Things I Can Do in the Bathtub Besides Bathe

So the husband has "temporarily" disabled the sink. Until it is functional again, I have to use the bathroom sink or bath tub. The first time I needed to do dishes, I tried the sink. I never realized how small that sucker is. So the logical solution...

Activity #1 (that I can do in the bathtub besides bathe): Give the dishes a bath. Not only does it work really well, it amuses the heck out of young children. Beans sat in the bathroom with me the whole time I "gave the dishes a bath."

I will say that I considered putting her in there with them. I asked my sister what she thought about it. After a brief moment of hesitation she came to the same conclusion I did. Though our father used to have us stomp on the laundry in the bathtub when we lived in Egypt (and we loved doing it), dishes are breakable and sharp. If they weren't however, Bean would be bathing with the dishes.

On to my next "discovery." When the husband asked what I was planning for dinner tonight, I realized I'd have to defrost something... in the sink. (I'm aware that this isn't always the safest method of defrosting, but I keep a slow trickle of cool water going to ensure the temperature stays low.) But this inspired my next "discovery."

Activity #2: Defrost meat for dinner. It's the same principal as doing it in the sink, just larger scale. A really big sink if you will.

I'm starting to think of the tub as a really big sink. It's great. I mean, I did bathe the Bean in the kitchen sink when she was an itty bitty. Why not bathe the dishes in the tub? If I make another "discovery" I'll be sure to keep you posted.

I've Got A 50 Pound Bag Of Potatoes

Much has changed in my little world in the past week. I guess you could say that life gave us potatoes.

My little family and I have been planning to move closer to my dad for a while. He's not old or needy, we just think the area he's in offers us more opportunities. Not to mention the school system is far better than the one where we currently live. So we've been planning to finish our work on our house and put it on the market. My husband had (yes, had) a good paying job (albeit physically challenging and stressful) and was making good progress on the house weekend warrior style. That was our course of action. It was working and we were content with it. Life was pretty good.

But someone, I'm not sure whom, once said that life is what happens while you're busy making plans... My husband lost his job a week ago. Here are your potatoes.

We're looking at it all as positively as possible. A blessing in an ugly disguise if you will. Maybe the universe was trying to tell us "hey guys, wrong path. You need to go this way." So new plan. We're giving ourselves two months to finish our repairs and pack it all up and head on to my dad's. We're fortunate that we were as prepared as we are. It's by no means going to be easy, but we're going to give it our best shot. We've got a deep freezer full of food, money for the bills for a couple months, and great family and friends standing behind us.

I don't think I've ever addressed my opinion on what one should do "when life gives you potatoes," but I know what I'd do. I've decided to make vodka and make a toast to what I have and the opportunities the future holds. Cheers!

Well Hello There...

Did you miss me? (In my head I keep hearing that in a John Wayne voice and it's cracking me up. I don't really expect it to do the same for you, unless you like me are caffeine and sleep deprived and watching a cartoon with a toddler about a sheep and his preschool friends.)

I've been away but for good reasons! Why?! Well, let me tell you...

I've been busy with the Bean first off. She's a little pistol. Still balls to the wall, nonstop, go go

go from the second she wakes up until (the 15 minutes after) her head hits the pillow! She's nearing her 3rd birthday and is all toddler!

I've been dancing around construction. My husband is slowly but surely remodeling the kitchen. It's going well, but hard to cook. Been coming up with as many one pot meals as I can with out them getting old or repetitive. It's certainly a challenge.

I've also been working on my new Etsy shop. I'm making toddler tees. I'd provide a link, but I'm going to wait until it's a little more finished for the grand "unveiling."

I've also been working (or speeding up my slow decent into madness, whatever). I'm now a "nanny." I've been helping a friend since she's gone back to work after having her second little boy. So at least three days a week I've been caring for a nearly 5 month old and two toddlers. Funny, I thought the toddlers would entertain each other... only when they're not at each other's throats! Oh and there's the poop... oh the poop. If I've never mentioned, fecal matter is one of the few things that I just, well, can't do. I'm kind of at a loss for how to describe my aversion... maybe that for another post.

We've also take in a new puppy. So our family has grown! We now have another girl doggie. We adopted her at the beginning of July. She'd been neglected and was very hungry - a measly 25 pounds. Nothing was wrong with her (no fleas, no heart worm, good teeth, good skin, great physical condition, just skin bones). But she has a "dark" side we've learned... I've nicknamed her "the Detroyer." The number of materials she can crush with her jaws is ever growing. She's chewed through plastic, wood, drywall, and a few different fabrics to name a few. Wood seems to be a favourite. After we had her spayed (insert Bob Barker saying spay and neuter your pets here) she got a little sick to her stomach and there was wood in her vomit even though she hadn't eaten since midnight the night before! We're happy to have her so you can expect many Destroyer and Bear (that's our original dog) stories to come.

That's the general gist of my life right now. I'll try to keep you posted on any interesting happenings! Until next time, world.

It's Been A Minute... or Eighty Thousand

I haven't been posting. Shame on me? It's summer, it's hot, I'm busy,... and full of excuses.

