"I want my two hours!" (sans the riding over the cliff)

30 posts in 30 days. I gave it the old college try, but I didn't quite make it. That's okay. Y'all like me more now that you know I'm not perfect, right? Wait, you knew I wasn't perfect before this point?! Fine then.

I also fell short on my Turkey Day Tread and Toss. I stopped treading and tossing about ten days in. Suspect you knew that already. Just weren't enough hours in the day, even for ten minutes of exercise and five minutes of tossing.

There is so much that I want to do every evening: grasp for sanity by attempting to stem the chaos with some tidying and cleaning, exercise, lie on the couch and read novels in the glow of the Christmas tree, sit on the couch next to hubby and catch up on the hours of DVR we have backlogged since he's been working so much, respond to emails, write blog posts, visit and comment on all the blogs I love, start online holiday shopping, figure out what I am shopping for, fold laundry while watching Bridget Jones's Diary, and on and on an on.

I feel like that paperboy in Better Off Dead with his "I want my two dollars!" My refrain, and forgive me if I've mentioned this to you before, is "I want my two HOURS!" The two hours when MEP answers only to MEP

"Yes, MEP, I do want to sit on the couch."

"Yes, MEP, this is the moment to finally walk to the alley trash bin with the broken toy stroller the boys keep fighting over."

"Yes, MEP, I would not mind a dish of ice cream. Just a small one."

"Yes, MEP, cleaning the bathroom while listening to an audiobook doesn't sound too bad, all things considered."

Did you hear me in the back? "I want my two HOURS!"

The boys go to bed slightly later than they used to and Sweet P is fond of waking up an hour or two after she has seemingly settled for the night. End result is that those precious two evening hours are constantly threatened. Indeed, the only way to preserve them is to stay up later than I should. The later I stay up, the less energy I have for the next day. The less energy I have, the messier and more chaotic things get and the more I have to do the next evening. I'm constantly playing catch up.

I know, I know, people have it a lot tougher than old MEP. Believe me, I know that. But still, I want my two hours. Is that so much to ask? Maybe don't answer that.

Tell me instead: how do you spend your "two hours"?

We're off to the "Lizard"

“Live theatre” and “my children” are not phrases that I usually think of in tandem. The possibility that my kids would be roaming the aisles, charging the stage, begging for snacks, or otherwise disturbing others was enough to make me put going to the theatre in the “let’s wait a few years” category.

I was wrong. We don’t need to wait. And neither do you and your rugrats.

A week ago Sunday, Bub and I went on a delightful “double date” with Bub's buddy and his mommy to see Emerald City Theatre’s production of The Wizard of Oz at the Apollo Theatre in Lincoln Park. I could not have been happier with our theatre experience.

After the thrill of riding together in the same car, Bub and his buddy got to make a special craft when we arrived --snowflake wands that the kids in the audience were asked to wave at a special point in the show. It was so cute to see Bub with his wand at the ready throughout.

The show itself was a winner -- exciting and accessible to two four year-olds who had never even seen the movie The Wizard of Oz and thoroughly, wittily entertaining for adults as well. The adaption was true to the story and spirit of The Wizard of Oz, honoring the music of the familiar film but also pumping it up and having some fun translating it for 2010. The performers’ had great voices and, just as important, great energy.

My favorite was the Scarecrow!

The total length was about an hour, and the fast-paced movement down the yellow brick road was ideal for keeping the young audience members engaged. Case in point: Bub did not ask for a snack or whine about hunger. He did not ask to go to the bathroom. Nor did he ask for a drink (even though you are allowed to bring beverages to your seats--bonus).

Bub did spend the first ten minutes of the show asking me why Dorothy did not have blond hair (not sure where he got the idea that she was going to or supposed to have blond hair). Mostly he just sat, wide-eyed, taking it all in and eager for The Wicked Witch of the West (played in drag, by the way) to reappear. Bub’s buddy was focused on how the Wicked Witch melted and what happened to "his clothes."

