I haven't posted something in a while, but the 3 minutes inside my own brain was pretty popular, so after Joe was talking about himself yesterday night (he was attempting to demonstrate what goes on in his brain fro 3 minutes... either 1 or 2 things happened: I interrupted him, or he fell asleep).
But I'll try and fill in the blanks cause I'm pretty sure this is what he thinks.
- zzzzzzzzzz
- damn. I have to work.
- i'm hungry. i want salsa.
- my ear is itchy. my specialty Chinese ear picking tool shall do the job
- why can't Sharon make any decisions and asks me to?
- Babysteals. why does it exist.
- mmmm Japadog.
- I'm pretty sure Sharon just said something to me. But I didn't hear it, but I won't acknowledge that I heard something and won't ask her to repeat it. That way it's nagging.
- I love Colin.
- steak too.
- why is she nagging me?
- I think i need my hair cut. But I'll let it grow until Sharon nags me about it.
- socks are magical. i can throw them anywhere on the ground, and the appear clean and in pairs in my drawers.
- shirts too.
- i'm a freakin genius.
- damn i have to work tomorrow.
- hmm, what's going on at Tech Crunch?
- i love how Colin copies me. I think I'll teach him to jump off high places.
- damn. have to pay the bills.
- she spent WHAT at the grocery store????
- I'll love Cara when she starts copying me.
- ok, Cara's just cute too.
- what can i buy on Deal Extreme right now?
- I am a musical prodigy
- zzzzzzzzzz
- I don't know why Sharon gets so furious when I dutch oven her.
- uuuhghhggggg work. is. uuuugggghhhhhghghg
- i need to fart........... right now.
- is it the weekend yet?
- what's new at ars technica ?
- let me check it on the computers, phone, iPad, Playbook, and other countless gadgets Sharon has no clue how to work
Monday, August 29, 2011
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Easy Cooking: Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa
I really should start taking pictures of the food, but after cooking and putting Cara down for a nap (so there's always a lot of crying when I'm prepping dinner), and Colin whining for me to play with him, I just don't feel like pulling the camera to take pictures.
But I should try.
Anyway, I digress. Tonight's dinner was DELICIOUS. and oh so simple. and healthy too!!!
It was easy because I have a tool. It's called the 'Quick Chopper 2000'. It sounds so gimmicky, and... it is. I always fall for it - the little booth with the salesperson on a microphone, selling their product, and then sampling all the millions of different things you can make with it. It was about 3 years ago we were at The Bay, and we fell for it. The lady was demonstrating the Quick Chopper 2000, and she made salsa with it (but you can make other things... that can be chopped up) but because Joe LOVES salsa, we just call it our $20 salsa maker.
What is it? pretty much a manual food processor. I know, we're lame. MANUAL. But it still works the same, so here goes the recipe:
- Fish (I got red snapper, but any white fish should do)
- Soft Taco Shells
- Lettuce
- Salsa
Salsa recipe (and I just dump everything into my QC2000, but in your case you can do it in your food processor, or hand chop):
- 1 really ripe mango
- 3 roma tomatoes
- 3 cloves of garlic
- quarter of an onion
- quarter of bell pepper
- handful of cilantro
- 1 juiced lime
- and if you want it spicy, just add jalapeno peppers to it
- salt
(of course, all these are coarse measurements... I rarely follow exact measurements so use what you have, add it, don't add it up to you!)
1. make the salsa
2. cook the fish, season it with salt and pepper and you're good to fry it in a little bit of oil.
3. slice the lettuce, and if you want add sour cream, avocado... whatever you add to your tacos!
it's really yummy, and Colin even loved it (i melted cheese in his to make the taco stick together). family friendly, and if you prep enough salsa you can have leftovers for days to come!
Enjoy :)
But I should try.
Anyway, I digress. Tonight's dinner was DELICIOUS. and oh so simple. and healthy too!!!
It was easy because I have a tool. It's called the 'Quick Chopper 2000'. It sounds so gimmicky, and... it is. I always fall for it - the little booth with the salesperson on a microphone, selling their product, and then sampling all the millions of different things you can make with it. It was about 3 years ago we were at The Bay, and we fell for it. The lady was demonstrating the Quick Chopper 2000, and she made salsa with it (but you can make other things... that can be chopped up) but because Joe LOVES salsa, we just call it our $20 salsa maker.
