Tomorrow, I turn 37. I’m not sure where the years have gone or how I ended up with so much grey hair (which, I admit, I have recently coloured – but it had more to do with eradicating the Fruitopia orange colour it had turned) but there is no denying, that this chicky was hatched all those years ago.
I share my birthday with a few famous people… Harrison Ford, Julius Caesar, Patrick Stewart, Cheech Marin, and Canadian R&B Singer, Deborah Cox (same year even). Lots of famous people died this day too – including an inspirational and legendary photographer, Yousuf Karsh. In 1985, the world witnessed “Live Aid” – a globally broadcast concert/festival to aid starving nations in Africa and in 1942, three German U-boats shot and sunk merchant ships in (Gulf of) the St. Lawrence and in 1974, John Denver’s “Annie’s Song” was number one on the music charts.
Now, I’m not one of those people who subscribe to a life’s purpose or think that my life has a deep meaning. Ideally, of course, I’d like to be deep and important and change something on this Earth, but the reality of the situation is 99 percent of us just exist. We are no more destined to change anything other than our socks… But I thought it would be fun to make a list (even though I said I wouldn’t) of things to do before 40… Now I’ve Googled a few lists and they have things like:
Travel alone
Balance a check book
Ride a horse
Get married
Get divorced
Have a baby
Start a blog
Buy a car
Get your heart broken
Be scared witless and do it anyway
I also found another list that you added one point for each thing you’ve done – I got 27 (it was a list of 50). I’ve found that I’ve done a lot of the things people list (I had a misspent youth) and some of them don’t hold much interest for me (travelling to places like France or Italy or getting a tattoo).
So what should be on my list? What should be on anyone’s “List”?
The only things I believe should be on these lists are things that have meaning for you. We could all take a cookie cutter approach and check off the things that meant something to someone else, but I prefer the personalized approach. A list (like this) shouldn’t be a competition or entrance fee to an elusive club. We all have birthdays, we all get older. That is a given. The things we do with our life, well, that’s individual. What holds meaning for me may be meaningless to someone else. I think a list like this is meant more to be like a record keeper. A place to layout and establish goals.
What are my goals? I’m not entirely clear but I do know that my life’s endeavors are more important that what can be rattled off in an hour’s lunch break! I’m going to work on my list over the coming months and see what it is I hope to accomplish before I turn 40!
Happy birthday to me!
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Menu Plan Monday - A Week to Celebrate!
It's another Sunday night and I'm just relaxing and watching a piece on a local cable show about the historic homes in my City... Remember this house? Well, we've just learned that we may have been able to get funding to help restore it... Oh well! We're making some great changes to our boring, early 80's bungalow!
Did you catch my recipe review? I've got a new series of recipes on tap this week that I'll post a review on next Sunday!
This week, I'll be celebrating my birthday and the boys are ordering in dinner for me (yum)! We've also been celebrating this weekend as not only are we making headway in our renovation project but I've been offered a new position at work! And the party will continue next weekend as we will be hosting my mother-in-law and our good friend for a joint birthday celebration (our friend's birthday is Tuesday and mine is Wednesday)! What's on your menu this week? Have you checked out everything playing a long with Laura from the Organizing Junkie? Thanks for stopping by - see you again next week!
July 11 to July 17
Dinners
Monday: Cajun Chicken Caesar Pita Wraps
Tuesday: Gramma's Homemade Macaroni & Cheese
Wednesday: My Birthday! The boys are ordering in Chinese for me!
Thursday: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Spinach Salad
Friday: Nuggets & Fries
Saturday: A Taste of Thailand featuring Thai Cabbage Salad, Thai Satays, steamed rice, Thai Iced Tea with mango ice cream for dessert!
Sunday: Hamburgers and chips
Note: Underlined menu items have the recipes posted below.
Spinach Salad
5 cups baby spinach, torn to bite size pieces
4 large white mushrooms, sliced
2 to 4 hard boiled eggs, diced
4 strips bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
Dressing
4 tbsp vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Mix well - until sugar is dissolved
Mix salad ingredients well - tossing with 2 to 4 tsp of Olive Oil. Coat with dressing and toss again.
Friday, July 8, 2011
52 Weeks of Organizing: A Family Affair
As a Mom, I'm extra proud to write my post this week. Over at the Org Junkie, Laura posted about getting your kids involved in the organizing and cleaning process, and well, that is one thing we've done and done extra well!
My son is a helper. I don't know why, but from the time he started walking, he wanted to be involved with everything we do. And I don't think that this is unusual, but I think our approach towards his interest was. Initially, we started letting him help empty the dishwasher. He'd hand plates or silverware to us to put away. As he got taller, he'd do the silverware himself. It didn't (and still doesn't) always get put in the right bin in the drawer but his sense of pride and accomplishment made neither of us worry about the little details.
