keeping score, it's 12 eggs consumed, 22 eggs remaining.   SD is still campaigning to eat another egg before she goes to bed.  *Sigh* Apparently, I need to make hard-boiled eggs more often.  

Look Ma, No Feet! (084/365)

 
“The politician is an acrobat; he keeps his balance by doing the opposite of what he says.”

Maurice Barres (French Novelist and Politician, 1862-1923)

TIME: 6:52 PM
PLACE:  The backyard
SUBJECT: MonkeyBoy

Here is MonkeyBoy doing a handstand.  He was doing handstands, flips and cartwheels in the yard and wanted me to take a picture of him.  I must have taken over 200 shots to try and capture this boy.  I'm still not very happy with this shot.  All I can say is thank goodness for digital cameras and Photoshop!

I Can Read With My Eyes Shut (061/365)

 
“The more that you read,
the more things you will know.
The more that you learn,
the more places you'll go."

Dr. Seuss, I Can Read with My Eyes Shut!, New York: Random House, 1978

TIME: 4:43 PM
PLACE: Living Room couch
SUBJECT: MonkeyBoy, StellaDella and DramaQueen

  As many of you may know, especially if you have school-age children, today is the birthday of Theodore Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, aka Theo. LeSieg (which is "Geisel" spelled backwards.  He used this name for those books that he wrote, but others illustrated).   Dr. Seuss was born on this date - March 2 - in 1904.  He wrote over 60 children's books, of which two of my very favorites are "The Foot Book" & "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish".  Go read one of his books tonight in honor of his birthday.  

And I have a confession:  I fully admit to the staging of this photo purely for blog fodder.  I have no regrets.

The Game of Life (059/365)

“If you take the game of life seriously, if you take your nervous system seriously, if you take your sense organs seriously, if you take the energy process seriously, you must turn on, tune in, and drop out”

Timothy Leary (American writer, psychologist, futurist, and advocate of psychedelic drug research, 1920-1996)

TIME: 8:35 PM
PLACE: Living Room Coffee Table
SUBJECT: The Game of Life 

DramaQueen is spending the night at a friend's house and  HandsomeHusband is attending a Rotary Club dinner tonight.  That left MonkeyBoy, StellaDella and myself at home this Saturday evening.  We ordered Chinese takeout and played the Game of Life.  MonkeyBoy won with $1,480,000.  I came in second, and StellaDella came in third.  She didn't care, she was just happy to be playing a "big kid's game" with Mom and her brother.  No turning on, tuning in or dropping out was attempted. ;)

Paddle Faster, I Hear Banjos (053/365)

 
“Pray to God, but continue to row toward shore."

Russian Proverb

TIME: 2:51 PM
PLACE: Cabela's
SUBJECT: Kayak Display

Ahhh, Sundays...today started with a delicious brunch with a family friend.   The children were surprisingly well-mannered.  No spills, whining or bickering.  A success!  We then took our friend to the airport.  She is flying to Florida for a 10-day vacation...the lucky lady.  Afterwards, HandsomeHusband had suggested going to Cabela's since it is close to  the airport.  So we wandered around there for a bit, and then some other stores that were in the attached outlet mall.  HH purchased a new pair of brown shoes that he needed, the kids played on the indoor playground and then we left.  A quick stop by a local volunteer fire department for their BBQ fundraiser and we made it home.  Now I need to do laundry and some picking up around the house.  Nothing says "I love you" like a drawer full of clean underwear.

Rolling in the Dough (050/365)

"I got sick of the dough, and thought I'd go on the loaf."

Curly Howard (American comedian, vaudevillian and actor, 1903-1952)

TIME: 11:20 AM
PLACE: Kitchen counter
SUBJECT: Homemade playdough

StellaDella wanted to play with playdough today and our store-bought stuff was all dried out.  So we made some.  I really like this dough.  It's much softer than the manufactured brands and you don't have all those "Play-doh crumbs" to deal with. 

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Homemade Playdough Recipe

2 cups flour
2 cups warm water
1 cup salt
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon cream of tartar (this is optional but if you have it use it-it makes the dough more elastic)
food coloring

Mix all ingredients except for food coloring in a saucepan.  Stir and cook over low heat until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan.  This will take about 10 minutes or so.  The dough will be thick and resemble mashed potatoes.  Poke it with your finger.  If the dough doesn't stick to your finger it's ready.  If it is sticks, then cook it a little more.

Turn out the dough on a plastic mat (I use my trusty Tupperware pie mat) and start kneading when it cools down.  If you want to color your dough, make a divot in the middle and add your food coloring.  I divided up my dough into 4 equal balls - StellaDella wanted 4 colors.  Knead until the color has worked its way through the dough. 