What is it? pretty much a manual food processor. I know, we're lame. MANUAL. But it still works the same, so here goes the recipe:
- Fish (I got red snapper, but any white fish should do)
- Soft Taco Shells
- Lettuce
- Salsa
Salsa recipe (and I just dump everything into my QC2000, but in your case you can do it in your food processor, or hand chop):
- 1 really ripe mango
- 3 roma tomatoes
- 3 cloves of garlic
- quarter of an onion
- quarter of bell pepper
- handful of cilantro
- 1 juiced lime
- and if you want it spicy, just add jalapeno peppers to it
- salt
(of course, all these are coarse measurements... I rarely follow exact measurements so use what you have, add it, don't add it up to you!)
1. make the salsa
2. cook the fish, season it with salt and pepper and you're good to fry it in a little bit of oil.
3. slice the lettuce, and if you want add sour cream, avocado... whatever you add to your tacos!
it's really yummy, and Colin even loved it (i melted cheese in his to make the taco stick together). family friendly, and if you prep enough salsa you can have leftovers for days to come!
Enjoy :)
Monday, August 22, 2011
Santa's Ark
Me: Where's the giraffe?
Colin: there
Me: Where's the lion?
Colin: RRRROOOAARRR - there
Me: where's Noah?
Colin: No that's Santa.
I apologize to any future Sunday School teachers.
Friday, August 19, 2011
3 Minutes Inside My Brain
A friend sent this along to me from Jason Good's blog. It was pretty amusing, accurate, and absurd all at once, but I thoroughly enjoyed it! So much that it inspired me to blog about 3 minutes inside my own head.
- What am I going to make for dinner?
- I need to grocery shop.
- I want salami.
- and cheese. and chocolate for good measure.
- Cara's so cute.
- Why the heck can't Joe ever put his socks away???
- I swear I'm going to burn all of his socks - he'll learn his lesson then.
- Colin's so cute.
- I wonder if I have any Facebook notifications?
- Hmm, none right now, but I'll just stalk an old high school friend's photos and see what they look like now.
- Ugh, what am I going to make for dinner?
- I'm shedding like crazy, I need to cut my hair.
- OOh, I'll visit Groupon to see if there's a cheap hair salon deal.
- I could use a free bootcamp lesson. I jiggle more than I remember.
- dinner? dinner? dinner???
- I need tin foil.
- There must be a notification by now.
- I'll check my blog stats.
- I need to cut Colin and Cara's toenails.
- I love my family. Joe's cute, smart and funny.
- Joe needs a hair cut.
- I need more tupperware.
- What was I going to get???
- ARGH I can't remember what I was going to get.
- I want to rearrange our furniture.
- I need to organize the desk first, then we can rearrange things.
- I need to get organizers, dividers, file folders, and new pens to properly organize the desk.
- I feel stressed out thinking about the desk. The room is fine the way it is.
- I'll look on Allrecipes.com for ideas.
- I'll text Joe and ask him what he wants. He better not say 'anything'.
- I need new lids for the sippy cups. why can't they just sell the lids???
- Colin and Cara are so cute.
- Why can't Joe put his shirts back on the hangers?? I'm going to donate anything that's laying around.
- ugh. laundry. and how is it that all the pairs of socks become singles magically after I wash them??
- How is this place always a mess? I'm pretty sure I cleaned it up 10 minutes ago.
- Doesn't Joe know I need to know what he wants for dinner NOW so I can grocery shop NOW?
- I love Superstore. I like one-stop-shopping.
- I hate dishonest people who park in the maternity/parent parking
- I like the idea of reading.
- hmm, where's my Entertainment coupon book?
- i'll ask Joe. but he probably won't know... but i'll ask him anyway
- can kids smell? how does that stench in his diaper not get to him?
- A van would be so nice to have. so much extra room. and sliding doors...sliding
- maybe there's a fb notification. I'll check my phone.
- it's sunny. we'll just BBQ. I can think of dinner and groceries for the week tomorrow.
- What am I going to make for dinner?
- I need to grocery shop.
- I want salami.
- and cheese. and chocolate for good measure.
- Cara's so cute.
- Why the heck can't Joe ever put his socks away???
- I swear I'm going to burn all of his socks - he'll learn his lesson then.
- Colin's so cute.
- I wonder if I have any Facebook notifications?
- Hmm, none right now, but I'll just stalk an old high school friend's photos and see what they look like now.
- Ugh, what am I going to make for dinner?
- I'm shedding like crazy, I need to cut my hair.