I’ve seen the first three quarters of the film The Wizard of Oz many times. However, I found the ending scary as a little girl and seldom watched the last thirty minutes. For me, it was a treat to see the story to its conclusion and from an adult perspective. Yes, there’s no place like home. And, yes, teamwork is important when you’re facing challenges. But the golden brick of wisdom that I took away from this production of The Wizard of Oz is that you already have everything you need, that what you seek is within you . . . especially if you let the strangers and friends you meet along the road help you find it.

Entertainment. Insight. Reasonably-priced parking. Can’t ask for much more on a Sunday afternoon.

Verdict: Live Theatre at Emerald City Theatre = very successful outing, even though Bub was still pronouncing “wizard” as “lizard” when it was over. I’m excited to take Bub to the theatre again and, after this test-run, I think I’m going to go ahead and bring Little Bit next time as well. We’re not expecting any young visitors this holiday season, but if we were, I would be all over taking them to this neighborhood theatre instead of traipsing along the Mag Mile in the cold or maneuvering through a crowded museum in an attempt to give out-of-towners a “genuine” Chicago experience. The Wizard of Oz runs until January 2^nd and Pinkalicious runs until December 31^st.

Is there a children’s theatre company in your corner of the world? What experiences have you had taking your kids to the theatre?

Disclosure: I was given tickets to The Wizard of Oz by Emerald City Theatre after their marketing director read my blog post about wanting to take the boys to see Pinkalicious. You gotta problem with that?! Also, I can only take credit for the photo of Bub.

What Raffi Said . . .

I am so very thankful for that guy in the back.

Yep, the one with all those kids.

And I'm so "super-duper" thankful for that guy.

And incrediby thankful for that guy.

And delightfully thankful for that girl.

And I am awesomely thankful for this life that I am living and especially for the family and friends with whom I share it. My heart is full.

Watch out, because I am going to quote a Raffi song now:

All I really need is a song in my heart

Food in my belly

And love in my family

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?

P.S. -- If you are wondering why I missed posting two days in a row, just know that I am also thankful that the bug going around only lasts 24 hours and thankful that two year-olds eventually fall asleep, even in a strange bed. And, yes, "awesomely thankful" is awkward. Gobble Gobble.

Daily Grind

I'm getting a little weary of blogging every day. I'm not short on ideas so much as I am short on the time and energy to do them justice. For whatever reason though, I don't feel right allowing myself to "skip" since I committed to NaBloPoMo.

Today's cop-out post is a collection of quotations I found in My Notebook.

"The grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love and something to hope for." Alexander Chalmers (I don't know who Chalmers is. Do you? I've been meaning to investigate)

"Life is not about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself." (seen on cover of a lovely journal at Paper Source)

And here are two quotations that I perhaps need to heed right now (both discovered from following @googlebooks on Twitter):

"Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt." Abe Lincoln

"A facility for quotation covers the absence of original thought." Dorothy L. Sayers, Lord Peter Wimsey in Gaudy Night

I'm accepting words of wisdom and encouragement.

None Pets These Days

Bub met his buddy's cat today and told his buddy's mom, "We have none pets." He then added a caveat, ". . . except a pet ladybug."

Years ago before Bub entered the picture, we did have a pet for a couple of months. Misty Lou, my hubby's family cat, stayed with us while his parents were in Florida. Those of you who know me well know that it is/was a big deal for me to share my life and space with an animal.

But things worked out nicely for me and Misty back in 2004. Turns out we both like Filet O' Fish sandwiches from McDonalds and also resting.

A few years later, Bub got to meet Misty and make his own memories. On Bub's end (and mine), those memories are fond.

Sadly, Misty is no longer with us (she passed away a couple of years ago).

Happily, that couch is no longer with us either.

Cheap Labor

When I need Bub to help clean up his toys or the couch cushions or the contents of the junk drawer or a quantity of something edible opened without permission, I ask him with varying degrees of niceness and volume.

Bub is often overwhelmed by such requests, protesting, "But that's going to take forever."

"If it's going to take that long, you better start now."

"Aren't you going to help me, mommy?"

And on and on. If you have kids, you know the drill.