That's it!  Store in a air-tight container.  This dough lasts a long time.  The last batch I made lasted 6+ months!

Somewhere Over the Rainbow (049/365)

 
"Be thou the rainbow in the storms of life. The evening beam that smiles the clouds away, and tints tomorrow with prophetic ray.”

Lord Byron (English Romantic poet and satirist, 1788-1824)

TIME: 12:11 PM
PLACE: Mother's Day Out - Purple Room
SUBJECT: Paper Rainbows

Today was my day to volunteer at StellaDella's Mother's Day Out program.  The program requires that a parent volunteers in a 3 or 4 year old classroom four times each year.  This is my second time helping out in this particular 3 year-old classroom.  My niece (my younger sister's child) is in this room.  Volunteering involves helping out with the projects, reading books, making sure hands are washed after using the restroom, refereeing in the gym, providing a helping hand opening lunch boxes and cleaning up all messes.  The kids made the paper rainbows pictured above today.  I've tried to get HandsomeHusband to take a turn, but I guess my powers of persuasion aren't all that great in this area.  It's really not so bad.  That being said, this should be my final volunteer day.  A permanent helper has taken over the last 2 days I originally signed up for.  Woo Hoo - Sweet Freedom! 

Using Your Noodle (046/365)

 
"Oh look, it's Mr. Noodle's brother, Mr. Noodle."

Elmo (Sesame Street: Elmo's World, Kevin Clash - actor, 1998)

TIME: 11:31 AM
PLACE: The kitchen table 
SUBJECT: Handmade Wheat Noodles

The HandsomeHusband made lunch today:  Handmade wheat noodles, a red sauce with shrimp, mushrooms and Italian sausage, onions, garlic and Italian seasonings and on the side, a slaw with bacon.  It was very tasty.  The kids helped him unroll the noodles and place them on the plate to dry slightly before cooking.  He has made noodles before, but today was the first time he used wheat flour.  He's looking out for my fiber intake.  What a sweetheart!

Tea Time (036/365)

“Strange how a teapot
Can represent at the same time
The comforts of solitude
And the pleasures of company"

Zen Hakiu

TIME: 9:32 AM
PLACE: The kitchen
SUBJECT: Enameled tea kettle

This teapot sits on top of my refrigerator.  It originally belonged to my maternal grandmother, Mamie D---.  My mom told me that water was boiled in this kettle every day for tea, coffee, oatmeal, doing the dishes, cleaning and anything else that needed hot water, including baths.  The kettle now has rust spots and today I noticed a small hole has recently emerged through the rust on the bottom of the kettle.  Mineral deposits have long constricted the spout opening and coat the inside.  Although I cannot use it, I keep it for a connection to my ancestors and my past.  It reminds me that Grandma had a stove the same color as the kettle.  The stove had four gas burners, two gas ovens above and a wood burning oven down below.  It reminds me that when I was four,  I opened the door to the wood oven and found that Grandma and Grandpa stored their cereal and crackers there.  It reminds me that the gas burners had heavy covers on them that you lifted off with a special metal pry bar.  It reminds me that moments are the things that are remembered and kept forever.   

Snowman (029/365)

 
"Snowmen fall from heaven unassembled"

Unknown

TIME: 3:44 PM
PLACE: The front yard
SUBJECT: Snowman

The two older kids went back to school today.  They are off again tomorrow due to teacher's conferences.  StellaDella wanted to build a snowman so bad today.  I persuaded her to wait until her brother and sister came home from school.  Monkeyboy went out with her and built a snowman.  I provided the carrot, button eyes and bottle caps for the buttons.   Did you realize that snowmen are St. Louis Cardinal fans?  Spring training starts when the pitchers and catchers report in Jupiter, Florida on February 14th then work out the next day.   The first Grapefruit League game is February 28th, when the Cards host the Marlins.  Opening day at Busch Stadium is April 1st, vs. the Mets.  I'm ready to sit in the sun and enjoy some beer, a brat, peanuts and watch some baseball.

Snow Day (027/365)

"January brings the snow, makes our feet and fingers glow."

Sara Coleridge (English, author, translator, 1802-1852)

TIME: 10:31 AM
PLACE: The front door
SUBJECT: StellaDella's snow-covered pants and red boots

We had a snow day today.  Monkeyboy was up at 5:00am this morning raring to go outside and play in the snow.  It wasn't his day, but he volunteered to take the dog out, just so he could get out in the snow early.  StellaDella and DramaQueen went out mid-morning.  They didn't stay out long - it was quite cold! 

I have to learn to stop freaking out about the footprints and melting snow on the living room floor.  The floor is just a thing.  The water can be wiped up and it really doesn't do any damage to the laminate.  A day off of school because of the snow is such a big deal when you are young.  I remember my own snow days, and they don't include my mother getting upset about the snow tracked in the house.  I want my children to have good memories of days like today as well.

