She Likes Purple

Me, Elsewhere

Inspired by Janet, I kicked off my Martha & Me series on Style Lush this week. I made lemon salt scrub and packaged it up as gifts for some friends. Homemade can be easy. This is a new concept for me!

It was wedding week last week on SL. I posted a really pretty engagement ring from Etsy and colorful shoes for the bolder brides out there.

At Food Lush, I rounded up cupcake stands, which Mike would say is the most ridiculous purchase ever but Mike is the kind of man who thinks you can never have too many power cords, so what does he know.

Also, the Very Best Hummus Ever. (Come to Texas and try it for yourself.)

Finally, there's a giveaway up at Food Lush for a wine bag made specifically for our readers. I love it but can't win it, so go go go comment and enjoy it for yourself!

I am a runner

I'm running a 10K this weekend, my second ever. I'm nervous but excited.

When I finish, no matter how long it takes, I'm heading straight to my computer to click purchase on this "I am a runner" charm necklace.

Well, right after I take a nap.

Home Sweet (Needs Some Work) Home

We've been in our house two years this upcoming summer. Holy crap! That's crazy to type out. I love our little place. It's not the biggest or the newest or the most updated, but it's quirky, it's unique, it's warm, it's so us.

When we moved in, we didn't have to do much except put our touches on things and we've certainly tried to do just that. We've done little things. We've thought about doing bigger things, but we're both super overwhelmed by things like this, I think. We know what we like, what looks good, but getting it from our heads to our walls is the tough part.

I wish I could just hire someone, but that's not a possibility unless someone's willing to decorate my house in exchange for appreciation and cupcakes.

There has to be a way to identify what we want to do, make a list of those things, and then do what we can do even if what we can isn't much. It'll still be more than looking around confusedly, like we're doing now.

I thought it might be fun and super-duper helpful to do just that here, with pictures, lists, yada yada. So, I thought I'd do this month-by-month, room-by-room. Listing what I don't like, what I'd like to do, and get your input on how to make small changes possible.

This could be crazy inducing, don't I know, but I think it could also be pretty damn helpful for you to help me brainstorm solutions. Organizational stuff, maximizing space, cheap decorating tricks, etc.

I'm going to start in April, after I've wrapped up Biggest Blogging Loser, which is amazing and fantastic but time-consuming, too. (The running it, not the participating in it. Although thinking so much about cheeseburgers I'm not eating is arguably time-consuming, as well.)

So, uh, this post is all I HAVE A GREAT IDEA and then LET'S TALK MORE ABOUT IT LATER, THOUGH.

That's never annoying.

But, hey, I'm still excited. I think I'll start with our bedroom. Just don't think of suggesting I get rid of a single pair of shoes, okay?

Needed: Vintage Tea Tins

I have a top secret, super mysterious mission that requires vintage tea tins. (How often does one get to say something like that?) Anyway! I hit up Etsy, eBay (found what I wanted and was then outbid; rats!), Amazon, and then a(n admittedly) short Google search and came up empty handed.

Is there somewhere else I'm not thinking?

Ideally they'd be yellow or turquoise or black and they'd be fairly small. Oh, and not cost more than $10. I mean, my mission is fun but it's not like THE MOST FUN EVER or anything.

Can you help me?

You apparently need more than one computer to blog

Mike was out of town for a few days, and he took my laptop with him. Apparently when I don't have a laptop, I don't blog even though there's a perfectly good desktop upstairs.

That's partly because I'm kind of lazy and partly because I'm not entirely convinced our upstairs isn't haunted. For no other reason than it's creakier up there.

Mike left town for his first motorcycle race of the season. That might sound strange if you didn't know he races motorcycles. But he does! He's good, too, and he likes it a whole lot. Now, while blogging -- my hobby of choice -- isn't as butt-clenchingly dangerous as his, he's ridiculously supportive of me, so I try my best to be the same of him.

I'll tell you what I mind a whole lot more than his racing motorcycles, though: how he manages to complain about how sore he is after he races motorcycles. I love that you're happy, babe, but I don't demand back rubs after a particularly grueling blog post, now do I?

I MIGHT START, THOUGH, OH YES.

Anyway, while he was gone, Kyle and I did a little cleaning (mostly me), Handy Manny watching (mostly him), hosting some friends for dinner (shockingly, mostly me again), running with half of my new running group (definitely not Kyle unless you count the running away from me he did when I found he had colored all over his bedroom floor), and not-any-at-all sleeping in (Kyle made sure this included us both).

