A new role for me

My best friend in the whole world told me to call her on Thursday to ask me a question.  It was odd, because we don't have the relationship where we talk on the phone.  We can hang out and talk for hours, we can txt and email and tweet, we exchange gifts and holiday cards, but we just don't talk on the phone.  So I was quite intrigued when I got her txt.  


I called her as soon as my break arrived.  She wanted to know what my plans were on some random Friday next summer.  Well ... I hadn't made any yet; nobody plans THAT far ahead.  Then she asked me the most crucial question ..... "Will you be my matron of honor?"


AAAHHH!!!!  Of course!!!  She was my maid of honor for my first wedding and she did a fantastic job.


I hope I can be the matron of honor for her that she was to me!!!


It's going to be a small wedding.
Western themed.  But knowing her, it will be a classy and very well done.  No cheeseballness for her.


So I have a mission to find a nice classy western outfit inspired by one she emailed me.


I've never been a maid or matron of honor.  Especially by long distance (she's in Montana, I'm in Cali).  What tips do you have?  What have you done that's worked or not worked?

Mommy and Me Monday - Urgent Care

Poor Annie got really sick this weekend.  Sudden fever of 101.3+, which didn't go down with Tylenol.  Super deep, chest cough that sounded like she belonged at Pier 39 with the Sea Lions.  With our Pediatrician's office closed, we hiked it up over to Urgent Care.


They did a chest x-ray to check for infection and a breathing treatment and just had us sit there with a cool mist humidifier going.


Diagnosis was Bronchiolitis, caused by a virus.  No meds but Tylenol and Motrin to keep the fever down.  Tylenol wasn't cutting it, so we stuck with Motrin.


She's home with Daddy today.  


Here are a couple shots from Urgent Care on Saturday.

The contraption she was in to stabilize her during the chest xray.  Of her short 11 months, she's had 2 separate sets of X-rays.  Poor girl.

Laying on the bed with the humidifier tube.

Hosted by Krystyn at Really, Are You Serious?

Mommy and Me Monday ... Onion Rings

Here are Annie and I at Red Robin enjoying a yummy scrumptious burger and onion rings.
Go see more Mommy and Me Monday on Krystyn's blog.



Hosted by Krystyn at Really, Are You Serious?

Frozen Lunches - Part 2

Week 2 of making and taking frozen lunches is going well.


Week 1 I got up nice and early on Saturday and started cooking.  I had it bagged and ready to go in less than 2 hours (all the while doing other mom things).  I decided on chicken penne pasta that week.  It turned out well.  My portions were perfect for a lunch portion.  And I remembered to take extra cheese and sauce (cause the sauce always dries up a bit in the microwave) and it was yummy.  One thing to improve upon ... I made enough pasta to feed 4 people dinner, but only enough chicken for 1.  So I should increase the chicken and decrease the pasta to get a more even mixture in my meals.  More protein, less carbs.  I also need to remove it from the water a bit sooner.  I made it al dente, but not al dente enough ... it was still a little extra mushy.  I give myself a B+.


I had leftover lasagna I also froze.  That's been a leftover staple of mine for years and years, so that went off without a hitch.  A+ of course.


Week two I opted to make homemade frozen pizza.  I love homemade pizza, but I struggle to make it frequently because I can't find a dough recipe that I love and the dough takes so long, it's too much of a process for me with the babies around.  But Sprouts had pre-made frozen raw dough (not like Boboli or Pillsbury ... this stuff is good).  And it was only $1.99.  It made 3 frozen pizzas.  I place the raw pizzas on a cookie sheet and covered with plastic and froze.  I then removed the frozen raw pizzas and freezer saved them.  Brought it to work and put back in the freezer.  The plan was to cook in the toaster oven from frozen.  There is no tray in our toaster oven, just the rack, so I used a piece of foil for stability.  I cooked at 450* until it looked done.  The top cooked nicely.  Cheese was melted and the crust a golden brown.  The edges of the underneath crust looked good too.  I moved it to a cutting board and cut it open and the middle was still totally raw.  Like not even partially cooked.  To fix this, I think I need to partially pre-cook the dough and then top it and freeze.  In the meantime, I have 2 more left that I'll have to eat.  I'm thinking I'll cook at a lower temperature for longer, and maybe just right on the rack.  I fear the dough will fall through though.  I give myself a solid C.  Good effort, good plan, but it just didn't work right.  We'll see if I can raise this to a B next time.


This weekend time is going to be short so I want to do something quick that I know pretty well.  I'm thinking maybe enchiladas or chili.

Awww.......

This was last night at Open Mic Night at church. She's such a diva!
Hosted by Krystyn at Really, Are You Serious?

Why you might not want a baby carrier.....

The house is a mess and it's naptime for Audrey. My work is done for the day. I have nothing truly pressing to do. I should clean. But I have a fussy baby in my lap. I could take this excuse and say, "Josh, I'm sorry, but I just can't clean the house this afternoon because Annie is fussy and won't lay down."