Imagine my surprise when I came down from settling Sweet P for an afternoon nap to find Bub cleaning up the toys in the back room with a palpable sense of hustle and, dare I say, excitement. He clued me in right away: "Mommy, daddy says he will give me three pieces of money if I clean up the toys."

"Wow, three pieces! You better keep going and finish up."

And he did. And he was so, so proud.

Hubby gave him three pieces of money that totaled 12 cents.

Bub beamed with pride.

Hubby then threw in a quarter tip for a job well done.

Bub's grin got broader, "Now I've got four pieces of money!"

The larger issue, of course, is that we are meant to be teaching Bub that cleaning up is part of his job as a citizen of this family and that he should do it to be helpful and kind and responsible. Not for candy. Not for money. Yes, I know that.

I also know that 37 cents or less can buy some pretty good cleaning and, right now, I'm going to focus on short-term gains.

Bedtime Crimes

Match the crime to the culprit(s).

* Going to bed easily at 7:20 and then waking up an hour later screaming one's head off.

* Running around in circles for 25 minutes straight and then flopping into bed and proceeding to repeatedly scratch the drywall with one's fingernails.

* Lying in bed and alternately saying, "I'm already dreaming, mommy" and, to the runner, "Don't jump up on my bed." As if that booger needed any ideas for what to do next.

* Looking angelic in jammies.

It's almost 9:30 on Friday night. Three kids finally asleep. House a mess. Still haven't eaten dinner. Going to squeeze as much quality MEP-time in as I can before I fall asleep myself.

TGIF

T G I (almost) F F

Thank Goodness It's (almost) FRITO Friday!

What's Frito Friday? The designated day when my bloggy friend Heather in Lebanon and I are posting about our experiences with this Sweet, Salty Frito Candy recipe from Cookie Madness.

Background 411 is that sweet and salty is my very favorite pairing for snacks. Typical sweet and salty snacks for me are chocolate-covered pretzels or a mix of peanuts, raisins, and chocolate chunks (avoid store-bought trail mix with its pesky nutritional and calorie information on the packaging--if you make it at home, you can think to yourself, "Nuts and raisins and dark chocolate. A healthy snack, indeed"). Point is that I am a sucker for sweet and salty and thus could not help but be tempted by a recipe for Sweet, Salty Frito Candy (henceforth known as SSFC).

So you're going to check out the SSFC recipe. Then, check out what I have to say about it below. Then, check out my friend Heather's take on it.

I made the SSFC with Bub, one of my two regular sous chefs (the other was napping). I have to say that the first part of the recipe offers many ideal tasks for little helpers: unwrapping miniature Reese's cups, measuring out a cup of Fritos and two cups of pretzels, using a mallet to crush those Fritos and pretzels (opted to skip the recipe instructions about using a food processor for this step), and spreading the mixture into the pan. I should have also given Bub a butter knife and let him cut the Reese's cups into smaller chunks, but control freak mama did it herself.

From there, the recipe--adding brown sugar to melted butter and boiling, pouring that buttery/sugary goodness on top of the salty stuff, and melting/spreading chocolate chips on top--is a little less friendly for sous chefs under age five.

My sous chef did not seem to feel left out.

"Look, mom, it's my own recipe."

Kind of cute how the pretzels look like faces now, right? Too bad the "eyes" tend to fall out when you lift them.

Back to the SSFC though. I followed the instructions and waited patiently for the chocolate to harden (suspect I should have a more culinary word than "harden," especially after watching Top Chef: Just Desserts). Eventually, I broke the candy into pieces and dug in.

Initially, I was all, "Hmm, this is okay, but I wish it were a little saltier." Because, you know, there is not enough sodium in pretzels and Fritos. I felt like I was tasting too much chocolate and was bummed that a few of my pieces were kind of crumbly. However, the pieces where there was plenty of the buttery/brown sugary goodness holding the pretzels, Fritos, and peanut butter cups together . . . those pieces were quite exquisite.

Fast forward to yesterday evening when I realize that there is only one piece left and I still haven't gotten hubby's take on it. Mind you, no one but me ate the SSFC throughout the week (I guess no one knew to look in the Gladware container in the back of the middle shelf of the fridge). It takes all I have to hand hubby that last piece. I don't have a quote for you because he was focusing on a spreadsheet or something, but when I followed up later, he said he liked it but didn't love it since he is not as into "the sweet/salty thing" as I am. Fair enough.

