sunday sweets

was a delicious success.

so much for p90x.

quick chocolate butter icing
{thank you joy of cooking}
makes about 1 1/4 cups

melt in the top of a double broiler or a heatproof bowl:

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 T unsalted butter

remove from heat and stir in:

1/4 cup milk or cream
1 t vanilla

gradually add, beating until spreadable:

2 c powdered sugar

valentine's day

my tip is a little early this year.
and probably not nearly as exciting as last year's.
but educational in a different way.

so..no matter how much
or how little you do,
i highly recommend waxing.
consider it a vday gift to your husband.
or even to yourself.

behold..
my waxing tutorial in photos:

my first time i got waxed was here.
and even though the lady was nice and sweet, it was horribly painful.
plus, when i got home, i noticed some extra hairs.
for $70, i want to be perfectly bare.

i gave myself a healing period of a month or so
then gathered my courage and started doing it myself.

i bought the warmer and wax off amazon.com
and that has worked for me since.
this last time i was in a pinch
and bought the wax at a beauty supply store and it was $25 + tax..
whereas on amazon it's about $20 total.

bonus:
i've been waxing for about three years
and have very sparse growth
and can go a lot longer between waxing than i used to.
hooray!


the end.

make this

chocolate silk pie:

ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
4 T cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs divided
1 prepared 8 inch pastry shell, baked and cooled

directions
1. cream butter in a mixing bowl for 20 minutes or so.
gradually beat in 1/2 c sugar till well blended. stir in cocoa, vanilla and egg yolks.
2. in a separate bowl, beat egg whites on high till stiff, gradually stirring in 1/4 c sugar.
3. gently fold egg whites into chocolate mixture till combined.
then spoon the chocolate filling into the baked and cooled pie shell.
4. refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.
5. eat.

homeschooling

1. i know that i can give my children a better education one-on-one than they can in a classroom with 20 other children and one teacher. my children will never fall behind because i'm right there with them making sure they understand everything. in a recent nationwide study of test scores among high school students, homeschoolers scored on average 37% higher than public school students. read this article and scroll down to where you can see for yourself that education and income do not affect this average. meaning i can be certified or not and my children will still get a outstanding education from me.

2. i want my children to have a childhood. children are in school for an average of 7 hours a day. that leaves 17 hours remaining. add 10-12 hours of sleep. with approximately 5 hours remaining from that. what do school children do in those 5 hours? eat meals and do homework. when do they use their imaginations? when do they get to have unstructured playtime? when can they just be kids? it takes us at most 2 hours to finish school. the rest of the day is spent in activities they want to do. art projects, exploring outside, playing with toys, dancing, singing, reading, etc. my kids are awesome at imaginative play and can do it for hours, either alone or together. how many public school children have time to do that?

3. am i worried that my kids aren't receiving the socialization that other kids are? you mean my five-year-old learning curse words? or getting picked on for being small or not fitting in? uh, no. homeschooling is hugely popular and increasing in popularity. just in the last two weeks i've run into two homeschooling families whom i've exchanged information with and i still haven't even gone to a co-op out here by my new house. not to mention, we go to church and the kids have friends there. plus, all the extracurricular things we do..field trips, ballet, sports, circus class, piano, art...most of those are done with other children whom they interract with. we're okay.

so, that's it in a nutshell.

yet.
the most important thing for me
is that i am with my children.
each day.
to guide them
and teach them
and help them
be the best little people they can be.
i see their unlimited potential
and i work and study and research
and gently guide them to reach that potential.
reach it and then some.
i encourage them to aim higher.
to make a difference in the world.
to think deeper
and try harder.

and i fully believe
that even the best teacher in the world
with the best of intentions
could not do that.
not because he or she doesn't want to,
but because they lack the capacity to do so.

and that is why i teach my children.

sunday sweets

are back.

delicious and easy recipe from here.

tradition

listen

laying in bed this morning
today felt like one of those days
ya know.
the ones where you want to just
roll over
and go back
to sleep.

morning came too quickly.
paul left too early.
the kids are a little too eager.
laundry is a little too much.
my house is a little too messy.

everything is just a little
too
much.

thankfully
while saying my prayers.
praying for a little
pick
me
up
i had a bright idea.

i turned this song on.
and hit repeat.
and raised the volume
till the beat sounded in the walls
and the floor.