His curiosity grew and we fostered it. Want to wash clothes? Ok... Want to help vacuum and mop? Ok... Dust, making beds, changing sheets, cooking, baking and yard work can all be added to his resume. He cleans bathrooms, windows and mirrors.
We made the fortunate decision years ago to do away with all harsh cleaning chemicals and toxic yard care products so allowing him to help weed, cut the lawn (we use a reel mower) and dig dandelions was easy. The one modification we did make to our cleaning ritual was to give him a bottle of clean water to spray to clean the bathroom - although we used just vinegar and water, we quickly learned that anyone under two years will spray it in their eyes.
I've gotten a few comments and questions about allowing my son to cook and bake. Firstly, when I started back to work, he needed "Mommy time" when I got home each night. We'd play or cuddle for 10 minutes or so before we started to prepare the (preplanned) meal. And then, together, we started to cook.
Was it time consuming? For sure! Did he listen? Not always and we occasionally ended up with a few unexpected additions to our food but ask him now to get any ingredient and he knows where it is and what it looks like (this has really come in handy since he and his Dad have taken to baking while I'm at work)!
We've had muffins with nearly a full bottle of vanilla and cookies with an extra shake of baking soda. He loves to add spice and does so whenever he can. We've had flour everywhere and he's learned it's not wise to blow on the dry ingredients with your eyes open. More than a few eggs have ended up on the floor and there has only been a couple times were we've eaten egg shells. Cocoa is very sticky and it doesn't wipe well. Extra yeast just makes things puffier and guess how many holes you can poke in a pizza crust before Mommy gets mad? He slices and dices (but please, not the strawberries), stirs and measures. Although he has his own special knife (made and purchased specifically for little kids) he's moving up to small pairing knives because his just frustrates him because it doesn't cut like mine.
We've learned just how much water to put in a mop bucket of a two year old and as he's gotten older, he can have a regular full bucket because he knows he can't slop water everywhere. He vacuums like a machine and actually came home from our holidays, grabbed the duster and began dusting. He told us the house was 'very dusty'.
I've been asked if others can borrow him so they can teach their children (young and adult) - I love that he loves helping and I'm hoping that by involving him in the family matters that he'll learn to be organized in a way I am not!
I'm going to try the Scavenger Hunt Laura wrote about over at Organizing Your Way and see if we can't get into a regular tidy-up the toys routine!
This weekend I'm heading back into the Trenches and will be finishing one of my big tasks... Thanks for stopping by and remember to get your kids involved today to teach them good things for tomorrow!
My son is a helper. I don't know why, but from the time he started walking, he wanted to be involved with everything we do. And I don't think that this is unusual, but I think our approach towards his interest was. Initially, we started letting him help empty the dishwasher. He'd hand plates or silverware to us to put away. As he got taller, he'd do the silverware himself. It didn't (and still doesn't) always get put in the right bin in the drawer but his sense of pride and accomplishment made neither of us worry about the little details.
His curiosity grew and we fostered it. Want to wash clothes? Ok... Want to help vacuum and mop? Ok... Dust, making beds, changing sheets, cooking, baking and yard work can all be added to his resume. He cleans bathrooms, windows and mirrors.
We made the fortunate decision years ago to do away with all harsh cleaning chemicals and toxic yard care products so allowing him to help weed, cut the lawn (we use a reel mower) and dig dandelions was easy. The one modification we did make to our cleaning ritual was to give him a bottle of clean water to spray to clean the bathroom - although we used just vinegar and water, we quickly learned that anyone under two years will spray it in their eyes.
I've gotten a few comments and questions about allowing my son to cook and bake. Firstly, when I started back to work, he needed "Mommy time" when I got home each night. We'd play or cuddle for 10 minutes or so before we started to prepare the (preplanned) meal. And then, together, we started to cook.
Was it time consuming? For sure! Did he listen? Not always and we occasionally ended up with a few unexpected additions to our food but ask him now to get any ingredient and he knows where it is and what it looks like (this has really come in handy since he and his Dad have taken to baking while I'm at work)!
We've had muffins with nearly a full bottle of vanilla and cookies with an extra shake of baking soda. He loves to add spice and does so whenever he can. We've had flour everywhere and he's learned it's not wise to blow on the dry ingredients with your eyes open. More than a few eggs have ended up on the floor and there has only been a couple times were we've eaten egg shells. Cocoa is very sticky and it doesn't wipe well. Extra yeast just makes things puffier and guess how many holes you can poke in a pizza crust before Mommy gets mad? He slices and dices (but please, not the strawberries), stirs and measures. Although he has his own special knife (made and purchased specifically for little kids) he's moving up to small pairing knives because his just frustrates him because it doesn't cut like mine.