As for me, I will make the SSFC again. I will try to distribute my butter/brown sugar mixture a little more evenly. I may use fewer chocolate chips (I used a teense more than what was called for) and might see how white chocolate chips or a combination of white and chocolate turn out. I also think I might sprinkle some sea salt over the salty layer before adding the chocolate.

For sure, I will only make SSFC again when I am planning to share it with others because even if something is good, you don't feel good about yourself when you eat it all.

But enough about me, what did Heather in Lebanon's crew think? She'll be posting her account on Friday (I published a little early on the Frito Friday's Eve to get "credit" for my 30 posts in 30 days).

Happy Frito Friday, everybody! May your day be the perfect blend of sweet and salty.

Across the Pond

Prince William, son of the late Princess Diana, is engaged to Kate Middleton.

The Beatles entire collection is now available on itunes.

There's a new movie about that one kid with the glasses . . . Harry Potter is his name, I think.

Just in case those bits of news had not made it to your corner of the USA, I thought I'd pass them along. You're welcome.

You can show your gratitude by suggesting Beatles songs for me to purchase with the itunes gift card that's been burning a hole in my pocket. Thank you.

Playing Favorites

Things might get a little quiet around your Thanksgiving table this year. You want people to connect and converse, but you also want to keep things harmonious and stay away from potentially divisive conversation topics like politics and Coke vs. Pepsi. At some point in the day, you might look around and start feeling disheartened by the football being watched when everyone is meant to be rejoicing in gratitude for those around them.

Let's see, you could shake things up with a game of charades, but those who forgot to wear sweatpants may be feeling too bloated to really get in the spirit. You could get out Trivial Pursuit or Taboo or a deck of cards, but if there are a bunch of children running around (whose kids are those, anyway?), good luck with that.

How about a game where participation requires very little energy-output, there are no "rules" and so no one needs to raise their voice and feel like a bossy butt (who me?), and everyone wins?

That's right, everyone wins. Everyone wins when we learn more about our family members and friends!

Intrigued (and perhaps also repelled by my cheese factor)? If things get dull for you over Thanksgiving, why not play a few rounds of The Favorite Game. It's an oldie, but a goody.

Pick a category and each person names their favorite for that category. Easy as that.

I'll give you some examples:

Color? Green

Color to wear? Brown

Christmas song? "Baby It's Cold Outside"

Cracker? Triscuit

Cookie? Iced Molasses

Board game? Trivial Pursuit

Kids' show? Phineas and Ferb

Plotline on this season of The Office? The Andy/Darryl friendship

Toilet Paper? Scott

Variety of M&M? Peanut Butter

Sport to watch? Basketball

Sport to play? Tennis

Form of exercise? Walking fast

Pro or former pro on Dancing with the Stars? Julianne

Food Network chef? Ina Garten

Small kitchen gadget? Pizza Cutter

Convenience store snack? Fountain Diet Coke and white chocolate Flipz

Flavor of Jolly Rancher? Cherry

Beer? Miller Lite

Herb? Basil

Sugar Cereal? Golden Grahams

Donut? The kind with icing (not pudding) inside

Part of the newspaper? Book reviews (and the ads)

Hot beverage? Chai Latte

Sure, there might be some controversy. I know my hubby, for example, would claim Cottonelle as his favorite t.p., and I can see a debate ensuing with me arguing for the cost efficiency and plumbing friendliness of Scott while he promotes the comfort of Cottonelle.

Sure, there might be some difficulty. People will want to give multiple answers or might overthink things as if their favorites are being recorded for posterity on a gold tablet. You can decide if you want to be breezy and allow for double answers. You can decide if you need to tell your cousin to pick a favorite kids' show in fifteen seconds or else you'll show him the door.

But there might also be some beautiful moments of connection. When you and your husband's cousin's daughter realize you both heart Barefoot Contessa and single-ply toilet paper . . . beautiful moment right there.