But he won't accept that as an excuse. And it's not because he's mean. He doesn't act like a slave driver. He's not unsympathetic to the needs of a crying baby. He just knows that Annie likes to be worn in a baby carrier like my Mobywrap. And he'd say to me, if I tried to give him this excuse, "Christine, just wear Annie while you do dishes and put things away. She'll go to sleep and you'll get stuff done. AND you'll get some exercise. win-win-win."

So folks, if you want that excuse to not have to clean your house because the baby is fussy, don't get a baby carrier. Now that I have one I have no excuses to not clean.

Should Children Be Allowed on Facebook? - NYTimes.com

Should Children Be Allowed on Facebook?
By KJ DELLANTONIA
Facebook really is after your kids.

Right now, the site doesn’t officially allow children under 13 to sign up. But in this Sunday’s Times Magazine, Emily Bazelon reports that Facebook isn’t happy about it. It has tripled its spending on lobbying and formed a political action committee in anticipation of “a fight we take on at some point” — in the words of Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s founder — over the 1998 Children’s Online Privacy Act.

Summed up, Facebook’s argument is that millions of children (7.5 million 12 and under, according to the May issue of Consumer Reports) are already on Facebook. Letting them sign up legally (under their real ages, which now they have to hide) would allow Facebook to develop stricter privacy controls for that age group. But, Ms. Bazelon writes, stricter privacy controls aren’t in Facebook’s economic interest.

I want to comment on this article so bad, but I can't remember my login to NYTimes to comment. So I'm going to do it here.

NO!!!!!!

Let me start with this: parents who let their kids on FB before the age of 13 are breaking the rules and are foolish. It sets an example that it's OK to break the rules (and the law) when the rule is inconvenient to you.

Now ... if FB gets their way and allows children under the age of 13 (which requires a change in the privacy act) and kids can use their real age on there, it opens to door wider to predators. Even with parents watching their account, who's to say that a kids page will be private and only friends with their IRL friends? Who's to say that the kids won't post stuff and then HIDE it from mom/dad. Kids are ruthless and know how to get around things, and the tween age is the primary age they figure it out and push their boundaries. Once 14 or 15 hit, the kid is either satisfied being who they are or is an all out rebel (or somewhere in between). By protecting the children in the tween range we can help prevent them from going down a path we all know is wrong.

I've seen too many dateline stories to trust the internet with kids.

Even at 13 I don't think a child is ready to have a FB account. As I think back to my child hood and what I found important and where I put my time/efforts/energy ... if I had FB it could have been really scary. And a lot of kids put so much stalk into what is posted on FB. What's important isn't being at the party or at the dance or at the game, but what you put on FB about it. What pictures/videos you post. What comments are said. Who tags you and who you tag. Our teenagers' identities are wrapped up in their FB accounts and it's a very scary thought to allow children under 13 into that world.

Furthermore, FB isn't doing it because they're already there and so they figure they can make it safer. That's just what they're saying to moms/dads who are a little concerned. No. FB is doing it to reach another ad demographic; a more gullible and easily swayed group of people. We already have issues with kids wanting everything they see on TV and wanting/needing to play every game they hear about and having the best fashions. What if they have the world at their fingertips and the world is "talking directly to them?" That's a super scary thought.

Should Children Be Allowed on Facebook? - NYTimes.com:

'via Blog this'

Mommy and Me Monday - Pumpkin Patch

I probably used this last year too .......

Audrey and me at the pumpkin patch (and big sister too).

4 inches in one year.  Not bad.  Not accurate, but not bad.  

Hosted by Krystyn at Really, Are You Serious?

Trying something new with my lunches

I am notorious for waiting until the last second to scramble to put something together for my lunch.  It usually makes us a couple minutes late and I often am disappointed with what I bring to work and am dissatisfied overall with my lunch.

I've allowed myself one luxury of one frozen meal a week so that I don't have to think about lunch one day.  And I can often get leftovers one time.  So then I only have to think about it 2 days.  But the frozen meals can be cost prohibitive, small and/or not very good or healthy.

In an attempt to make life easier, I'm trying something new.  I should really make and bring my lunch every day.  I should use fresh and healthy ingredients.  Avoid deep fried foods and lots of carbs.  So I'm going to pre-make several frozen lunches for myself.  I often hear of families making frozen dinners in preparation of a baby being born or surgery or mom being out of town.  But those are entire meals for the whole family to eat.  I want to try this with single portion lunches.

So here's my plan.

Have a menu of 5-6 entrees that I make and rotate through.  

Each week I make one entree and freeze single portions.  To freeze the best, use the food saver freezer system.  I should get at least 4 portions from one entree.

It will take about a month to 6 weeks to really get a good supply built up, but it will be worth it.  In the mean time I stick with sandwiches for the days I don't have a frozen option.  After I get my initial stash built up, I have plenty of variety in the freezer and am not stuck eating the same thing every day.

Entree Ideas I have:

• Chicken Pasta
• Tacos (cook and freeze the meat and veggies; take the other fixings fresh)
• Lasagna
• Homemade Pizza (I rock a homemade pizza and keep wanting to try it frozen)
• Sweet and Sour _______________ (insert meat here)
• Chicken Pot Pie

Any other entree ideas I could add?

How do you do your work or other take and go lunches?