and i took a deep breath
and felt life
seep back in.

the fair

plunge

it's been about a month

since we took the plunge

and switched to cloth diapers.

i

LOVE

them.

really. i do.

any questions?

comments?

service

we tested the dedication of our friends



and invited them to come labor


in our yard on labor day.


we were hoping


though not expecting lots of help on a holiday

and were pleasantly surprised

and extemely touched

by how many people came

and helped us turn our yard

into something beautiful.

in my head

oh

how i wish there were more pictures

on the web

of zoey's wardrobe

from 500 days of summer.

i loved

everything

she was wearing,

everything she accessorized with.

even her hair.

oh so cute. and

vintage chic.

she inspired me.

now, if only that inspiration

reached into my home and

babysat my kids so i could

go thrift store shopping.

alas.

i can't get this dance sequence out of my head.

it makes me grin like a goofball everytime i see it.

happy september, friends.

moving

oh, yes.
i'm all moved in.
ok, ok. not all moved in.
not even close.
but we're out of the old place.
and let me just share with you
a few pointers.
perhaps they're well known pointers..
but i'm a newbie at the moving thing.


#1
have a packing party.

notice how many ladies are in this ONE bedroom.


did you count four? you are correct.
it is the only way to go.
i had ten of my girlfriends come over.
i had a fruit tray, drinks, chips and dip
and in three short hours, my entire apartment
including five storage units downstairs,
were packed and ready for loading.
it was unbelievable.


{i had a few people tell me that they couldn't believe i let someone else pack me up. but really, people. three hours or three weeks. and besides, you do the organizing once you move IN, not when you move out, so what's the big deal?}

#2
liquor boxes

absolutely fabulous

for boxing glasses,

vases

and shoes.

plus, they're very sturdy.

#3
wardrobe boxes

step one: remove clothes from old closet

step two: hang in box

step three: move

step four: remove clothes from box

step five: hang in new closet

#4

linens

please, please, please, please

don't buy packing paper and bubble wrap

or even scrounge in the recycle bin for newspaper.

use every scrap from your linen closet.

napkins, pillow cases, tablecloths, towels, etc.

this was wonderful.

it only became a tad bit tricky

when we had to unpack boxes to find the towels.

but unpacking is good. so, i didn't mind.

#5

pile boxes in one place.

don't make the poor guys

walk all over the house

having to find boxes here and there

to load on the truck.

put as much as you can in one central,

somewhat organized location.

..just a few things i thought were helpful

to pass on.

now, does anyone want to take my kids for a month

so i can unpack and decorate?

free

i received so many wonderful gifts for my birthday..

olives,
chocolate tortes of goodness,
movies,

but this is one i can actually share with someone else...
my sweet friend, rachelle
gave me this supercute pendant
from ablu design:



made on the back
of a scrabble tile.
i love it so, so much.

if you want one,
comment by friday, june 19th
and i'll randomly pick someone
to receive a pendant of your choice.

hot

life is going a lot better.
i received a plethora
of loving advice and concern
which helped immensely.
plus, i cracked down on my list
and things are very much improving.
so, thank you sweet friends here and far.

but now, there's more.
what's that?
you're worried that i'm going to talk
more about my postpartum woes?
{booooooring.}
well, sorry. but, it's true.
it's my life.

so..after having a baby
there is nothing,
let me repeat
nothing
that can get me in the mood
for romance.
i know..poor husband of mine.
it usually takes a few months
to get back in the..uh,
groove, if you will.

but...
last night upon returning home
from {virgin} happy hour
with one of my girlfriends,
i walked into the living room
to find paul
folding two loads of laundry,
followed by him putting it all away.

oh, yes.
yes, it worked.
it worked very well.

image stolen from this book.

friends

i think everyone
should have a friend,
long distance or not,
who will every once in a while
stop and ask,

"do you know what i love about you?"

and proceed to flatter you
and make you feel so loved.
don't you agree?
if you don't have one of these,
you should be that friend.
if you do have one, still be that friend.
i love my friends.

sex tip

in honor of valentine's day on saturday..


when you're close to orgasm,
slow down and take controlled,
deep breaths
and then come.
when you do, i promise
it will be significantly better
than if you didn't.
try it, you might just thank me.