You'll have to customize the categories for your group. Make sure to give everyone a chance to come up with a category. Have fun and stay breezy!

If people seem to be in a Grinch kind of mood, you could try The Least Favorite Game:

Herb? Cilantro

Sport to watch? Golf

Flavor of Jolly Rancher? Watermelon

Kids' show? Fresh Beat Band

Games played at family gatherings? The Favorite Game (just kidding)

You get the picture.

Please share any of your favorites or least favorites in the comments. Any traditions to promote bonding and fun at your Thanksgiving celebration?

What?! A German Potato Salad Lesson?! For Me??? Get out of town!

You remember when you were a little kid and you noticed that mommies and daddies and grandparents didn't get as many gifts at Christmas as kids did and it seemed so perplexing that the grown ups still seemed happy and festive as they opened their slippers and boxes of chocolate and small appliances . . . Maybe your mom even told you that all she wanted for Christmas was to have her family all together.

Now, I don't want those with my name on their Christmas lists to get the idea that I won't accept presents because I certainly will, but I am starting to feel like a real adult -- the kind who could just be happy with some new slippers and a good spread of food. Yes, I like stuff as much and probably more than the next gal. I do like presents and happen to be an especially enthusiastic opener/receiver of gifts, NTB. But it's liberating to realize that there's nothing I really need and that the gifts are only the icing on an already-tasty holiday cake. Increasingly, the holidays are more and more about spending time with family, eating, and sharing in the joy, wonder, and excitement of my children.

I'm starting to field requests for lists for me and the family and to put feelers out to discover what those on my list would like.

I was thinking this afternoon though that there are quite a few gifts that would cost little or no money that I would be happy to receive.

Since I started this blog post a little too close to bedtime, I'll just share a few items on MEP's Free/Almost Free Gift List.

MEP's Free/Almost Free Gift List

* Recipe Collection -- I love looking through cookbooks, magazines, and food blogs/websites. A free/almost-free gift I would love would be a collection of favorite recipes from someone else's kitchen. The collection would not have to be fancy or scrapbooked or bound or painstakingly copied onto pretty cards -- any old mish-mash of photocopies of cookbook pages or recipe cards, online printouts, pages out of magazines, and/or word documents would be great. A line or two like "the boys love this" or "my favorite app to bring to a cookouts" or "don't use cheap wine" would be a bonus, but just the recipes (and an invitation to call or email with questions) would be a really delightful, welcome gift.

* Cooking Lesson -- Another free/almost free gift I'd love would be a specialty cooking lesson in a home kitchen given by a friend/family member. I want to know, for example, how to make my Grandma's German Potato Salad. I don't think she can teach me at this point, but I'd love it if my mom and I carved out some time for me to learn this specialty from my mom. Similarly, I've never roasted a chicken or a turkey on my own. I know, I know, "It's so easy, MEP," many of you are thinking. Probably it is, but if someone I knew was an experienced poultry roaster, I'd love for them to walk me through the process. If someone has a culinary specialty they are willing to teach, I am willing to learn. The gift would be the knowledge and the time spent together.

Even though my November posts tell a different story, I promise that there is more to my life and on my mind than food.

There are lots more free/almost free gift ideas that I plan to share in future posts so please stay tuned. You've heard of re-gifting, but how about FREE-gifting!?

Please leave a comment sharing any free/almost free food-related gift ideas. What cooking lesson could you offer and to whom? What are some of the recipes you might include in a collection?

Start brainstorming more free-gifting ideas. I'll post again on this topic a week from today.

Gobbled

2010 Turkey Tread and Toss Update

It's not too late to join me in the Turkey Tread and Toss leading up to Thanksgiving

* tread--10 minutes of daily exercise

* toss--trash, recycle, or donate 5 items per day

I skipped my arduous ten minutes of tread yesterday, but I've managed to tread and toss the rest of the days.

What am I "tossing"? My clothes, kids clothes, toys, expired spices, and children's books are the main toss categories so far. I'm battling against a pack rat in my Bub though. He regularly picks through the trash and recovers "treasures." Just this morning he was shocked to find a Weekly Reader that I had the nerve to file in the garbage. The trick is keeping the donation pile hidden and taking the garbage out before going to bed at night.