Picnic Bench (021/365)

"Nothing is more beautiful than the love that has weathered the storms of life. The love of the young for the young, that is the beginning of life. But the love of the old for the old, that is the beginning of things longer.”

Jerome K. Jerome (Novelist & Playwright, 1859-1927)

TIME: 1:38 PM
PLACE: Children's Playhouse: Backyard 
SUBJECT: Picnic bench

My dad built a picnic table and 2 benches 30+ years ago.  After we moved into our current home, he and Mom purchased a patio set and gave the table and benches to us.  The table has since fallen apart but the 2 benches remain.  The red stain is the original color and  then the set was painted gray.  The green blotches are from us using the benches as sawhorses when painting lumber for the rebuilding of the front porch.  This bench sits in the children's playhouse which has lattice work walls; thus the shadow patterns.

Dust (020/365)

 
"Excuse my dust"

Dorothy Parker (American short-story Writer and Poet, 1893-1967)

TIME: 2:53 PM
PLACE: My Bedroom 
SUBJECT: Dust on the chest of drawers

Isn't the sunlight streaming through the window radiant?  Doesn't it just illuminate the dust on top of the chest of drawers beautifully?  It's absolutely ethereal, is it not?

I can't believe that I just dusted 2 days ago and it's covered again!  Handsome Husband and I always marvel at the amount of dust that seems to build up in a short amount of time in our bedroom. The rest of the house doesn't seem to get so dusty so quickly, it's our room that is the dust magnet.  I don't even want to think of the dust bunnies under the bed!

Shave and a Haircut (015/365)

 

"Babies haven't any hair:
Old men's heads are just as bare;
From the cradle to the grave
Lies a haircut and a shave.

Samuel Goodman Hoffenstein (Writer, 1890-1947)

TIME: 12:23 PM
PLACE: Magic Comb Beauty Shop
SUBJECT: Glass Container of Combs

I had my hair cut and colored today at the beauty shop.  My hairdresser was able to get me in this week as she had a cancellation.  Woo-hoo!  It's been 8 weeks since my last cut.  I have a shorter layered style, so normally I get it cut every 5-6 weeks.  After that, it gets too long and drives me nuts!  I keep telling Carol, my hairdresser, (this is where StellaDella got the name for the Neighbor's picture) to stop putting more gray in every time she cuts it.  What's up with that?

Coupons (011/365)

“A man in love is like a clipped coupon -- it's time to cash in.”

Mae West (American Actress and sex symbol, 1892-1980)

TIME: 1:28 pm

PLACE: Dining Room Table

SUBJECT: Clipped Coupons

It is Sunday and that means coupons in the Sunday paper! WooHoo! I recently reorganized my coupon binder for the supermarket. I plan to track how much I save this year using coupons. The grand total so far: $14.00

To Market (008/365)

To market, to market, to buy a fat pig,

Home again, home again, jiggety jig.

To market, to market, to buy a fat hog,

Home again, home again, jiggety jog.

To market, to market, to buy a plum bun,

Home again, home again, market is done.

Mother Goose Rhyme

TIME: 1:36 pm
PLACE: Grocery store parking lot
SUBJECT: Grocery Cart

I went to the grocery store today with StellaDella.  $161.42 before coupons. $147.42 after. I saved $14.00! Yeah me!
This is the only photo I snapped today. I took it right before we went into the store. I wish I would have taken a picture of the cart without anything in the background but the parking lot. Live and learn - Next time, I'll know better and isn't that what this is all about?

Headlights (007/365)

"I replaced the headlights in my car with strobe lights, so it looks like I'm the only one moving.”

Stephen Wright (American Actor and Writer, b.1955)

TIME: 8:45 am

PLACE: The Backyard

SUBJECT: Jeep

Snow was swirling in the air as the kids were getting ready for school this morning. A light dusting covered the car. Soon the sun came out and melted it all away. The kids were disappointed.

Sodium Chloride (006/365)

“Take it with a grin of salt”

Yogi Berra (American professional Baseball Player & Manager. b.1925)

TIME: 6:42 pm
PLACE: By the Desk
SUBJECT: Salt for the Sidewalk

Because of icy conditions, school was called off and the kids were home today. Handsome Husband spread the salt on the steps and sidewalk before he left for work.

It's Not Over Until the Redhead Dances (004/365)

When the music changes, so does the dance.

African Proverb

TIME: 6:52 pm
PLACE: The living room
SUBJECT: StellaDella

Change has begun...the tree is down...the ornaments and decorations are packed up....StellaDella is dancing. Life is good.