We've learned just how much water to put in a mop bucket of a two year old and as he's gotten older, he can have a regular full bucket because he knows he can't slop water everywhere. He vacuums like a machine and actually came home from our holidays, grabbed the duster and began dusting. He told us the house was 'very dusty'.
I've been asked if others can borrow him so they can teach their children (young and adult) - I love that he loves helping and I'm hoping that by involving him in the family matters that he'll learn to be organized in a way I am not!
I'm going to try the Scavenger Hunt Laura wrote about over at Organizing Your Way and see if we can't get into a regular tidy-up the toys routine!
This weekend I'm heading back into the Trenches and will be finishing one of my big tasks... Thanks for stopping by and remember to get your kids involved today to teach them good things for tomorrow!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
We-Design-Day: Mother Nature's Canvas
Written on June 27 while on holidays in Jasper National Park, Jasper, Alberta Canada
All images can be clicked on to show the full size image. All images copyright Blackstone Images.
Have you ever been told "OH! That clashes!" or "It doesn't go together!"?
As we walked along the high banks of the Athabasca River today, I looked at the world around me.
The Athabasca River
The icy blue-white of the rushing river, the mottled brown silt shores, boulders of grey flecked with rusty orange... Rocks of green ,pink and black. Green trees, blue juniper berries, moss and grass green sprinkled with pink, yellow, white and red wild flowers.
Alberta's Provincial Flower (the wild rose)
It was an eclectic rainbow of colours. All mashed together in the most pristine and perfect landscapes I've ever witnessed. It all wen "together" like each colour was hand selected by Mother Nature herself. Of course she didn't, but her work is perfection.
Dead tree in the campground
Have you ever considered colouring your world with the beauty of nature? Sprinkling the room with bursts of sunshine yellow, dots of reds, pinks on a canvas of browns and blues? There are so many exquisite colours in nature - why don't more of them make it onto our walls and fabrics?
If you live North of the 49th parallel like I do, it's dark here a lot. The cold grey November skies would look less bleak in a yellow kitchen! In our previous home, I painted my kitchen yellow. Baby chick yellow. it was bright, sunny and warm. And I know we spent many years enjoying that kitchen and the colour. Everyone commented what a bold choice it was to make. I paired it with crisp white cabinets and accented it all with a dark crisp green. It wasn't a designers dream - I wasn't a designer at the time - I just liked colour and I enjoyed the way the room made me feel.
Yellow Wildflower (see the tiny hornet?)
Colour is a personal choice. But before discounting a colour, take a look outside your window and see how Mother Nature has painted the landscapes around you. Much inspiration can be found by just stopping and soaking up the beauty around us.
TroubleMaker hamming it up!
Have you ever been told "OH! That clashes!" or "It doesn't go together!"?
As we walked along the high banks of the Athabasca River today, I looked at the world around me.
The Athabasca RiverThe icy blue-white of the rushing river, the mottled brown silt shores, boulders of grey flecked with rusty orange... Rocks of green ,pink and black. Green trees, blue juniper berries, moss and grass green sprinkled with pink, yellow, white and red wild flowers.
Alberta's Provincial Flower (the wild rose)It was an eclectic rainbow of colours. All mashed together in the most pristine and perfect landscapes I've ever witnessed. It all wen "together" like each colour was hand selected by Mother Nature herself. Of course she didn't, but her work is perfection.
Dead tree in the campgroundHave you ever considered colouring your world with the beauty of nature? Sprinkling the room with bursts of sunshine yellow, dots of reds, pinks on a canvas of browns and blues? There are so many exquisite colours in nature - why don't more of them make it onto our walls and fabrics?
If you live North of the 49th parallel like I do, it's dark here a lot. The cold grey November skies would look less bleak in a yellow kitchen! In our previous home, I painted my kitchen yellow. Baby chick yellow. it was bright, sunny and warm. And I know we spent many years enjoying that kitchen and the colour. Everyone commented what a bold choice it was to make. I paired it with crisp white cabinets and accented it all with a dark crisp green. It wasn't a designers dream - I wasn't a designer at the time - I just liked colour and I enjoyed the way the room made me feel.
Yellow Wildflower (see the tiny hornet?)Colour is a personal choice. But before discounting a colour, take a look outside your window and see how Mother Nature has painted the landscapes around you. Much inspiration can be found by just stopping and soaking up the beauty around us.
TroubleMaker hamming it up!Menu Plan Monday - Recipe Review!