What are your strategies for making time to exercise? Do you have some "toss" category ideas for me?

Toad-ally Photogenic

I'm making some plans to upgrade my camera. We've had our current camera since Bub was a baby. It's still doing its job and is the perfect size for tossing in a purse or carrying around in one's pocket. However, I'd like to start taking higher-quality photographs. Thanks to a Facebook query, I've received helpful feedback on what kind of camera to choose and am looking forward to learning more about photography and capturing more moments.

In the meantime, I thought I'd share the best photos I've ever taken with my current camera.

I had planned to share these pics as part of a post with a general theme of "Can you believe my child loves bugs and critters and stuff? I can't believe it, but it really makes me kind of happy and proud that he has not inherited my disinterest/aversion to critters. Isn't it so cool to see what surprising interests each child develops and to be reminded that they are seldom parental mini-me's?"

Without further summary of a post I'll never write, here's Bub with the toads he caught in Grandma and Grandpa's yard this summer.

No toads were harmed in the taking of these photographs. The "habitats" (NTB, but Bub used that fancy word for the jars) were ventilated on top and the toads were returned to the yard each evening.

Any camera recommendations for me? Do the children in your life have interests and passions that surprise/delight you?

Talk about big-hearted . . .

Bub brought home The Kindness Tree that he worked on at school. One of his teachers recorded his philanthropy: "I was kind when I gave my brother my old, little coat."

You hear that? He gave his little brother his old, little coat. What a kid.

He's also concerned for your health. Don't forget: Always Cover a Sneeze!

Sweet Spot

In the lovely and satisfying book Eat Cake by Jeanne Ray, the main character takes a stress reduction seminar at a YMCA where she is asked to visualize a safe, peaceful place.

"Everyone had closed their eyes and gone to their childhood bedroom or a beach in Jamaica or wherever life was simpler. I had no idea where I was supposed to go. I felt embarrassed sitting in my folding chair, as if the people around me would know that I was still in a conference hall while they were all walking down a white sand beach with the sun glinting off their hair. . . . But when I finally closed my eyes and tried, what I wanted came to me with complete clarity. The place that I went, the place that I still go, was the warm, hollowed-out center of a Bundt cake."

--Eat Cake (2003, pages 1-2)

I am ever charmed by this novel and by this idea of the inside of a cake as one's place of peace and comfort.

My new happy place is not exactly the inside of one of the amazing whole wheat chocolate chip cookies that I recently blogged (and bragged) about, but I can say with certainty that I would be even happier any place with one (or ten) of these cookies beside me. After I posted about the cookies, several people asked about the recipe. Thanks to a tip from my dear friend E. . ., I now know that Molly, the renowned food blogger from Orangette, also thinks these cookies from pastry chef Kim Boyce are something special. I feel strangely validated by this fact. So, if you're interested in the recipe, you can find it right here.*

A happy place of mine is pictured below.

Can you imagine anything better than sitting here on one of these bonus, warm November days and enjoying a novel and some cookies? Feeling the breeze, smelling the fall air, enjoying the greenery. Heavenly, right? Right now, this spot seems just as enticing as a beach, perhaps even more. I like to imagine an escape that is still cocooned by my everyday life and world.

I just have to imagine there's nothing better as I don't have many (or any) moments to relax and read on a chaise during my weekday life. My sweet spot vision does not involve an exersaucer parked next to my chaise or the sounds of static on baby monitors.

Also, this sweet outdoor spot does not belong to me or to anyone I know. It's just a place I drive past several times a week on my way to the McDonald's drive-thru for a Diet Coke.

Also, it is right on the alley.

But still, it seems like an awfully sweet spot. I'm going to continue picturing myself there all alone, except for my novel and my cookie for company.

What about you? Where do you escape, if only in your own mind? Do you have a tried and trusted chocolate chip cookie recipe?

*I had trouble linking to the specific post, but if you visit the site, it's the 11/5/2010 post.

Cupcakes, Cupcakes, Cupcakes, Cupcakes + BONUS

Thirty posts in thirty days. They can't all be well-crafted and witty.

