Menu Planning part 2

Hey!  Our little menu planning experiment worked really well last week, so we're trying it again this week.  

Monday 

Roasted turkey thighs 

Roasted potatoes

Corn and pepper salad 

Broccoli 

Tuesday 

Black bean and sweet potato enchiladas (leftover from Sunday) 

Asparagus 

Greek yogurt 

Wednesday 

Turkey tetrazzini 

Broccoli 

Casaba melon 

Thursday 

Tomato garlic soup 

Grilled cheese sandwiches 

green salad 

Greek yogurt

Friday 

Leftovers 

Saturday 

Sunday 
Leftover cake.

P.S.- What a great week we had with our Kickstarter campaign!  We are almost to 65%, with 20 days left to raise the rest of the money.  Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed so far.  Do you know anyone else who might be interested in contributing to Hourglass Footwear ?  xoxo

First Dentist Appointment

Violet had her first dentist appointment today.

First, let me tell you--
I think I have all of these weird memories from going to the dentist as a kid.  Not that my childhood dentist was bad-- but I definitely always felt like it was a quietly endure and get out type of thing; not really fun, and it didn't keep me from having complete fear of dentistry now as an adult... so I don't know, it never really crossed my mind that going to the dentist could be a very very very positive and even FUN experience for Violet.

My childhood dentist was this very old man.  Apart from his looking a bit like Captain Kangaroo, which was fun, I'm pretty sure the only kid-friendly thing he had in his office was Zoobooks Magazine.  I feel like I had really bad teeth as a kid, and he was always kind of disappointed in me, and he always told me not to scritch up in my chair because he didn't like it.  (Really, mister pediatric dentist?  Am I the first patient to ever tensely scritch up in the chair during dental work?  I'm pretty sure I still do that; who doesn't?).  Anyway, then at the end of the visit (this is the exciting part), Mr. Captain Kangaroo dentist would let me choose a rabbit's foot keychain as a prize.  Do you remember those?  I'm pretty sure that we, as a society, have decided it's kind of not ok for a variety of reasons to give out rabbit's feet as prizes to kids anymore...
My cats always found them later on and carried them around the house in their mouths, as though they had actually made the kill.  I would find them stashed in the couch cushions all chewed and mangled.

So, in short, I didn't know how today would go.  Violet's doctor, who we love and trust, convinced us to go to Dr. Camille Sata, pediatric dentist (we were just going to take Violet to our family dentist, who I very much love, but I have always known that she doesn't specialize in kids...)

WELL, let me tell you, Dr. Sata was outstanding.  Really.  Really.  Outstanding.  The waiting room looked a bit like a Pooh-Bear sleepy hollow tree house thing.  So immediately it was this very fun/safe place for Violet.  Then the real excitement began, and we were taken by this beautiful and very gentle hygienist back into the patient care area.  She was obviously highly trained in working with kids, or maybe just very talented.  We sat and talked for a while, and she and Violet played for a bit with this huge toothy smiling stuffed frog, and pretend to brush its teeth.  Immediately the hygienist told me that today was to be nothing but fun.  They would go as far as they could with Violet in the cleaning, but the second she became fearful or uncomfortable, they would stop.

Their goal was to make the first visit as positive as possible for her.  So then we went over to a chair by a huge window, and she got to pick out a flavor of toothpaste to have during the cleaning (some sort of pink flavor-- strawberry maybe?)  And she got to pick out floss.  And she got to pick out a tooth brush.  And then she got to put on these rainbow sunglasses and sit in the chair (with me on the end), and the two of us got to go up and down and up and down, and then back and forth.  It was a bit like a carnival ride.  The woman, who obviously had a talent for making kids smile, squirted her hand with water, and sucked it up with the vacuum tube thing.  By the time she got to Violet's mouth, Violet had absolutely no problem whatsoever opening up and letting this amazing woman poke around for the cleaning.

Dr. Sata came over at the end, and did another inspection, and was equally as wonderful.  I think she was wearing turtle scrubs; Violet adored her.
Bad news?  The dentist think she will probably need early orthodontic work, like probably by age 7 due to a crowded mouth and a bit of an overbite (she can blame that on me).  I guess I'll have to find another piggy bank to start putting coins into.... yikes.