He wasn't all blatant disobedience, though, as sometime over the weekend, he picked up the catchphrase, "See you tomorrow!" This started when we were heading to my mother-in-law's house for dinner. "Bye bye house, see you tomorrow!" Then I left him there to run to Target and he said, "Bye bye Mommy, see you tomorrow!" He did this a bunch. And while he says a ton of OMG-SO-CUTE things, this is right up toward the top of the list. Yes, two isn't so bad so far.

This post is a bit spacey and I'd love to string it together better, with more cohesive thoughts but it's late, Gossip Girl is calling, and my husband is sighing loudly about his back from the other room.

But, tell me, how are you?

Two, So Far

The stages of a toddler's personality change so quickly and unexpectedly, it's almost impossible to keep up. One minute Kyle is making up funny voices to make us laugh and blowing us kisses and stroking my hair saying "pretty mommy" and LITERALLY the next moment (no, really, one moment later) he is screeching and clawing and demanding EEPY IDER EEPY IDER and, oh my WORD child, no one on the planet knows what the hell you're asking for, so could you kindly calm down and maybe draw me a picture, point, SOMETHING?

(He wanted me to sing Itsy Bitsy Spider, by the way.)

(You won't be shocked to know I wasn't much in the singing mood once we got all that sorted out.)

With all that said, I'm liking Kyle at two quite a lot so far. (One week in!) I can say this with much confidence that something will happen in mere hours to change all that. And then we'll flip-flop again a day after that. Basically, I'm not worried about jinxing things by talking them up because toddlers are smarter than the jinx. Toddlers will kiss you and throw a remote at your head all in the same half hour.

So go ahead and say whatever you want about two. Two doesn't speak the same language anyway.

In all seriousness, I feel like I'm such a better mother to a two year old than to a newborn. I miss how tiny baby Kyle was and how cute all his little clothes were and how everything was ahead of us. Every stage was to come, you know?, but the daily grind of raising Kyle at two vs Kyle at two months is night and day. We sleep so much! And we play so much! And we have conversations and we take him places we know will blow his mind and that in turn blows our minds and we can rationalize with him, for the most part, and we can make each other laugh. The other day I had to run into the store and get pizza dough and I said to him, "Buds, we have to run into the store, grab some pizza dough and run out. You have to hold my hand, okay?" And he said, "yes mommy" and other than an unfortunate incident near the gift card display, he held my hand and walked sweetly beside me and we were in and out in no time and, man, it was grand.

When I look at him these days, it's like I'm looking at the dreams I used to have of motherhood playing out before my eyes.

Of course I have fond memories of Kyle's babyhood. He was so little -- so much smaller than anyone thought he'd be -- and he had this dark, dark hair and these steel blue eyes and when I think of that little guy, I just melt because MY BABY, OH MY BOY, but I'm just so content with now. I want to pause now and memorize every moment of it so I can play it back to myself in years to come. Two, I like you.

Despite the ups and downs of a toddler's mood, it's not just that I like now better but that I'm better at now.

Dinosaurs!

The ridiculously non-awesome weather of the last two weeks (it was colder in Dallas two weeks ago than it was in Anchorage) ended this weekend when someone somewhere took notice and then took pity and sent us enough sun and warmth to 1) require sunblock and hats and 2) force us out of the house all afternoon for some family (and friend) fun.

We cashed in a couple Groupons and went to Dinosaur World.

Kyle and his buddy Jackson were big fans.

Kyle spent the entire time running from one exhibit to the next, so geeked out by the BIG DINOSAUR! (which is what he called every dinosaur) that he couldn't even calm down long enough to STOP and LOOK at them, and while I've never been that into dinosaurs myself, I sure did enjoy the heck out of them yesterday, when they were providing my kid with so much entertainment.

(See also: why I don't mind watching Cars all that much even though we just watched it yesterday and EVERY DAY BEFORE THAT.)

Knowing Texas it'll freeze/ice/snow at least one more time before spring is officially here, so the sunshine of this weekend was much enjoyed.

We also went to Chuck E Cheese, but I don't want to talk about that place. Let's just say if I ever go again, it won't be during an alcohol hiatus.

What did you do this weekend?

Weddings! Desserts! Oh my!

First, happy Valentine's my lovelies! I hope you have candy and kisses in your future.

Over at Style Lush this week, love has inspired us to talk weddings non-stop for the next five days. Head over to see glimpses of the writers' weddings and to see a lot more wedding-related ideas, tips, tricks, and fun finds.