I decided it would be nice to review the "new recipes" I try on my Menu Plans. Nothing bothers me more than trying a recipe and wondering if it is good or not. Taste is subjective, of course, and everyone's cooking skills vary.
This week, I changed our Meal Plan up on the fly. I had planned another dish - a cold tortellini Caesar Salad - but late in the afternoon, I just wasn't feeling (or tasting it)... So I jumped online and did a couple of quick, random searches.
Often when I change my mind like this, I use words like "quick" or "easy" because I want something PRONTO and do not want to spend days prepping and cooking my meal. We are fortunate that no one in our house has food allergies or any serious "dislikes" of food (well, I don't like tomatoes, but that's weird story - you'll see why in a second).
I decided on Tortellini in Creamy Tomato Mushroom Sauce for the main course. The selection criteria included:
I didn't want the standard Caesar Salad to accompany the dish - we'd just a Caesar Salad on Sunday (for dinner) and it felt like a bread. But I dislike the waiting times for usual yeast breads. Then I found this Soft Bread Sticks. It doesn't have yeast, reviews were good and I read a few of the comments so I could incorporate the tastes of my family.
I got home at 4:50 and started cooking with in 10 minutes (so 5).
I commenced the sauce first. Because I am not a tomato fan, I like to cook tomato things a little longer so they break down more and get mushy.
Tomato Cream Sauce
What I did differently:
- Used only about 1/4 of an onion, finely diced. Our dog generally always has a small bit of our dinner on his kibble and onions are toxic for dogs.
- Used one can (398mL) of diced tomatoes with their juices. We further cut them up with scissors.
- Used a can of sliced mushrooms, drained and rinsed. It struck me as weird to have 'shrooms in this sauce. After making it mushrooms, I will, in future completely omit them as they add no benefit to the recipe taste wise.
- Added 1/2 a yellow pepper, diced. Next time, I will add more peppers. Probably a whole red and yellow pepper.
- I added 1 to 2 tablespoons of DRIED basil and 2 tsp of DRIED oregano in place of the fresh.
- I added about a can full of 1% milk instead of the 1 cup of Evaporated milk. I may have added a touch more too because it thickened quickly and we like our sauce a little thinner.
- Added more salt - about 1/2 tsp? I season a lot to taste.
- Used a blend of Parmesan, Asiago and Romano Cheese. This is the one I used. It is expensive ($6.99 for the canister shown, but I do feel it is worth it).
- Used tortellini instead of ravioli
Ease of Prep: 5
Taste:4
Make again: 5
Soft Bread Sticks
What I did differently:
- Scaled the recipe for 8 servings (all ingredients below are based on the up scaled number of servings)
- Used only 1/2 a tablespoon of sugar
- Used 1 to 2 tsp of garlic powder and 1 tsp of dried oregano
- Melted more margarine (oh, yes, I used marg instead of butter)
- Hand kneaded the dough until I got a sticky dough. TroubleMaker helped. he likes to toss it on the counter.
- Rolled the dough into "snakes"
- Poured about 1/2 the marg in the bottom of my cookie sheet
- Placed the "snakes" on the sheet and brushed them with the rest of the melted marg
- Sprinkled very generously with garlic powder, black pepper and oregano. And finally, added a sprinkle of the same cheese mixture used in the pasta sauce.
- Baked at 455 for 14 minutes. My oven is SLOW and doesn't heat properly so most people wouldn't' have to cook this long.
Ease of Prep: 5
Taste:5
Make again: 5
These were the best "no yeast" bread stick I've ever eaten. They had a bread like texture and taste. They are even better cold the next day. I was amazed at the simplicity and taste and would highly recommend this recipe!
Overall, the recipes tried last night were simple, easy and quick. Because I always cook with my three year old, it takes longer but we were seated and eating by 6 o'clock. If I didn't have my little helper, we probably would have saved 20 minutes.
Because I just decided to do this as I was eating last night's leftovers for lunch, I neglected to take a picture of these recipes. I will be more diligent in the future!
This week, I changed our Meal Plan up on the fly. I had planned another dish - a cold tortellini Caesar Salad - but late in the afternoon, I just wasn't feeling (or tasting it)... So I jumped online and did a couple of quick, random searches.
Often when I change my mind like this, I use words like "quick" or "easy" because I want something PRONTO and do not want to spend days prepping and cooking my meal. We are fortunate that no one in our house has food allergies or any serious "dislikes" of food (well, I don't like tomatoes, but that's weird story - you'll see why in a second).