I have four things to share about cupcakes.

1. Pinkalicious -- Any fans of the children's book Pinkalicious out there? Bub and Little Bit both enjoy this tale of a little girl who eats too many pink cupcakes and turns pink and then red. She can only return to normal by eating green foods. Little Bit asks for the book by its unofficial title, Licious, and likes to point to each pink food item on the page illustrating the doctor's visit and say, "No, no, no, no . . ." Really cute. I always worry that he and his big brother will attempt to replicate the precarious stack of chairs and household items leading to the top of the refrigerator. There's a Pinkalicious musical playing in Lincoln Park right now, and I keep meaning to buy tickets and take the boys or at least take Bub (not sure if Little Bit has the attention span for live theater). For the record, I think Purplicious is okay but find Goldalicious pretty disappointing.

2. Earlier this fall, the boys and I finally tested out the Big Top Cupcake Pan that I "won" as part of the As Seen on TV prize package at Bub's school auction. The boys' decorating job is rather appalling, but I've learned to just let go and let the sprinkles fly, especially for baked goods only meant for family consumption. Note that the pan is also an accessory!

3. After months of "reminders," hubby has finally made it so that my "new" (received in March) laptop could communicate with our printer. Just this afternoon, I finally printed out two groupons previously purchased: one worth $50 at GAP and another worth $20 at The Meatloaf Bakery. I'm expecting to see cupcake-shaped meatloafs there and can't wait to check them out, perhaps while wearing a new t-shirt from GAP!

4. I haven't tried every cupcake spot in Chicago, but that doesn't stop me from answering if anyone asks about it. I'm a fan of Sweet Mandy B's on Webster. I love, love, love the frosting and think they manage to keep the cupcakes from drying out, which is key. I found out this summer that they offer cupcake decorating sessions for kids. Sounds fun and tasty.

5. BONUS! I just thought of a fifth cupcake talking point. Last year for Bub's birthday party, my mom made a bunch of cupcakes and frosted them with white icing. When the kiddies arrived, I had them decorate little boxes from the Container Store big enough to hold a couple cupcakes. Towards the end of the party, we brought out plates of candy and let the kids decorate their cupcakes. Then, the cupcakes went in the little boxes as a favor (except that I also made treat bags because I'm never sure when enough is enough). Assuming your guests are cool with their kids eating sugar, I recommend this party activity. I would not recommend letting young party guests ice and sprinkle the cupcakes themselves (see above).

Off to eat the last oreo cheesecake cupcake. How fitting.

What's your cupcake story?

Nightstand Companions

I’m never satisfied with my book posts here at NTB. I feel I simultaneously oversell and undersell the books I really like. Plus, I tend to ramble. I’m going to try to be more concise.

Here are a few titles from my 2010 reading list that I’d like you to consider.

Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson -- Set in England (I give bonus points to novels that continually mention cups of tea). Generational conflicts. Cultural differences. You can teach an old dog (or an old major) new tricks.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer – New York City, post 9/11. This novel is one of the one-city-many-stories variety that I adore. I haven’t been consciously seeking a 9/11 novel, but I’ve found one that captures the best of what we might take away from that horrible moment in history. The innocence of the book’s young protagonist will break your heart and build it back up again.

The Carrie Diaries by Candace Bushnell – Carrie Bradshaw during high school. Hard not to inform one’s reading of this novel with visions of SJP as Carrie Bradshaw, but Bushnell’s novel rings true for me as a portrait of the Carrie we all think we know. Final page of the novel is completely awesome.

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese – I wouldn’t describe myself as someone particularly interested in surgery, complicated gynecological issues, inner-city residency programs, or the political history of Ethiopia. I am interested in nuns and twins. This novel blew me away in the best possible way. Knowing that Verghese is a novelist and a doctor likewise blows me away--amazing to ponder the capacity of the human mind.

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls – This memoir was really popular a few years ago, and I avoided it for no good reason. Since I read Walls’ Half-Broke Horses (a novelized account of Walls’ grandmother’s life) earlier this year, I thought I’d give The Glass Castle a try. This memoir would be a fabulous book club selection--so much to discuss about the resilience of children, the role of parents, and the complicated, imperfect nature of love. READ IT.

