::Saturday Sundries:: No. 12

Recipe ~ Sara's 3 O'Clock Mix
I don't really enjoy cooking. I was kind of starting to get interested in it before Valerie was born. But then I had other things to do. I'm mostly a reheat-the-yummy-dish-Tom-made-over-the weekend, or a throw-a-Trader-Joe's-frozen-delight-into-the-oven kind of gal. I have hopes of starting to enjoy cooking again someday, though. I do like to bake, but since I'm not hip on the kids-running-amok-in-the-kitchen kind of chaos, I don't do it very often.

But here's a little recipe--if you can even call it that--for a snack that gets me though the afternoon some days.

Sara's 3 O'Clock Mix
Ingredients:
1 bag Trader Joe's Dry Roasted Unsalted Almonds
1 bag Trader Joe's Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Directions:
Toss together in a bag or storage container
Optional:
Add dried blueberries and/or dried cherries*
(*if you add them both it is called Grand Mix, the name Valerie came up with)

I figure the almonds provide protein and good fat. The chocolate, well it tastes good and might just help keep me sane--from about 3PM until Daddy gets home from work.

P.S. Update--Trader Joe's has discontinued my favorite off-the-shelf cookie. Nuts!

::Saturday Sundries:: No. 11

And More Television ~ The OfficeOh, I've been a fan of The Office on NBC ever since I caught the last episode of the second season shown as a rerun. At the time, I remembered seeing the trailer for the pilot show (first aired in March '05) the previous year and thinking, "Hey, that looks different...I think I'll check it out." But I missed it all until the summer of '06, as I had been a new mother since the Spring of 2004 and hardly ever watched TV (with the exception of Teletubbies and Sesame Street) in favor of sleeping!

Well, thank goodness for Netflix. When the first two seasons of The Office arrived in my mailbox, I think it took me all of two nights to watch all the episodes back-to-back! The show is hilarious and ridiculous. Yes, I fell in love with "JAM" (Jim and Pam), and I will admit here that I was known to frequent OfficeTally, a fansite for the show. And while I am quite over my obsession with the show by now, don't even think about getting in my way during the Season 6 premiere this Thursday, Sept. 17th at 9/8c.

Well, for someone who has stated she is doesn't watch that much TV, I sure have posted enough about it lately. But this should be it for a while, unless Community turns out to be really funny...

Are you a fan of The Office?

::Saturday Sundries:: No. 10

Thought for the Day

A while ago, on the back of a pick-up truck, I saw a bumper sticker that read, "Remember what you wanted to be when you grew up."

The first thing I ever wanted to be was an architect because I loved flipping through the pages of my grandma's Architectural Digest magazines.

After that, I wanted to be an artist. So I went to college and earned a degree in art.

But I also wanted to be able to reliably support myself, so I became a teacher. And I did love teaching, especially when it involved speaking Spanish.

Now I am a mother. I always knew I wanted to have children, but I didn't know I wanted to be a mother until the day motherhood actually arrived.

I may go back to teaching someday, especially if I could teach kindergarten. And I will definitely get back to painting someday.

Do you remember what you wanted to be when you grew up?

::Saturday Sundries:: No. 9

Television ~ Royal Pains and Burn Notice
Tom and I watched the new series Royal Pains this summer on the USA Network. The season finale was on last Thursday. (Yes, I am that person who, as you are driving down the road, likes to point out interesting things to see that you are just about to pass.) So now we, thankfully, don't have an excuse to be up 'til 11pm on Thursdays anymore.

We both like all the main characters, except Jill, though I like her hairstyle. Hank is the doctor, Evan is Hank's brother and a CPA, Divya is the physician assistant, Boris (played by Campbell Scott) is the benefactor. It's just one of those shows with characters that are interesting and engaging and you want to watch each week to see what happens next. Looking forward to next season!

We also are new fans of Burn Notice, on the same network, but it's season is over 'til next winter. Another fun show. I like how Fiona is such a kick-butt kind of a gal. And I like how Michael can be kind of a dork, as much as a spy can be a dork... All the characters are fun. Now we can catch up on the previous season's shows on Netflix and have something fun to watch that doesn't take as much of a time commitment as a full-length movie. (We'll get to you sooner or later, Slumdog.)

Do you watch Royal Pains or Burn Notice?

Saturday Sundries:: No. 8

Television ~ Mad Men

Season 3 of Mad Men, the very slick AMC drama, started last week. It is on Sundays at 10pm/9pm central. I started watching back when the series debuted to check out the period specific costumes and scenes. This series takes place in the 1960s world of a Madison Avenue advertising agency, and beyond. The social dynamics are very interesting, stifling really, and each time I watch I thank my lucky stars I'm alive here and now. And I wonder how true to life the depiction is for my parents' and grandparents' generations who lived through that decade.