But, all in all, it was a great experience.




God.  If only my own dental experiences could be like this!  What?  You think I'm the cutest thing ever?  What your goal is to clean my teeth while making me feel like a million bucks?  What?  I get to play with all of your cool tools before you stick them in my mouth?  What?  The toothpaste you are going to use on me tastes like cupcakes and pink champagne and every other food I adore?  

I can honestly say there was absolutely no fear in Violet's eyes as she sat in the dental chair.  And this is my daughter, who has a general reluctance toward most people and things.  Bravo, Dr. Sata and company.  Bravo.

Poetry

Something funny has been happening lately.  With Tyler working on his dissertation 24/7, I have had barely a second to sit and do any work whatsoever.  Painting, drawing, illustrating-- all of those projects have been put on hold (with the exception of the Hourglass Kickstarter campaign). 
But with little time to actually sit at my desk, I have started to write-- mostly in this giant spiral notebook that looks like something a 6th grader would use for biology class.  I leave it out when I'm doing puzzles with V, or when I'm sitting folding socks on the floor in the middle of the day (yes, we stay-at-home parents lead a glamorous life...).  Then when she is napping, I bring what I have scribbled in my book back to my desk and frantically type it out, encouraged by my lovely furry assistant who tries to nuzzle under my hands as I figure out what goes where and what doesn't belong at all.
It's fun.  And I have discovered something interesting:  writing poetry is very much like scientific illustration.  You kind of look at one little thing in life (oh, for example, the way your kid's feet look like tiny apples when she's dancing ballet in the living room-- something Tyler's grandma used to say), and then you very carefully pick a few choice words to set the scene/tell the story of what's going on.  Pretty soon you have this very tight little piece of work that is complete in-and-of itself, the way a drawing can be when hung framed on your wall.
So, anyway, I have started writing poetry.  But that's not the amazing thing.  The amazing thing (and I do feel justified to brag here, because, as Tyler so eloquently put it the other night, I have been allowed only about 27 minutes total to launch my hobby career as a poet), -- the amazing thing is that in letting these little poems out into the world, they have already hooked a few awards!
Last night I received an award from the Seattle Public Library with a poem that I entered for their poetry month competition.  It was very fun; I got to take home a stuffed walrus as my prize (who Violet has named "Baby Paul Poetry Walrus"), along with a certificate.
The other award is with Hallmark (yes, Hallmark, maker of cards and other feel good gifties).  I submitted a short poem to a contest they were running this past month, and yesterday I learned that I am one the winners!  So my poem will be published next year in a small book of poetry/short stories that they will be selling in their stores for Mother's Day 2013.
So, anyway, that's my big news.
Apparently I'm a poet and I didn't even knowit.

Also, again, please please please if you haven't done so already, PLEASE contribute to our Kickstarter campaign.  The minimum pledge is $1.  To put that into a language Seattleites can understand, that's less than a cup of coffee.

Menu Planning

How do you plan your meals each week?  

I am very curious about this.  I recently learned that many grownups sit down every Sunday and plan out every single meal for the week to come.  And then they do all of their shopping for the week on Monday (or Sunday evening) with all of their recipes in mind.  

Ok, either you're saying to yourself come on, Rachel, really?  You haven't figured this out yet? 

Or, you're saying wow, that seems a little soccer-mom crazy if you ask me.  

Anyway, I have become curious about this recently because with Tyler in the final stretch sprint of his dissertation writing, I am going to try to be the head household chef these days.  In the past we have tried to split it up a bit; and with both of our heads kind of thinking about it each day, we always have managed to put interesting things on the table at dinnertime.   

It's not that I don't like cooking, because I very much do--  It's just that I don't like having to think about it every day.  We've been in this rut lately where Violet and I have something going on in the morning, then we come home for lunch, then she takes a nap, and then it's around 3pm and I realize that I should probably think about dinner.  So I brainstorm some recipes, and then we go to the store.  By the time we get home, and I start cooking, it's that horrible 5pm time (all of you mommies know what I mean by horrible), and dinner becomes this awful frantic activity that always takes way longer than I thought it would; and Violet who is getting hungrier and hungrier, ends up eating nearly an entire block of cheese and two apples while she plays with markers.  Then when it's time for dinner, she's not hungry anymore, and I'm so tired of the whole mess, all I really want is to drink a glass of wine and move on to dessert.  