- OOh, I'll visit Groupon to see if there's a cheap hair salon deal.
- I could use a free bootcamp lesson. I jiggle more than I remember.
- dinner? dinner? dinner???
- I need tin foil.
- There must be a notification by now.
- I'll check my blog stats.
- I need to cut Colin and Cara's toenails.
- I love my family. Joe's cute, smart and funny.
- Joe needs a hair cut.
- I need more tupperware.
- What was I going to get???
- ARGH I can't remember what I was going to get.
- I want to rearrange our furniture.
- I need to organize the desk first, then we can rearrange things.
- I need to get organizers, dividers, file folders, and new pens to properly organize the desk.
- I feel stressed out thinking about the desk. The room is fine the way it is.
- I'll look on Allrecipes.com for ideas.
- I'll text Joe and ask him what he wants. He better not say 'anything'.
- I need new lids for the sippy cups. why can't they just sell the lids???
- Colin and Cara are so cute.
- Why can't Joe put his shirts back on the hangers?? I'm going to donate anything that's laying around.
- ugh. laundry. and how is it that all the pairs of socks become singles magically after I wash them??
- How is this place always a mess? I'm pretty sure I cleaned it up 10 minutes ago.
- Doesn't Joe know I need to know what he wants for dinner NOW so I can grocery shop NOW?
- I love Superstore. I like one-stop-shopping.
- I hate dishonest people who park in the maternity/parent parking
- I like the idea of reading.
- hmm, where's my Entertainment coupon book?
- i'll ask Joe. but he probably won't know... but i'll ask him anyway
- can kids smell? how does that stench in his diaper not get to him?
- A van would be so nice to have. so much extra room. and sliding doors...sliding
- maybe there's a fb notification. I'll check my phone.
- it's sunny. we'll just BBQ. I can think of dinner and groceries for the week tomorrow.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Stay at Home Mom vs. Working Mom
I am fortunate enough to have great neighbours and we recently started getting together for dinners (they also have kids the same age as Colin so it's perfect!). My 2 lovely neighbours, Anne and Gwynne are both working moms, and I'm the lone SAHM. I have so much respect for working moms, and sometimes just am in complete awe of them!! We got to discussing the pros and cons of both sides since both of them have just had a taste of stay at home life (one is a teacher so the summer is off, and the other had 2 week vacation because daycare was closed for 2 weeks).
I've always thought that I had it quite good though, and I don't want to complain too much that the grass is greener on the other side. But there are some definite patches on that other side of the fence that I'd looooove to frolic in - the biggest being... adult interaction? And not having a child attached to my hip at all times. But I know I'm really blessed and fortunate to be able to spend so much time with my kids, and to have a husband that works so hard to make it happen for us.
So, I thought I'd dedicate this blog to all the moms - working or stay at home. What is your life like? What do you see on the other side that you want, and what do you love about your situation? How do you make it work?
As for myself - before I popped any babies out, I had it all in my head that I'd go back to work. It's nice to have the extra security, and everyone else does it right? But then, the baby came. And he changed our life.
To put it simply, these are the reasons why we decided to have me stay at home. My previous job as a Special Ed Assistant was great - I loved what I did and the hours were perfect for a mom - but when i factored in daycare and commuting costs, my net total was only minimal. For me, was that number worth me spending that time away from this precious bundle that just entered our lives? Everyone says that it goes fast, so was that number, worth missing this time? For me, no. I couldn't wrap my head around missing out on every moment of Colin's life for X amount.
Now, I do have to say though, if X was significant, I may have a different outcome, but because Joe is the main breadwinner in this house, I had an option.
But what do we have to give up? For us, it's the luxuries. We don't have a second car, we haven't done any renovations on the house (yes, the port holes we have on our doors still exist - the house is pretty much the same as we bought it), Craigslist is our friend, and other minor things like extra channels on the tv, no landline etc. On the personal side, you give up yourself - there's not a whole lot of alone time (physically and mentally) and it's always the kids first every single waking moment of the day.
So nothing devastating, but we live a very comfortable yet humble lifestyle? Humbfortable.
But what do I get in return? I am at home, and able to cook, clean (wait a second... these aren't rewards....), and most importantly be active in the growth of my children's lives. I am here everyday when my husband returns from work, and yes, although I am also tired, I am not stressed out. I am able to see my family, and as a result Colin and Cara are very close with their cousins (and aunts and grandma). I even do get to nap when both of the kids are sleeping (which i always take advantage of because one day.... my perfect 'napping scheduled children' bubble will burst).