I decided on Tortellini in Creamy Tomato Mushroom Sauce for the main course. The selection criteria included:
- had the ingredients on hand
- minimal work
- simple and easy to put together
- short cooking time
I didn't want the standard Caesar Salad to accompany the dish - we'd just a Caesar Salad on Sunday (for dinner) and it felt like a bread. But I dislike the waiting times for usual yeast breads. Then I found this Soft Bread Sticks. It doesn't have yeast, reviews were good and I read a few of the comments so I could incorporate the tastes of my family.
I got home at 4:50 and started cooking with in 10 minutes (so 5).
I commenced the sauce first. Because I am not a tomato fan, I like to cook tomato things a little longer so they break down more and get mushy.
Tomato Cream Sauce
What I did differently:
- Used only about 1/4 of an onion, finely diced. Our dog generally always has a small bit of our dinner on his kibble and onions are toxic for dogs.
- Used one can (398mL) of diced tomatoes with their juices. We further cut them up with scissors.
- Used a can of sliced mushrooms, drained and rinsed. It struck me as weird to have 'shrooms in this sauce. After making it mushrooms, I will, in future completely omit them as they add no benefit to the recipe taste wise.
- Added 1/2 a yellow pepper, diced. Next time, I will add more peppers. Probably a whole red and yellow pepper.
- I added 1 to 2 tablespoons of DRIED basil and 2 tsp of DRIED oregano in place of the fresh.
- I added about a can full of 1% milk instead of the 1 cup of Evaporated milk. I may have added a touch more too because it thickened quickly and we like our sauce a little thinner.
- Added more salt - about 1/2 tsp? I season a lot to taste.
- Used a blend of Parmesan, Asiago and Romano Cheese. This is the one I used. It is expensive ($6.99 for the canister shown, but I do feel it is worth it).
- Used tortellini instead of ravioli
Ease of Prep: 5
Taste:4
Make again: 5
Soft Bread Sticks
What I did differently:
- Scaled the recipe for 8 servings (all ingredients below are based on the up scaled number of servings)
- Used only 1/2 a tablespoon of sugar
- Used 1 to 2 tsp of garlic powder and 1 tsp of dried oregano
- Melted more margarine (oh, yes, I used marg instead of butter)
- Hand kneaded the dough until I got a sticky dough. TroubleMaker helped. he likes to toss it on the counter.
- Rolled the dough into "snakes"
- Poured about 1/2 the marg in the bottom of my cookie sheet
- Placed the "snakes" on the sheet and brushed them with the rest of the melted marg
- Sprinkled very generously with garlic powder, black pepper and oregano. And finally, added a sprinkle of the same cheese mixture used in the pasta sauce.
- Baked at 455 for 14 minutes. My oven is SLOW and doesn't heat properly so most people wouldn't' have to cook this long.
Ease of Prep: 5
Taste:5
Make again: 5
These were the best "no yeast" bread stick I've ever eaten. They had a bread like texture and taste. They are even better cold the next day. I was amazed at the simplicity and taste and would highly recommend this recipe!
Overall, the recipes tried last night were simple, easy and quick. Because I always cook with my three year old, it takes longer but we were seated and eating by 6 o'clock. If I didn't have my little helper, we probably would have saved 20 minutes.
Because I just decided to do this as I was eating last night's leftovers for lunch, I neglected to take a picture of these recipes. I will be more diligent in the future!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Should Recognition be your Ignition?
I think we all get days like today... Mine just happened to be a Monday. I don't blame you, Monday, but really, was it necessary to make today, today?
I get down - really down sometimes. And I don't know why I call it "down" - truly, it's just a low in my depressed state. I guess it's like my Gramma's depression being called "nerves" - suicide attempts and hospitalization and they just called it "nerves"... Go figure...
Anyway, today was one of those days. Just bleak and grey and lonely and sad and the cool kid stole my candy kind of days. Cold pizza and grapefruit couldn't cheer today up. Chips may have helped but it never occurred to me to go find any... None the less, it seems when I get these lows, people I know post inspirational quotes on their Facebook status.
This made me sadder still. I don't know why - perhaps because I struggle with my identity : Who I am versus who I want to be versus who I think I should be. The phrase "Authentic Self" keeps popping into my head. On one hand, I believe that phrase is junk. Authentic self - how can one be anything but authentic... Then on the other hand, I think I don't think I understand this - because if I do, I'm truly one of the most unauthentic people I know. I am the image of who everyone thinks I should be... Which is the key descriptor of "Fictional Self".
Where did I get lost? Or did I? Was my shining, new self tarnished by childhood drama? Do I blame my parents (FYI - I don't - just theorizing here)? Television? Media? A plugged-in world? Was I suppressed, oppressed and depressed? How did I get here? Bad choices, uninformed choices? Why did I chose to lead my life as the vision of how others see me (or is it just how I think others see me)? How do I be more 'me' without offending, upsetting or destroying all that is my life now?
