What are “Kristen Wiig boots”? Please tell me–because if I Google it, apparently I’ll come right back here, and that might result in a wormhole.
Tragic Sandwich
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Not Enough
Over at Wandering Scientist, Cloud has a post about dealing with a multitude of holiday food drives.
I’m facing the same thing. My workplace has one. My alumni club has one. Baguette’s day care has one. Each of them benefited a local organization, which I also like.
It’s easy enough to go through the pantry and select nonperishables that I don’t need or can’t remember why I bought (green enchilada sauce in mild, medium, and hot?). But then where do I take them?
This year choosing a food drive was also easy. I drive to Baguette’s day care but not to work, so it’s easier for me to drop canned goods off at her center’s office than to manage them on the bus. And I didn’t go to my alumni club’s December event anyhow.
The university I work at has a program for students with children; we gave Baguette’s infant carrier and stroller, Moby wrap, Boppy, and assorted other items to a grad student whose baby was born prematurely (she should be home by now, I think, and I’m so happy I was able to provide some supplies to help bring her home from the hospital).
Earlier this year, we sent a friend stationed in Afghanistan a huge box of food, which she shared with the other soldiers at her base. Last month, I donated money and blood and a box of baby wipes and formula to various organizations helping with Hurricane Sandy.
I wish I could send everything I have to New Jersey. It’s 3,000 miles away, but it’s local in my heart.
Photo by HowardLake, via Flickr. (Creative Commons)
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More Rules From Baguette
Second in a series of indeterminate length.
- Jackets must be zipped up all the way. If they are not, Raptor Shriek will ensue.
- Mommy is not allowed to wear a cardigan or jacket.
- Baguette can talk about lions, but no one else can.
- No jeans! No, no, no, no!
- Only leggings.
- Also, no shirts or dresses with buttons in back, even at the neck. Inspections will take place randomly throughout the day.
I may have to add a tab for this.
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Food, Glorious Food
![Cookbooks [235/366]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8286/7842721042_2589a9547e.jpg)
This week’s Monday Listicles topic is “10 Things Food.” Now, I almost never make anything I pin on Pinterest, and the time I tried, things did not go well.
But that’s okay, because I’ve got plenty to say about food. So here are my 10 favorite food memories:
1) Christmas shortbread cookies–my mother wasn’t a fan of sugar cookies, so every year we would make shortbread cookies, cut them out with Christmas-themed cookie cutters, and decorate them with red and green sprinkles.
2) Lemon bars–I loved my mother’s so much that one year I had them for my birthday instead of cake.
3) Orange bread rolls–These became my specialty at Thanksgiving. They’re like cinnamon rolls with orange filling and glaze instead of cinnamon, and were always a big hit. They are delicious and a total PITA to make. Therefore, I do not make them any more.
4) Le Ciel–One year we went to Vienna and Budapest for Christmas. On Christmas Eve, we had a phenomenal five- or six-course meal at the ANA hotel. I have no idea what we ate. I just remember that everything was amazing and the service was just about perfect.
5) Lemon cod filets–My favorite but defunct Chinese restaurant made this for me, and I cannot find a substitute.
6) Frosting–One summer when we were about 10, a friend and I decided to make cupcakes. That was fine, but we couldn’t get the frosting to come out right. I was sure that what you added to thicken it was flour. I was wrong.
7) Spaghetti sauce–my mom made hers nearly from scratch; she used canned tomato in various forms. I’ve got some on the stove as I type this.
8) Tacos–We only had them if my dad had recently come back from a business trip to Texas, because the Maryland supermarkets didn’t carry tortillas. That’s right, I grew up in the dark ages.
9) The Carnivore–if you’ve been to a Brazilian steakhouse, you’d recognize the method of serving at this restaurant outside of Nairobi. Slabs of meat are carried around on spear-like skewers and carved onto your plate. Only instead of unusual cuts of beef, here you’re eating African game.
10) Crepes–My mother-in-law makes excellent crepe-style pancakes. I would swear the oil in the pan is burning, but the crepes come out perfectly each time. Which just goes to show that I don’t know how to make them.
Photo by timsackton, via Flickr.
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5 Things I Found While I Was Looking Around
36 Tips for Surviving the Family Road Trip on Parenting Squad
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We’re going to need these more and more. I can tell.
Stalking in the Snow on Desire to Inspire-
I don’t think the exterior lives up to the interiors (particularly with views), but who cares?
What DNA Actually Looks Like on Mashable
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There’s a lot about science I don’t know, but I sure love what it can do.
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Is this real? And can I go to it?
Parmesan Garlic Biscuits on Coffee Break with Liz and Kate-
I may have to make these. Soon.
Photo by jikatu, via Flickr.
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How to Make a Mom Angry
I shared something about Baguette on my Facebook profile. Most of the responses were positive. But then there was this:
[Older relative]: I thought you were a stay at home Mom. You are missing a lot.
Cue the gritted teeth. Because, guess what? I know! But I also know that if I didn’t work, I’d miss the chance for professional accomplishments. I’d miss the friends I have at my job. And we’d all miss my half of our income.