I love that it's worked for us, and that I can see my children are thriving not because I'm a stay-at-home mom, but because we're happy.
I'd love to hear from working moms, other stay at home moms, or stay-at-home working moms (yes, that exists!) and what your honest thoughts are about your life - do you love it? or would you change it?
I've always thought that I had it quite good though, and I don't want to complain too much that the grass is greener on the other side. But there are some definite patches on that other side of the fence that I'd looooove to frolic in - the biggest being... adult interaction? And not having a child attached to my hip at all times. But I know I'm really blessed and fortunate to be able to spend so much time with my kids, and to have a husband that works so hard to make it happen for us.
So, I thought I'd dedicate this blog to all the moms - working or stay at home. What is your life like? What do you see on the other side that you want, and what do you love about your situation? How do you make it work?
As for myself - before I popped any babies out, I had it all in my head that I'd go back to work. It's nice to have the extra security, and everyone else does it right? But then, the baby came. And he changed our life.
To put it simply, these are the reasons why we decided to have me stay at home. My previous job as a Special Ed Assistant was great - I loved what I did and the hours were perfect for a mom - but when i factored in daycare and commuting costs, my net total was only minimal. For me, was that number worth me spending that time away from this precious bundle that just entered our lives? Everyone says that it goes fast, so was that number, worth missing this time? For me, no. I couldn't wrap my head around missing out on every moment of Colin's life for X amount.
Now, I do have to say though, if X was significant, I may have a different outcome, but because Joe is the main breadwinner in this house, I had an option.
But what do we have to give up? For us, it's the luxuries. We don't have a second car, we haven't done any renovations on the house (yes, the port holes we have on our doors still exist - the house is pretty much the same as we bought it), Craigslist is our friend, and other minor things like extra channels on the tv, no landline etc. On the personal side, you give up yourself - there's not a whole lot of alone time (physically and mentally) and it's always the kids first every single waking moment of the day.
So nothing devastating, but we live a very comfortable yet humble lifestyle? Humbfortable.
But what do I get in return? I am at home, and able to cook, clean (wait a second... these aren't rewards....), and most importantly be active in the growth of my children's lives. I am here everyday when my husband returns from work, and yes, although I am also tired, I am not stressed out. I am able to see my family, and as a result Colin and Cara are very close with their cousins (and aunts and grandma). I even do get to nap when both of the kids are sleeping (which i always take advantage of because one day.... my perfect 'napping scheduled children' bubble will burst).
I love that it's worked for us, and that I can see my children are thriving not because I'm a stay-at-home mom, but because we're happy.
I'd love to hear from working moms, other stay at home moms, or stay-at-home working moms (yes, that exists!) and what your honest thoughts are about your life - do you love it? or would you change it?
Tough Guy
I know I know, I'm bad and haven't posted in a while. I am currently working a longer entry as we speak, but I have to put Cara down for a nap soon, so I'll amuse you all with this recent picture. We took the kids to get their shots last week sometime, and Colin had finished his and got a Go Diego Go sticker (don't worry, the shot was in the other arm)
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Boob Boy
We borrowed a pop-up dinosaur book from the library today, and were looking at a pop-up fossil of a Stegosaurus. Here's how the conversation went:
Colin:(pointing at the spine)what's this?
Me: The spine.
Colin: What's that for?
Me: It hold the back and tail up.
Colin: (pointing to the ribs) what's this?
Me: The ribs. They're right here on you! (touching his rib cage)
Colin: What's that for?
Me: It protects all the important organs in your body, like your heart, your lungs...
Colin: and NIPPLES!
Yup. He's going to be a boob guy.
Colin:(pointing at the spine)what's this?
Me: The spine.
Colin: What's that for?
Me: It hold the back and tail up.
Colin: (pointing to the ribs) what's this?
Me: The ribs. They're right here on you! (touching his rib cage)
Colin: What's that for?
Me: It protects all the important organs in your body, like your heart, your lungs...
Colin: and NIPPLES!
Yup. He's going to be a boob guy.
Safety Hazard
Okay, so I won't lament about the safety hazards when Joe and Colin play..... because somewhere this is happening. Hmm, perhaps a North American mom's worst nightmare though!!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Easy Cooking: Balsamic Chicken
i'm not making this for dinner tonight, but I have in the past several times and wonder why I don't do it more. I got the Braised Balsamic Chicken recipe from allrecipes.com (as always) but made a few tweeks to make it very lazy (and thrifty) mom approved.