Dr. Phil seems to think he has the answers. Or at least if I buy his book, I will have them (in complete detail, his website just has teasers). Like this one:
1. Did you at one time listen carefully to your innermost voice? Describe this moment. When was it and what was the circumstance? Do you suspect that somehow, somewhere along the way, you have lost contact with it?
Yes. The last time I heard a voice, I was taken away... In all seriousness, don't we quell the inner voice during childhood? Don't say this, don't do that - we all tell our children. And when they ask why, we say "Well, we don't do x or y because..." enter the fallacy here. In reality, we don't play with our penis at the dinner table because it's rude. We don't say to Mommy "Why do you have this lump?" when he's pointing out one of the many rolls of baby fat you haven't lost yet because it'll hurt her feelings. We can all argue why these two examples aren't done - we'll say it isn't nice or polite or what good people do.
Reality is, all of it is a convention set up by someone else. It isn't how any of us start out living our lives. Kids call things as they see them. They are authentic because they haven't been told different.
My son is very social. Embarrassingly social. His father and I are introverted. Having our son speak to every person imaginable causes a high level of anxiety in both my husband and me. I don't like talking to people I don't know... Mostly because I'm afraid of looking stupid and of bothering them. I'm not sure of my husband's motivation but I know mine. My skin crawls when I have to talk to people I don't know. My hands sweat, I get nervous. It bugs the hell out of me.
But I have a social, outgoing, gregarious child who must - must say hi and bye to everyone he sees. Everyone. I'm not exaggerating. We stopped in to buy a drink and a snack on our way home, he had to talk to the store clerks and the two other patrons in the store. Grocery shopping on Sunday, every person we saw, he greeted with a smile and a "Hi!" When they don't answer, he says it louder. And when they still don't answer, he says "Mommy, why didn't that man/woman hear me?!"
I've started telling him "Some people aren't as friendly as you." I say it in my normal speaking voice. I also have never shushed him for doing it.
You see, what he is doing is fine. There isn't anything wrong with talking to people. Looking at people or asking questions. I like that he's outgoing. I like that he's confident and believes in himself. I like his authenticity and I'm not going to go out of my way to hamper that.
Sure, I'll tell him not to play with his penis at the table, but I will not shush his innermost voice. Even if it's my feelings he hurts. When he asked if my rolls contained more Mummy milk I just told him that every person is different and special and we should celebrate and encourage those differences.
He then likened the differences to dinosaurs - specifically dinosaur excrement... (this video will only play for those in the USA - YouTube has poor quality videos of the same episode).
So where was I going with this? I don't know. I started off sad and melancholy and thought I'd wax poetic about life and the great tragedies... But as I started to examine this idea of self, I looked to my inspiration - my son - and it's like the light found me. His innocence and youth are my guides and although I don't know the answers or even my path forward, I know that I'll find the way.
Here are a few other points to ponder. They all got me sad today but rereading them tonight, I don't feel quite the same way. Maybe it's because I'm wearing my three year old goggles. ;)
The life of every man is a diary in which he means to write one story, and writes another. ~James Matthew Barrie
There is just one life for each of us: our own. ~Euripides
There are only two great tragedies in life: one is never getting what you want. The second IS getting what you want. ~ Oscar Wilde
And just in case you are wondering, the title of this post is from The Northern Pikes Big Blue Sky.
I get down - really down sometimes. And I don't know why I call it "down" - truly, it's just a low in my depressed state. I guess it's like my Gramma's depression being called "nerves" - suicide attempts and hospitalization and they just called it "nerves"... Go figure...
Anyway, today was one of those days. Just bleak and grey and lonely and sad and the cool kid stole my candy kind of days. Cold pizza and grapefruit couldn't cheer today up. Chips may have helped but it never occurred to me to go find any... None the less, it seems when I get these lows, people I know post inspirational quotes on their Facebook status.
You were born an original. Don't die a copy.
~ John Mason
This made me sadder still. I don't know why - perhaps because I struggle with my identity : Who I am versus who I want to be versus who I think I should be. The phrase "Authentic Self" keeps popping into my head. On one hand, I believe that phrase is junk. Authentic self - how can one be anything but authentic... Then on the other hand, I think I don't think I understand this - because if I do, I'm truly one of the most unauthentic people I know. I am the image of who everyone thinks I should be... Which is the key descriptor of "Fictional Self".
Where did I get lost? Or did I? Was my shining, new self tarnished by childhood drama? Do I blame my parents (FYI - I don't - just theorizing here)? Television? Media? A plugged-in world? Was I suppressed, oppressed and depressed? How did I get here? Bad choices, uninformed choices? Why did I chose to lead my life as the vision of how others see me (or is it just how I think others see me)? How do I be more 'me' without offending, upsetting or destroying all that is my life now?