I've been taking photos, but I've missed a few days. Never thought it would be that hard to snap a simple cell phone pic everyday - especially with a kid, but I guess that is part of the complication.

Things have been good though. I'll be back around. Thanks to those of you who check in from time to time for entertainment. Sorry for the involuntary hiatus.

Cute Blog Alert: Bentobloggy

Okay, so you have to check out this blog: Bentobloggy! I love bento (and most cutesy Asian thing for that matter). I've been reading it for a while, but just became a follower (I forget that I can do that and how much easier it is to check blogs I like that way)!

Just look at the cute bentos she makes! The photo is "Mini Corn Dogs & Jolly Octopi Gentlemen"! I love it!

It is such a cute little blog and she has so many cute ideas - and healthy too! So go here, and check it out!

Hello Rostock!

It has come to my attention that I get a hit from a place called Rostock pretty often. Because I've never heard of it, I checked it out.

It's a town in the north German state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It's name come from Polabian (an extinct West Slavic language) for "to flow apart". It's on the Warnow river and it's center is about 12 km south of the Baltic sea. The highest record temperature is 93 degrees Fahrenheit (my kind of weather).

And the icing on the cake... It's BEAUTIFUL!

So thanks for checking out my blog Rostock! You live in a gorgeous city! I'm jealous of your cool weather and river front view. Please enjoy it every day for me!

With love from your American friend, Kels.

Happy Sumo!

I don't have much to say about this photo. I just hope it makes you smile.

If you haven't already, check out the site it's from. It's called Picture Is Unrelated. The photos aren't always PG-13, but they're almost always amusing.

The Robot Ninja Penguin Conspiracy

Today while chatting with a random stranger from Ontario, Canada, it came to my attention that Canada hasn't had any snow this year, but Georgia (one of the warmer states in the US) has. We've had three days of snow with school and business closings and all!

At first one might say global warming. But how would you explain the snow in Georgia? The you might say La Nina. But why is there no snow in Canada? My Canadian friend and I figured it out and I'll tell you...

It's the Robot Ninja Penguin Conspiracy. What the heck is that? I don't know... yet.

Hey! Follow Me!

I'm just curious who checks out my minutia. I don't gain anything monetary nor will I ever bother you with emails or whatnot. I just want to who you are. You know me! Kind of. So why not let me know who you are! Kind of.

Playdough!

If you've never made your own playdough, I highly recommend it.

Here's a simple recipe:

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt
1 cup water
2 tablespoons oil

Mix flour, salt and oil, and slowly add the water. Cook over medium heat, stirring until dough becomes stiff. Turn out onto wax paper and let cool. Knead the playdough with your hands until of proper consistency. Use as is, or divide into balls and kneed in a few drops of the food colouring of your choice.

Have some cheap homemade childish fun!

Don't Call Me Punk!

Not sure why this has been bothering me but for some reason it's making my skin crawl.

I was watching a video of the Daily Show when they interviewed Michael Graves. It was an embed on a some site and the comments were nuts. They sent me over the edge. Mr. Graves is a know conservative punk. Several of the people on the aforementioned site were saying that a "conservative punk" is BS like a "liberal redneck."

What?! Really? Wow.

Having lived in the southern US much of my life, this is nuts. I've met many redneck liberals and conservative punks. I have a liberal redneck sister, a conservative punk husband, and I've even got a hippy libertarian father! (Although I have to say I don't think my sister is a redneck, some people might. She's definitely got "southern belle" tendency at least. But for my argument, it works.)

To call some one with their own independent beliefs BS is the antithesis of punk. Now please understand, this is just my opinion. I feel you and everyone is entitled to their own opinions and the expression of them whether I agree with it or not. And that is in my opinion "punk."

I've been "punk" before I knew what it was. How? By doing what I want, believing what I find to be truth, taking responsibility for it, and feeling that others should be free to do the same.

I'm so tired of "punk" being a music genre, a fashion, a trend, a fad. I've found articles on "how to be punk" and many of them start with "fashion." Really? Clothes make your personality? Wait, what? I might need a new wardrobe.

"Punk" is a way of life. And not necessarily one lead in opposition to social mores, with rampant drug use, and a mohawk. It's doing what make you happy, not apologizing for it, and taking responsibility for it. It's about being independent in thought and lifestyle.

If for you, listening to loud trendy music, wearing skinny jeans, and having emo/scene hair is what makes you happy, that's "punk." If for someone else it's living in a trailer with 7 kids, watching NASCAR makes them happy, that's "punk" too. And if it's being a stay at home mom for me, that's "punk" too. As long as you accept what makes other happy too.

It's not about what you do or how you look or what you believe. It's about doing and believing what makes you happy regardless of what other think. It's not about hurting people, it's about accepting people. Conservative, liberal, Republican, Democrat, rich, poor, male, female,... what ever!

So yes, you can have be "conservative punk" or a "liberal redneck." And if you don't believe that, then you don't know punk. And if that's "punk", then don't call me punk!