Ingredients:
7-10 chicken thighs (or however many fits in your saute pan)
Balsamic Vinegar
Can of crushed tomatoes
Seasoning (salt, pepper, and anything you want to flavor the chicken with)
Directions:
*pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
1. season your chicken, and then place it on a medium/high heat pan to fry it.
2. If you don't want the extra oil... dump it, if you don't mind go to step 3.
3. pour in a cup of balsamic vinegar and the tomatoes
4. put a lid on it and put it in the oven for about 20 minutes (I do this cause i buy chicken thighs which are way cheaper than breasts, and braising it in the oven cooks it thoroughly with the bone in there while keeping it moist).
I serve it with rice... and it's really really delicious... If you want to go the 'extra' mile, you can reduce the sauce from the pan so it's not as runny, and it's quite tasty too!! Happy Cooking!
Ingredients:
7-10 chicken thighs (or however many fits in your saute pan)
Balsamic Vinegar
Can of crushed tomatoes
Seasoning (salt, pepper, and anything you want to flavor the chicken with)
Directions:
*pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
1. season your chicken, and then place it on a medium/high heat pan to fry it.
2. If you don't want the extra oil... dump it, if you don't mind go to step 3.
3. pour in a cup of balsamic vinegar and the tomatoes
4. put a lid on it and put it in the oven for about 20 minutes (I do this cause i buy chicken thighs which are way cheaper than breasts, and braising it in the oven cooks it thoroughly with the bone in there while keeping it moist).
I serve it with rice... and it's really really delicious... If you want to go the 'extra' mile, you can reduce the sauce from the pan so it's not as runny, and it's quite tasty too!! Happy Cooking!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Bad Mommy
I guess I can make regular contributions to this series...
I was cleaning up after breakfast, to hear Colin saying something to me. I couldn't hear, so I asked him to say it again, and he shouted, "Mommy! I'm riding Cara!!"
I ran straight to the kids... to find this going on.
I was cleaning up after breakfast, to hear Colin saying something to me. I couldn't hear, so I asked him to say it again, and he shouted, "Mommy! I'm riding Cara!!"
I ran straight to the kids... to find this going on.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Choices. Choices.
Joe adores Colin. He tells me everyday, after Colin goes to bed, just how much he loves him. And today was no different - in fact, I think Joe felt a little bit guilty when Colin took a big spill when they were playing together, and Joe's guilt started to eat him up, so he wanted to do something nice for Col.
This is how the conversation went:
Joe: Colin, because you were such a good boy, I'm going to give you some options to choose from.
Colin: Yeah.
Joe: Okay, option #1 is you can go to the candy store and buy a treat.
Colin: (nods)
Joe: Or, you can go to the school, and we can play in the park
Colin: (nods)
Joe: Or, #3, we can.... watch a family movie.
Colin: (nods)
Joe: or #4, we can build a really cool giant tent
Colin: (nods)
then there was silence.... because Joe was running out of really good enticing ideas to spoil Colin with... but then Col breaks the silence with his good idea
Colin: Number five. Triceratops.
Joe: Oh, that's a good idea, #5, or you could play with Triceratops. What do you want to do??
Colin: hmmm........ candy store! LET'S GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm perplexed at a couple of things here.... but hey, they're out of the house and I'm sitting here in silence so I'm not going to spend too much time pondering.
This is how the conversation went:
Joe: Colin, because you were such a good boy, I'm going to give you some options to choose from.
Colin: Yeah.
Joe: Okay, option #1 is you can go to the candy store and buy a treat.
Colin: (nods)
Joe: Or, you can go to the school, and we can play in the park
Colin: (nods)
Joe: Or, #3, we can.... watch a family movie.
Colin: (nods)
Joe: or #4, we can build a really cool giant tent
Colin: (nods)
then there was silence.... because Joe was running out of really good enticing ideas to spoil Colin with... but then Col breaks the silence with his good idea
Colin: Number five. Triceratops.
Joe: Oh, that's a good idea, #5, or you could play with Triceratops. What do you want to do??
Colin: hmmm........ candy store! LET'S GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm perplexed at a couple of things here.... but hey, they're out of the house and I'm sitting here in silence so I'm not going to spend too much time pondering.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)