Dr. Phil seems to think he has the answers. Or at least if I buy his book, I will have them (in complete detail, his website just has teasers). Like this one:
1. Did you at one time listen carefully to your innermost voice? Describe this moment. When was it and what was the circumstance? Do you suspect that somehow, somewhere along the way, you have lost contact with it?
Yes. The last time I heard a voice, I was taken away... In all seriousness, don't we quell the inner voice during childhood? Don't say this, don't do that - we all tell our children. And when they ask why, we say "Well, we don't do x or y because..." enter the fallacy here. In reality, we don't play with our penis at the dinner table because it's rude. We don't say to Mommy "Why do you have this lump?" when he's pointing out one of the many rolls of baby fat you haven't lost yet because it'll hurt her feelings. We can all argue why these two examples aren't done - we'll say it isn't nice or polite or what good people do.
Reality is, all of it is a convention set up by someone else. It isn't how any of us start out living our lives. Kids call things as they see them. They are authentic because they haven't been told different.
My son is very social. Embarrassingly social. His father and I are introverted. Having our son speak to every person imaginable causes a high level of anxiety in both my husband and me. I don't like talking to people I don't know... Mostly because I'm afraid of looking stupid and of bothering them. I'm not sure of my husband's motivation but I know mine. My skin crawls when I have to talk to people I don't know. My hands sweat, I get nervous. It bugs the hell out of me.
But I have a social, outgoing, gregarious child who must - must say hi and bye to everyone he sees. Everyone. I'm not exaggerating. We stopped in to buy a drink and a snack on our way home, he had to talk to the store clerks and the two other patrons in the store. Grocery shopping on Sunday, every person we saw, he greeted with a smile and a "Hi!" When they don't answer, he says it louder. And when they still don't answer, he says "Mommy, why didn't that man/woman hear me?!"
I've started telling him "Some people aren't as friendly as you." I say it in my normal speaking voice. I also have never shushed him for doing it.
You see, what he is doing is fine. There isn't anything wrong with talking to people. Looking at people or asking questions. I like that he's outgoing. I like that he's confident and believes in himself. I like his authenticity and I'm not going to go out of my way to hamper that.
Sure, I'll tell him not to play with his penis at the table, but I will not shush his innermost voice. Even if it's my feelings he hurts. When he asked if my rolls contained more Mummy milk I just told him that every person is different and special and we should celebrate and encourage those differences.
He then likened the differences to dinosaurs - specifically dinosaur excrement... (this video will only play for those in the USA - YouTube has poor quality videos of the same episode).
So where was I going with this? I don't know. I started off sad and melancholy and thought I'd wax poetic about life and the great tragedies... But as I started to examine this idea of self, I looked to my inspiration - my son - and it's like the light found me. His innocence and youth are my guides and although I don't know the answers or even my path forward, I know that I'll find the way.
Here are a few other points to ponder. They all got me sad today but rereading them tonight, I don't feel quite the same way. Maybe it's because I'm wearing my three year old goggles. ;)
The life of every man is a diary in which he means to write one story, and writes another. ~James Matthew Barrie
There is just one life for each of us: our own. ~Euripides
There are only two great tragedies in life: one is never getting what you want. The second IS getting what you want. ~ Oscar Wilde
And just in case you are wondering, the title of this post is from The Northern Pikes Big Blue Sky.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Menu Plan Monday - Summer has come!
NOTE: July 6 Update... I decided to try something new - I changed the meal Tuesday (as I was not feeling what I planned) and thought it would be nice to post a "New Recipe Review" the day after it was tried. I will be labelling all "new" recipe selections so check back the day after the meal was scheduled for a review!
Ahhhh... I feel all zen and relaxed and refreshed. Our holidays were absolutely amazing! We ate like kings (thanks to my Dad and step-Mom for keeping our bellies filled and the dishes done), slept like giants, and made like sloths for seven incredible days. There wasn't a care in the world except wondering what snack to eat next.
That's not 100% true - I dug more dirt and piled rocks and sticks and pine needles that I've ever done in my life. I chased balls, named squirrels and explained that Jasper was not home to dinosaurs and had to give a brief geography lesson to my three year old on why we could not just drive to see the big T-Rex he climbed to the top of last year. I wrote and wrote and wrote (posts coming soon) and had time to think, reflect and appreciate nature at it's finest. I even had time for a little shopping in town with my Mom (who drove up for the day).