My favorite character is Joan Holloway, Office Manager and queen bee of the secretarial pool. I wouldn't want to be her, but I like watching her character develop. I think the lead, Don Draper, Creative Director and Partner at the firm, is quite interesting, as well as the only female Copywriter, Peggy Olsen. Honestly, I enjoy all the characters and the 60s dialogue. It's quite the late night soap opera, and the characters and relationships are developed at a rate that keeps me wanting to find out just what will happen next.

I don't watch a lot of TV, but when I find a series I like I'm pretty loyal. I hope this period drama is one that will be on for years to come (unlike Homefront, which I loved watching in the early 90s and only survived a couple of seasons, sigh).

Do you watch Mad Men?

::Saturday Sundries:: No. 7

Lunch Box Love Note
Yes, it's the ol' love note in the lunch box. These are so easy to do and bring such surprise and happiness to the recipient. You just have to be a little sneaky (here's a little clip from a silly movie I like, just for fun).

I taped a love note onto the inside of Valerie's lunch box on her first day of kindergarten. I had to ask her to go pick out a pair of socks for Andrew (which she loves to do) to get her out of the kitchen while I did it. She told me later that afternoon that she really liked my note.

I used to write little notes on Post-its and sneak them into his lunch bag when Tom and I were newlyweds 14 years ago. Now I like to hide a card in his carry-on when he goes out-of-town on business. Since Tom typically leaves at O-dark-hundred for trips, I have to very quietly get up and put the card in his suitcase after he has gone to bed. I just love getting a call from him the next night when he is in his hotel room and has found it. It's totally worth the staying up waiting for him to fall asleep.

Really, you could sneak a little love note for someone who stays home (and drives the kids all over town), too. Say, for a Stay-At-Home-Mom, wink-wink. Just put a little love note somewhere she won't expect to find it.

Do you like to sneak love notes?

Saturday Sundries:: No. 6

Fun & Easy Party

As I mentioned earlier, Valerie and I hosted a Friends and Ponies Party last Thursday. We decided to invite all the girls we know on our block over to play with their My Little Ponies. The 5 girls' ages ranged from 2 to 7. The party also included 2 little brothers, 4 mamas, and 1 dad who stopped by for the last 15 minutes.

If you are so inclined, it isn't that hard to host an informal party. Before we moved to our current house, I never even invited a friend over because I never felt my house was clean or clutter-free enough for company. When we moved, I vowed to have people over. A friend of mine told me her husband says us "moms have to stick together" when it comes to this housekeeping thing. And we need to get over ourselves. If we wait 'til everything is just so, the kids will be off to college before a non-relative ever sets foot in the house.

So, to prepare for the party, just make sure the bathroom is presentable. I got ours clean enough in the time it took the kids to watch an episode of The Backyardigans. Other than that, there are just OPTIONAL things like vacuuming, dish washing, dust-bunny catching, clutter stashing, etc. Valerie was unusually helpful in picking up her toys in her room and the living room before the party. Plus, she had to do those jobs before she could put the Trader Joe's Organic Animal Crackers and Joe-Joe's cookies on the serving plate. We also served a pitcher of raspberry lemonade (from frozen concentrate) and ice water. We used the left over Pony plates and napkins from Valerie's birthday party.

For our front yard garden party, I just set up a table for refreshments and spread a couple of blankets on the lawn. The party went from 2-4 p.m. and activities were as simple as Pony coloring pages for the girls, and toys usually played with indoors brought outdoors for the baby boys. We also put up a tent for the kids to hang out in. And there were lots of Ponies to play with, too, of course! The partial roll of pink streamers that Valerie and I threw haphazardly into a tree ended up being used for dancing ribbons, later on.

It might sound like a lot of work, but not really. And it was a lot of fun!

Do you like to throw parties?

::Saturday Sundries:: No.5

Paper Doll ChainsOh, these are so much fun! I remember my grandma making paper doll chains for my sister and I when we were little. It was so magical when she would unfold them, little people jumping to life! Then we would add details and color them in. I made these for Valerie a few weeks ago. After I'd made the girls ("Valeries"), she asked me to make "Andrews". So I did, then made hearts out of the left over space above the "Andrews' " heads.


Here's how you do it:

Fold paper accordion style. Draw a figure or shape making sure an element, such as hands and/or skirt sides and/or toes, etc. touch both folded edges. Carefully cut them out and open them up!

Let me know if you'd like more of a tutorial with photos showing each step, and I'll be happy to oblige. These make great holiday decorations, too. Imagine the possibilities!

Have you ever made paper doll chains?