We live in a small house. Nearly all of our furniture is hand-me-downs. We drive old cars–mine is 11 years old, and Mr. Sandwich’s is around 25 years old. Our last big trip was before Baguette was born. We don’t live lavishly. And to live not lavishly, we need both our incomes.
And I think that Baguette benefits greatly from day care. While we are having some issues with them right now, I know that she gets much more exposure to arts and crafts there than she would get at home with me. She gets a 2-hour nap every day, which I doubt very much she would get with me. And she met Bestie there.
Life’s about the tradeoffs. We all know that, and we all know that choosing one thing means we can’t choose something else, at least not at the same time. But each of us is making the best choice we can for our families, and that ought to be respected, whether we work outside the home or from home or don’t have paying jobs. And we’re all missing a lot. But we’re all doing our best, and that’s what our families need.
And this is a relative from an earlier generation–although what’s funny is that while I don’t know whether she worked outside the home when her kids were growing up, I’m pretty sure her sister did. It’s not like this is new. But since I have a close–if wide-spread–family, I don’t want to have a fight about it. I want to present my point of view, but I’m not going to war about it. Not today, anyhow.
So how did I respond?
“This is the economy I live in. Plus I like working.”
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5 Things I Never Did
1) Went skydiving.
2) Drove a big-rig.
3) Wrote a Grammy-winning song.
4) Owned a horse.
5) Visited the other side of the Iron Curtain.*
The question is, though, how many of these did I want to do?
*Admit it–you forgot about the Iron Curtain. Everyone remembers the Berlin Wall, but no one ever talks about the Iron Curtain any more.
Photo by jczart, via Flickr.
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The Princess Industrial Complex
I’m working hard at finding gifts for Baguette that are fun and educational–so far I’ve had success, such as with this clock puzzle–check out those colors, numbers, shapes, and clockitude! But when I sent a list of suggestions to my family (who had asked for that list), I heard a lot of “Oh, I’ve already got my eye on something I think she’ll like.” So I have no idea what examples of pink fuzziness are awaiting us.
Baguette is still young enough that I can dictate her wardrobe and the toys she has at home, but I know that the first part of that, at least, is about to change. So our approach has been to expose her to as much variety as possible in terms of style, color, flavor, activity, etc. It may be that her favorite color is pink–but at least she’ll have chosen that based on the whole spectrum. And Mr. Sandwich says, “Maybe she’ll want to be a princess. Fine. She can be Princess Leia. Or Boudicca.”
I do know that I don’t want to tell her, “You’re wonderful just as you are, unless you like pink and princesses.” That’s not a good message, either.
But I really have a problem with the ubiquity of pink, and the emphasis on princesses. I think that’s incredibly limiting. What if a little girl feels like this instead?
Shouldn’t we have room for both–and for even more options? If we can be anything, why does it seem like there is no alternative to pink?
Don’t get me wrong. I love Disney movies. What I do not love is Disney Princesses: The Marketing Phenomenon. It removes all individuality from those characters and makes them nothing more than pretty girls in fluffy dresses.
My daughter is already more than that, and I know she’s not alone.
So we’ll watch Disney movies. But when we do, we’ll also talk about traits like kindness (Cinderella), integrity (Tiana), adventurousness (Jasmine), loyalty (Pocahontas), and ingenuity (Mulan).
And who knows? Maybe I can even get her to love Pink.
Photo by graphiclunarkid, via Flickr.
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Bragging Rights
This week’s entry in Monday Listicles is “10 Reasons I’m Great.” Honestly, I think this is something that not just moms, but women in general, often lose track of. Certainly there are plenty of conceited women out there–I have had my moments, I know–but all too often, we downplay our accomplishments and contributions. So what’s so great about me?
1) I wrote a full-length novel in high school. It’s never going to be published, and I’m fine with that–but I did it.
2) One of my friends read my M.A. thesis. For fun. Twice.
3) I will defend my loved ones from wildlife.
4) I do not faint at the sight of blood.*
5) In fact, if you sever your fingertip, I will not only locate it, but properly package it and drive you to the ER. While pregnant.
6) I’ve traveled to 49 of the 50 states (I have yet to get to Alaska.)
7) I’ve traveled to 5 of the 7 continents (South America and Antarctica, I’m coming for you. Eventually.)
8) I am really good at building fires.
9) I make good desserts. Not fancy, but good.
10) I’m an excellent wife and mother. (I’m not saying I’m better than you. I’m better than you for my family. And I’m similarly confident that you’re better for yours than I would be.)
*Does it undercut this post if I say that I do, however, shriek reflexively and stereotypically at the sight of a mouse?
Photo by .reid., via Flickr.
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5 Things I Found While I Was Looking Around
Bacon: 3 Things Everyone Should Know on Feed
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I’m particularly fond of the first one, although they do go together nicely.
The 2012 Atlantic Hurricane Season in 4.5 Minutes on YouTube
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Now that is some cloud movement.
10 Adorably Sleepy Animals That Ate Too Much Turkey on Mashable
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How about those French Bulldogs?
2-Minute Chocolate Chip Cookie for One on Zoom Yummy
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I don’t think I should have found this. No good can come of it.
Britain’s Longest-Serving Blacksmith on The Kid Should See This
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If you don’t think blacksmithing is cool, then I don’t think we can be friends.
Photo by Jellaluna, via Flickr.