My husband was perfecting the art of photographing wildlife. Thankfully, the wildlife was unusually cooperative! Twelve black bears, many mountain goats, elk - mommies, babies and bucks and even a few deer posed for his camera. He even got some amazing shots of people cliff diving! Once he gets them processed, I'll post them in the coming weeks along with the posts I wrote (on paper, no less, while we were camping).
It's going to be a tough week - getting back into the groove of getting up at 6am but I feel positive and recharged - my holiday was just what I needed!
It's July here - the only month I've not seen snow in (well, I have - at higher elevations - but none has fallen on my grass during this month) - which means it's HOT. I like summer because I get to experiment with all kinds of new salads and sandwich combinations and foods that don't require me to turn on my oven! Well, except for today because we ran out of propane for the BBQ as I was toasting the garlic buns for dinner! Here is all our yummy salad and barbecue goodness for the coming week!
July 4 to July 10
Dinners
Monday: Chicken Salad Sandwiches with veggies & dip
Tuesday: Tortellini in Creamy Tomato Mushroom Sauce with Bread Sticks
Wednesday: Waldorf Tuna Sandwiches & Raspberry Salad
Thursday: BBQ Pork chops with Spinach Salad
Friday: Weeknight Lasagna Toss
Saturday: Hamburgers
Sunday: Chicken Burgers
Note: Underlined menu items have the recipes posted below.
Thanks for popping in and for more fabulous menu planning ideas, check out the Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday!
Raspberry Salad
Lettuce - combination of leaf, head and red leaf lettuce
Craisins (optional)
Pine nuts
Raspberries
Snap peas
Baby carrots
Toss all ingredients together and use Kraft's Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing to dress to taste.
Spinach Salad
5 cups baby spinach, torn to bite size pieces
4 large white mushrooms, sliced
2 to 4 hard boiled eggs, diced
4 strips bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
Dressing
4 tbsp vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Mix well - until sugar is dissolved
Mix salad ingredients well - tossing with 2 to 4 tsp of Olive Oil. Coat with dressing and toss again.
Ahhhh... I feel all zen and relaxed and refreshed. Our holidays were absolutely amazing! We ate like kings (thanks to my Dad and step-Mom for keeping our bellies filled and the dishes done), slept like giants, and made like sloths for seven incredible days. There wasn't a care in the world except wondering what snack to eat next.
That's not 100% true - I dug more dirt and piled rocks and sticks and pine needles that I've ever done in my life. I chased balls, named squirrels and explained that Jasper was not home to dinosaurs and had to give a brief geography lesson to my three year old on why we could not just drive to see the big T-Rex he climbed to the top of last year. I wrote and wrote and wrote (posts coming soon) and had time to think, reflect and appreciate nature at it's finest. I even had time for a little shopping in town with my Mom (who drove up for the day).
My husband was perfecting the art of photographing wildlife. Thankfully, the wildlife was unusually cooperative! Twelve black bears, many mountain goats, elk - mommies, babies and bucks and even a few deer posed for his camera. He even got some amazing shots of people cliff diving! Once he gets them processed, I'll post them in the coming weeks along with the posts I wrote (on paper, no less, while we were camping).
It's going to be a tough week - getting back into the groove of getting up at 6am but I feel positive and recharged - my holiday was just what I needed!
It's July here - the only month I've not seen snow in (well, I have - at higher elevations - but none has fallen on my grass during this month) - which means it's HOT. I like summer because I get to experiment with all kinds of new salads and sandwich combinations and foods that don't require me to turn on my oven! Well, except for today because we ran out of propane for the BBQ as I was toasting the garlic buns for dinner! Here is all our yummy salad and barbecue goodness for the coming week!
July 4 to July 10
Dinners
Monday: Chicken Salad Sandwiches with veggies & dip
Tuesday: Tortellini in Creamy Tomato Mushroom Sauce with Bread Sticks
Wednesday: Waldorf Tuna Sandwiches & Raspberry Salad
Thursday: BBQ Pork chops with Spinach Salad
Friday: Weeknight Lasagna Toss
Saturday: Hamburgers
Sunday: Chicken Burgers
Note: Underlined menu items have the recipes posted below.
Thanks for popping in and for more fabulous menu planning ideas, check out the Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday!
Raspberry Salad
Lettuce - combination of leaf, head and red leaf lettuce
Craisins (optional)
Pine nuts
Raspberries
Snap peas
Baby carrots
Toss all ingredients together and use Kraft's Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing to dress to taste.
Spinach Salad
5 cups baby spinach, torn to bite size pieces
4 large white mushrooms, sliced
2 to 4 hard boiled eggs, diced
4 strips bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
Dressing
4 tbsp vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Mix well - until sugar is dissolved
Mix salad ingredients well - tossing with 2 to 4 tsp of Olive Oil. Coat with dressing and toss again.
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