And at Food Lush, we let Valentine's take us in the other direction: all things dessert. Think chocolate, sugar, cakes, cookies, and more. This was a great idea for the editor who gave up sweets. (ugh)

But, seriously, enjoy both sites this week. There's some really fun stuff planned.

BBL Week #5 & #6 Updates

Yeah, I didn't update last week. I wasn't super busy since I was snowed/iced inside my house for four straight days. I just ... forgot. Or, I possibly I remembered and then said, "ah, screw it, I'll watch old episodes of Greek instead."

Anyway! Here are last week's leaders:

Beth Fish     
Amie M.  (@Amie31)
Jen B. (@jenbernardi)
Ashley E. (@akaleiart)    
Caitlin H.
Jennie (me)     
Whitney A.  (@barbetti)
Elizabeth F.    
Annie T. (@anneoftroy)    
Kate B.     

And this week's:

Amie M. (@Amie31)
Jen B.  (@jenbernardi)
Caitlin H.    
Whitney A.  (@barbetti)
Beth F.    
Maggie B.  (@andtheducksaid)   
Ashley E.  (@akaleiart)
Lisa F.  (@heylardass)
Annie T. (@anneoftroy)
Jennie   

Congrats, leaders!

***

I was thinking about something today, and I even chatted with a few separate people about it. For most of the first year after Kyle was born, I hated the weight I was. I hated getting dressed and going out and taking pictures and I really hated that I couldn't seem to lose the weight. I'd start and stop and start and stop and buy running shoes and the best salad ingredients and at the end of that same week, I'd be vegged out on the couch inhaling ice cream. I really hated that.

I just wasn't ready though. My head wasn't in the right space and trying to force myself into a new lifestyle I wasn't mentally prepared for was a big ole recipe for disaster.

As 2010 started, I became ready and the weight started easily coming off.

At the beginning of this year, I was even more ready to keep going, to lose more, to rock the whole new healthy living and whole eating lifestyle, and it's showing.

But, I wish I had gone easier on myself that first year.

If you're not ready yet, it's okay. You will be. And when you are, you're going to kick so much ass that we won't be able to resist cheering you on.

Me, Elsewhere

I sort of like rounding up my elsewhere posts every few weeks here. If you sort of don't, feel free to skip on to the next post. No hurt feelings here!

- I'm SUPER excited about this Martha & Me magazine inspiration project I'm tackling (starting soon), thanks to Janet.

- Did you know I like purple things? It's true! Here's a purple round-up.

- Take a peek at these pretty tumblers I bought for my kitchen.

- These applesauce oat muffins are DELICIOUS and not-so bad for you.

Make a Wish

We sang to him at 6:32, the moment he was born two years before. I accidentally got him trick candles, but I think that just means he got extra wishes.

We had a nice, small family pizza party and it was the best. You can see more photos here.

You're Two!

Dear Kyle,

Two!

My oh my kiddo, I can hardly believe it!

You at two:

You are no longer borderline obsessed with Cars and have been bumped up to OBSESSED IN ALL CAPS status. It's the first thing you request in the morning and you go to sleep caressing a Cars book. If someone had told me five years ago that I would watch Cars in its entirety NINE MILLION TIMES I would not have believed them. But they would have been right, those people. They would have been right.

You say things like "sit mommy!" "turn that way, daddy!" "nooooooooooo" "se-wup on my pa-cakes" "juice in da GEEEN cup, not red." Do you see a pattern, my sweet child? You have opinions. You are just two and you have so many, many opinions. You pick out your clothes and you pick out your shoes and you pick out your jacket and you pick out your cup and on and on and on.

I think you look like me, but when I stare into your stubborn, dead-set-on-something eyes, I think one precious thought: I get two of your dad in this lifetime. How frustratingly, head-ache inducingly, beautifully lucky am I?

You have this messy head of hair that makes you look like a cool, surfer-type on a good day and homeless on a bad, and it's not that we prefer you to look like either, it's just that, SHIT, your hair grows so fast we can't keep up. We're also lazy. Bad combination!

But I love love love it.

 

I think it's safe to say that most parents believe their little kiddo is the smartest kiddo in all the land but OH MY GOD YOU'RE SO SMART. You count and know your ABCs and when I announce, "mommy's gotta go to work," you squeal "mommy's purse!" and get it for me and you know that the Jeep is "daddy's car" and you point out similar cars in every parking lot we visit and, fine, there was that one fight we got into when you were convinced a bus was a truck and I so lovingly tried to correct you and you were all "NOOOOO TUCK." You also tried to lick your foot the other day, so.