SO, in short, I have decide that I am going to try this new crazy thing, where Tyler and I sit down (as others do), every Sunday, and plan out the week's dinners.  Then, Monday morning I will go to the store and buy everything I will need for the week so that I can make things ahead, and sit and do puzzles with Violet at the horrible hour and drink my glass of wine happily and peacefully while dinner simply warms on the stove.  

Here is what we're having this week 

(note that there are only 5 meals planned; Saturday we often go out to some cheap-eats, and then Sunday is often leftover night.)  

Monday

Black Pepper Tofu with Green Beans 

Rice

Steamed veggies with Miso dipping sauce 

Greek Yogurt 

Tuesday 

Clam Chowder 

Dilly Bread 

Asparagus 

Greek Yogurt 

Wednesday 

Chutney Chicken 

Rice 

Broccoli 

Greek Yogurt 

Thursday 

Veggie-Egg Casserole 

Roasted potatoes 

Asparagus 

Greek Yogurt 

Friday 

Aloo Tiki 

Chana Masala 

Rice 

Naan 

Broccoli

Saturday 

Tiny Garden

...the garden is about life and beauty and the impermanence of all things...  And what a wonderful relief every so often to know who the enemy is-- because in the garden, the enemy is everything: the aphids, the weather, time.  And so you pour yourself into it, care so much, and see up close so much birth and growth and beauty and danger and triumph-- and then everything dies anyway, right?  But you just keep doing it."  
--Anne Lamott; Bird by Bird

Here is something I remember very clearly from when I was a little girl:

My mother, in sneakers, with a hose, standing on a huge rock in the middle of her garden, watering her Cosmos and Johnny-Jump-ups.

My mother has always been able to grow these beautiful wild gardens.  I always thought they were effortless, but recently I've started to realize that actually my mom put a ton of work and love into her plants.  When she wasn't working at the toy shop, or cooking, or lugging me off to gymnastics, or making popcorn with me in the kitchen, she was out in the yard gardening with her big yellow radio tuned to a baseball game.  And in California, everything grows like mad, so we would have lemons and roses and tulips and honeysuckle...  I'm sure a lot of dandelions too.  But I don't remember those.  I just remember my lovely mother with every cat in the neighborhood by her side, kneeling in some flower bed.

So, anyway, I have decided that I should probably try to grow a garden, because why on earth not?  Well, turns out there are a few reasons not too...  mostly because getting things to grow is kind of tricky... but, it also turns out that "gardening" is great fun for both Violet and me (as well as Chowder, who is a bit like Godzilla out there; all of my tiny seedlings have to re-learn how to stand up straight every day after he has been reclining on them all afternoon).
This is what I have learned so far:  I am very very good at growing oregano.  I am so good at growing it, in fact, that maybe what I really should do is open up a pizza joint.  However, growing basil is another story, so I guess I'll can that idea.
I am also good at growing chives and snapdragons, and so far lettuce.   And (fingers crossed) sunflowers!  My nasturtiums are pleading with me to just leave them alone already and let them go.  The mint is also in this same boat.  But the curry plant is doing well!  And apparently I planted petunias.
Then there are these beautiful iris that took pity on me and just came up on their own; as did the thyme. But I like to think I have been nurturing their growth, and that it wasn't just some random act of the universe.

So, there you have it.
.....Photos!

Lettuce, snapdragons, pansies, sunflowers!

Petunia!

We planted this rose bush when Violet was born.  I cleared away the ivy, and it bloomed!

Pansies and baby sunflowers!

chives.  

dying primrose, strawberries, chives, oregano, and Shrek. 

Thyme and oregano

Poppies!  I can't really take credit for these, but aren't they lovely! 

This petunia came up striped.  Huh. That's funny.  

Sleep Fairy

Have you heard of the Sleep Fairy?  No?  