::Saturday Sundries:: No.4

Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Joe-Joe's


Do you remember Mystic Mint cookies? Those used to be my favorite off-the-shelf cookies, until they disappeared. Sigh. I even tried the Milk Chocolate Covered Mint Oreo, but they weren't quite right. Then about a month ago, on my weekly trip to Trader Joe's, I found these little babies. Oh yeah. If you really like chocolate a lot, like I do, you'd better just stop reading now. Continue on at your own risk. Fair warning.

I really feel that these cookies should be called by their full title: Trader Joe's All Natural Dark Chocolate Covered Joe-Joe's With Vanilla Bean Cream. They aren't minty, but that's OK. They are so good and so rich, you could just eat 1 or 2 (or 3 or 4). But there are only 12 in a tub so you have to control yourself if you want them to last all week.

Or you can do what I do. Buy two tubs.

Come December I'll be posting about their fabulous cousin, Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Joe-Joe's.

What's your favorite off-the-shelf cookie?

::Saturday Sundries:: No.3

Movie ~ A Room with a View


This is my favorite movie of all time. I first saw it as a young teen. It was the first period movie I had ever seen (besides a few episodes from the PBS version of Brideshead Revisited), and I was immediately hooked. Everything from the actors to the costumes to the scenery to the screenplay is just so lovely to me.

A Room with a View is based on the novel by E. M. Forster, about a young woman and her chaperon who take a holiday to Florence, Italy. They meet some interesting characters along the way, many of whom end up in their lives again, back home in England. It is a comedy and a romance.

Here is the link to my favorite scene. (I just found it on YouTube, please don't mind the French subtitles.) The whole scene is splendid and I love it all, but my two favorite parts are George "saying his creed", and the kiss.

Whenever I need a little mental escape, I pop this DVD into the player. (I even tried to watch it while in labor with Valerie...) In not too long I will be one of those people who can recite every line!

What's your favorite movie of all time?

::Saturday Sundries:: No. 2

Fuzzi Bunz

Fuzzi Bunz are cloth diapers. Who wouldn't want to wear soft fleece-lined underwear that come in a rainbow of colors and prints, too? If you have a baby or toddler in diapers and are looking for a cloth alternative to disposable, then these are wonderful.

If you search around, you will find quite the debate over cloth vs. disposable diapers. I've opted for using more resources for laundering (water and fossil fuels ultimately used to heat it) rather than adding to landfills. You need to make your own decision.

But if you decide on cloth, I can say I have had a lot of success with Fuzzis. I like that they have snaps that can't get clogged up with threads and lint like the velcro fasteners of some of the other brands. And if you follow the guidelines for care, they can last you a long time. I used the same set for 10 months with Andrew, and our current set (the next size larger) have been in use for 6 months now. Fuzzi Bunz also sells a wonderful diaper bag that hangs on a door knob that you can use instead of a diaper pail.

They aren't leak proof, so I usually put Andrew in Huggies Pure and Natural or Seventh Generation when we go out. And when Valerie was in diapers I used mostly Tushies. I feel good about not throwing away too many disposable diapers each week.

So, many of you probably have no need for information on diapers, but if nothing else, you can at least get a chuckle out of the cuteness of the name: Fuzzi Bunz.

::Saturday Sundries::

And so begins Saturday Sundries. Each Saturday I will offer a person, place, thing, idea, etc. that I enjoy, find useful, or just plain like. Why? Because I want to share them with you. These sundry items are things that give a little kick to everyday living. Please feel free to add your comments, as well.


No. 1~ ParadesIn honor of Independence Day, let's start off with the Parade. That's where my brood and I (along with the grandparents, this year) will be this morning. Everyone loves a parade, right? OK, you knew that was coming. I didn't know just how much I loved a parade until we took Valerie, at 2 years old, to her first one. She was so excited to see the fire engines she was literally speechless, with her little hands covering her mouth. I will never forget it.Where else do you get to see so many interesting people, well, march by right in front of you? Our local parade has everything from Aztec to Turkish dancers, stilt walkers to pageant princesses, horses to parrots, marching bands to jazz ensembles. So many civic groups get involved. And we even have this one fabulous senior citizen who carries the flag while wearing a black bodysuit, numerous strings of beads, and white go-go boots. Honestly, I would go just for her.

Then there are the young soldiers who proudly march and bring tears to my eyes every time, if only because looking at their faces, I respect the personal decision each of them has made to serve. And then the Purple Heart recipients are motored by, and the Pearl Harbor survivors.

So, here's to Parades, and to all those who march in them, and to all of those who go to watch. I hope you get to enjoy a parade today (please leave a comment below if you do). Happy 4th to you! Oh, and Happy Birthday, U.S. of A!