I think you might be our only kid, and while this makes some (crazy) people very sad for us, a part of my peace with this decision is that I think you're going to be a swell only child. You love your pals at school and your cousins, but you're just as content alone with your books or running in the yard by yourself. One evening I picked you up from school and you were sitting at one table having a snack while all the other kids were at another. I thought you might be in trouble, but your teacher said, "nope, he asked to sit there." She went on to say, "he has a lot of fun with the other kids but he seems to need some alone time occasionally."

I smiled. See, that's also your father.

You give the best hugs in the world and are, right now, super generous with them. You give your dad bear hugs and say "grrrr" while doing it and, come on, there's absolutely nothing cuter than that.

You don't really care for sweets or cake or cookies but you love a good piece of pizza or a buttery piece of toast. Again, your dad.

When you want my attention, you tap my face over and over, very sweetly and gently, and whisper, "hey, mommy, mommy, mommy."

You never sit still, unless you're sick, and while that's way more often than I'd prefer, I soak up the moments you snuggle into me, lay your head on my lap and say things like "hug me mommy." I'd take you always healthy over any sweet moments, really I would, but if you have to have the flu or a stomach virus or something else, I'll search out the silver linings and those definitely include you wanting to be near me. Yes, daddy wrestles and chases you and lets you help him in the garage, but when a fever strikes or a virus has descended on our house, you beg for me, and there I am.

This has been such a fun year. It really has. While there were a few periods when your tantrums were really upsetting and frustrating, those periods were brief in hindsight and, for the most part, you were such fun and sweetness and sunshine this year. I use that word -- sunshine -- to describe you a lot because that's what comes to mind: pure light, pure warmth, pure bright and beautiful sunshine.

Kyle, I remember the day you were born so vividly, so incredibly, and it was such a perfect day. I haven't written your birth story yet, but I couldn't have asked for a better delivery. That day makes me smile, widely and foolishly, because labor was perfect, you were perfect, our little family was perfect, and on this day -- your birthday -- I am so happy because of all it reminds me of and of all the hope and promise it holds.

I could never have dreamed for as magical a boy as you. I could never have imagined as fun a son as you. More than anything you've given me, you've given me a desire to be unbelievably and consistently happy. You think it's hilarious to hide behind the kitchen cabinets and giggle while your dad and I wander around going, "Kyle, where are you!" and then you pop out and we say, "oooooh, there you are!" And you laugh and laugh and laugh and you love that you stumped us and you love that you made us smile and you're just so happy with life, over these little, small things, and that's what you inspire in us. To be happy with the little, small things, to be happy as much as possible.

I want to be a better wife, a better friend, a better daughter, a better writer, employee, cook, runner, housekeeper, and on and on and on because of you. You inspire me, you soften me, you delight me.

My two proudest words before you were "Mike's wife" and I still love to hear them. But they are now joined by "Kyle's mom." You are just so easy to be proud of, so easy to love, so easy to be around.

From day one:

to year one:

to two years:

It did happen much too fast, but the best things usually do.

Back when I was hoping for you, before we found out about you, I used to say this to the air or the heavens or anyone who happened to be listening: I don't want a child to dress a certain way or to go to our alma mater or to be tall or short or to sing or to have red hair or to be liberal or conservative. I don't want a child to be anything. I just want a child.

I just wanted you.

Kid, do you know how unbelievably, ridiculously lucky I feel that someone, somewhere said: wish granted?

There are no words.

Happy birthday, my beautiful boy. I'll say to you what I say to you every day, every hour, every minute, and what I'll say to you as long as I am able. It's this: I love you, buddy boo. I love you so much.

Love,

Mommy

Spring Party

The roads are STILL icy, the weather is STILL below freezing and has been for days, our fireplace is STILL working overtime to keep our toes warm. It's bizarre and the entire area is collectively over it, I think.

So, I've been thinking a lot this week about a spring party I'm planning to throw this April to warm my thoughts if not my everything else while it's 17 degrees out. A party to celebrate meeting goals and running races and welcoming warm weather before that warm weather turns to unbearable heat.

A few things up my sleeve for my spring fling:

Invitations! (But which ones?)

Pom pom invitations

Marigolds invitations

(Leaning towards) Mums invitations

A party dress (but which one?)