Well, The Sleep Fairy is a very real thing.  Let me tell you.  Very real.  I wouldn't have believed it, but she has used her powers to work wonders on this household over the past week.   

The Sleep Fairy is the fairy who leaves you a tiny gift on the coffee table in the morning if you are able to sleep in your bed all night long.  She still comes if you have to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, or if you you have a bad dream and need a cuddle....  

But, if you are able to stay in your bed, without wandering through the hallway at night, without getting up to play with the cat at 3am, without any of that extraneous stuff that can and does occur, well then the Sleep Fairy leaves a gift in the morning wrapped in a fancy French soap box.  

Ok, I know what you're thinking "bribery?  really?"  I know, it's low.  But somehow it has worked when nothing else would.  Sometimes I think 3-year olds just need a little boost of motivation that speaks a certain language.  I still remember getting a Light-Brite when I was little as a prize for staying in my bed all night for a whole month.  I loved it, and it was exciting to me that I had earned it all on my own.  Well, we got through poop-potty training with jelly beans, and those are being phased out now (but the potty training is sticking for good-- hooray!)  So, possibly the Sleep Fairy, with her tiny herd of multiplying horses, can continue to help us with these sleep issues.  

Hourglass Footwear; Kickstarter Campaign!

Please click here to watch the Hourglass Footwear Kickstarter video

Dear Family and Friends,

Exciting news!  My fellow shoe painting artists and I are teaming together to explore the possibility of painting shoes on our own.  We are looking into fashion-forward high end shoes, although the niche market for work shoes will also come into play eventually as well.    
To raise money for this endeavor, we are running a "Kickstarter" campaign over the next few weeks.  If you are someone who is interested in giving even a little money toward growing a great small business please consider supporting Hourglass Footwear.  

Here is what you would be supporting:

1) We are a group of women artists who, over the course of working together painting shoes for the past few years, have learned the ins and outs of the business.  From marketing to web-design to business economics, we have learned what it takes to run this kind of business, and are eager to take the reigns of our own company in a responsible and powerful way.

2) Many of us are mothers working from home.  Painting shoes over the past few years has allowed me to stay home with my baby (now 3 year old!) while earning income for our family.  It has been a blessing for our family in countless ways.  If you choose to invest with us, you will be investing in a company that is fueled by women who work hard in and out of the home, and in the local artist community.

3) As an artist-run business, we are excited to branch into other areas beyond clogs.  The enormous success of the business we previously were contracting with has been solely due to the talent that is within our group; there are endless possibilities, and we are a team who is dedicated to making art accessible and wearable.  You will be investing in our creativity; something that has already proven to be enormously profitable.


Please take a few minutes to watch our kickstarter video, and consider making a donation.  Please also feel free to pass this along to anyone you may know who supports women in the arts and in small business.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/817257653/hourglass-footwear-hand-painted-shoes-for-smart-wo

Very Very Good

There is a poem in Violet's Mother Goose book that reads:

There was a little girl, 

who had a little curl, 

right in the middle of her forehead.  

When she was good 

she was very good indeed, 

but when she was bad she was horrid.  

Now, this is not my daughter.  My daughter is indeed very good (and does indeed have curls), but when she's bad she's only slightly disagreeable, not "horrid".  

No, friends-- I am sharing this poem with you today because it reminds me of Seattle.  

Seattle, who is gorgeous on a good day; all dressed up in blue and green with yellow finches pulling worms from the garden... the sweetest thing you've ever seen, after months of being quite horrid.    

Here is just a tiny taste of what we've had lately...  

Morning Tea

The other day Violet and I had tea.  Fancy tea.
We put on fancy clothes, and fancy [classical] music, and I sliced tortillas and apples into fancy triangles.
I brewed a little tea, and she set the table, and we spent the next hour (maybe more), delighting in the fun of pouring cream and pinching sugar into our cups.  For one perfect chunk of the morning we forgot that she was a bit sick, and that it was raining outside.  



I have often struggled with being a mommy; it was not a graceful transition for me.  But sitting at tea with my Violet O. at 10am on a Monday morning.... well, I really don't think the week could start out any better.