Yellow tea rose tiered dress

Unexpected twist dress

Romantically rustic dress

I'd also like to serve things like: double chocolate and pear cakes, strawberry scones, and salad with poached eggs. Also, some Kir Royales, possibly served in blush champagne flutes.

This is what I do when the weather or work or what have you gets me down: I plan something to look forward to. That's the definition of happiness, right?, having something to look forward to.

Sunshine and spring and bubbly.

What are you looking forward to?

I like this

Things I Miss (But Not That Much)

- A full glass of champagne at a nice restaurant, dining with my girlfriends

- Mini-Snickers ice-cream bars

- Pepperoni pizza

- Twisted root cheeseburgers

- Sprinkles cupcakes

- A frosty Bud Light after a long day

- The most delicious grilled chicken sandwich served at the cafe in my building

***

Giving up alcohol/meat/sweets hasn't been the hardest thing I've ever done, and it actually gets easier as time ticks on, but I still miss those indulgences, those treats, those delicious, delicious things.

But, it's just so helpful for me when I take gray things out of my weight-loss equation. Things that could trip-up my goals if I'm not really vigilant with eating them in very small amounts. So while I could certainly use one of the above when the weather freaks out and drops to six degrees or an author is being particularly horrible or breaking Kyle of his pacifier addiction has him waking up earlier than he is in A YEAR OMG, I know giving those things up is the key to weight-loss for me.

I've said I'm only going to give these things up for Biggest Blogging Loser, which runs until March 28th, but I've changed my mind. I'll give them up until I reach my goal weight (of 132 pounds). I hope that's around the same time, but it gives me extra motivation (on top of all that cold hard cash) over the next two months.

I don't want to live a life without things I enjoy. I don't want to give up chocolate cake or a glass of cold white wine on a summer porch forever, I just want to learn to make these things a smaller part of my diet and healthier things a larger part. I want the balance to be smarter, and I want to have more control over that balance.

This last month has been really nice in terms of eating a lot less, but also eating a lot better. No frozen lunches. No 100-calorie packs. No high-processed but low-calorie things. Fruits, veggies, handmade dinners. Wholer, better foods.

***

Something I've been trying to do more of is to ask more questions across the board. I can be too trusting with everything. I need to ask, to be aware, to verbalize things rattling around in my head no matter who those questions make uncomfortable. A few of those questions when it comes to food: What am I eating? Where is it from? Why am I eating it? Do I love it? Can I make this instead of buying it?

I think these questions are important to me, to help me find more freedom in the kitchen and with my diet, actually, and definitely more control.

Last year, I kicked off a healthier, thinner me, but this year I feel I'm kicking off a healthier lifestyle.

Feels good.

***

(Although, yes, there's a bottle of champagne in the fridge, chilling nicely in anticipation.)

Our electricity bill is being angrily taken advantage of right now

This is a very strange week indeed.

This past weekend, my car registered that it was 78 degrees outside. Mike and I talked about taking Kyle to the park, except he was recovering from a stomach virus, so we thought the front yard might be smarter. So, that's what we did. We took him out front and he ran around with his shirt off and pointed at birds and fell on his face but laughed it off, and then I went for a run and everything was just lovely.

As I type this, my office has officially declared a "snow day" because the temperatures are so low and the ice so thick on the roads that the state is conducting rolling blackouts in order to prevent a full statewide POWER APOCALYPSE and our server is therefore down and, no shit, it's 10 degrees outside, a nice few degrees above the overnight low, which I am not shitting you, was SIX DEGREES.

Now, Texas has a lot of silly stereotypes constantly swirling around about it and one is this: it's never cold here. Oh, it's often cold here during the winter. We have snow, we have ice, we have below-freezing temperatures, but not often enough for anyone to actually know what the hell to do about it. That means, the roads are never adequately sanded, the drivers are always in a state of panic, and the ups and downs of the temperatures leave the entire state with horrible allergies and colds and flus oh my!

So, anyway, it's a little strange here, with the whacky weather and when I sat down to write about a few other things (book club! weight-loss! healthy eating! movies!), this came out instead.

In fact, the perfect way to sum up the weather this week is this: my son would rather be outside than anywhere. He is fine when it's cold and even tries to peel off his jacket so he can play better and he's fine when it's so hot, the sweat is blinding him. Outside is preferable to ANYWHERE, but yesterday when I opened the front door to appease his OW-SIDE, OW-SIDE, OW-SIDE demands, he looked up at me and said, "cold, shut it."

Absolutely, son! Want to snuggle on the couch and watch Cars one more time?