I still have more great books to tell you about, but I've bored you enough for now. As always, I ask: what are you reading?

Ore-oh no you didn't

With the holidays approaching and winter hibernation upon us, my penchant for food porn kicks into high gear. I satiate my need for food porn by obsessively flipping through magazines and cookbooks, by surfing the net for recipes and then reading their reviews to add to the excitement and anticipation, by grocery shopping almost daily, by stockpiling bricks of cream cheese, and by dreaming of dips.

Last year, the focus of my food porn was the Crockpot 365 website, which I still never tire of checking. I've made a handful of recipes from the site, all pretty successful but none more so than a little something I call hot vomit on a chip. I just like visiting. Plus, Stephanie, the Crock Pot Lady, admittedly eats savory leftovers for breakfast on many days. Girl after my own heart.

I happened upon a new food porn site a few weeks ago, Cookie Madness. Pretty much all my teeth are sweet so I love cruising all the recipes on this food blog.

I made some miniature oreo cheesecakes a few days ago from Cookie Madness. I think I overbaked them a bit, but they were still tasty. Tough to go too wrong when oreos, cream cheese, and sugar are involved.

The cutest thing ever is that you bake the cheesecakes in cupcake tins and use an open-face oreo (double stuff side up) as the crust.

Check out the recipe right here. I opted not to use the orange-filled Halloween oreos and also skipped the decorative chocolate glaze on top.

In the true spirit of food porn, I am intrigued by this Cookie Madness recipe for Sweet, Salty Frito Candy. I don't even like Fritos, but I am already mentally committed to trying this stuff out.

Where do you go to get your "food porn" fix? Please share in the comments. I think I should I be afraid of what search terms might lead people to this post.

Turkey Day Tread and Toss Update: I've already tossed my items for today (expired spices and other junk cluttering up one of my skinny cabinets). Now I'm off to get my ten minutes of tread finished.

Turkey Day Tread (and Toss)

Readers of this blog know that I don't workout. I'd like to. I just never make the time.

You've heard of Jillian Michaels and the 30-Day Shred? This ain't it.

I'd like to try the Shred, but I don't think I'm ready.

I'm warming up with the Turkey Day Tread (and Toss).

Here's how it goes.

I commit to exercising 10 minutes a day every day until Thanksgiving.

Only 10 minutes a day? Yep. Since I exercise zero minutes a day now, this "tread" is all about just getting in the habit of making time to move a bit. I plan to take a walk outside if I can get away or walk in place in front of the television if I can't.

If I want to keep going after 10 minutes, great. If not, then not. No biggie.

But you called it a Turkey Day Treat (and Toss), MEP?

That's right I did.

I will also be tossing five things a day. By tossing, I mean either throwing away, recycling, or collecting in a donation pile. (Similar to my efforts for the now-defunct Just Use It or Lose It blog).

You in? Maybe your daily goal is five minutes or five hundred sit-ups. Maybe you already run marathons and just want to join in the Toss portion.

I'd love your company!

Note: The Turkey Day Tread (and Toss) is inspired by my facebook friend Lisa who has become stronger and more powerful doing the actual 30-Day Shred over the past year. Check out her facebook group if you're interested. Once I get back in the exercise groove, I plan to try the actual 30-Day Shred.

Gravy Train

Dinner tonight -- salad, green beans, mashed potatoes, turkey breast. Pretty good spread for a meal Casa MEP. There was also gravy from a jar and cranberries from a can. I got out my Johnson Brothers Friendly Village dishes to add to the festive spirit.

The boys ate turkey dipped in ketchup. My in-laws were kind and appreciative and said nice things.

Let me try to capture hubby's review.

Hubby: I liked the gravy.

MEP: I did not make the gravy.

Hubby: Oh.

And you are welcome.

That's what our little girl is made of --

Cereal of rice,

EVERYTHING nice . . .

Sweet P at Seven Months

My Decent Melody

Hubby and I had a rare evening out tonight, made all the sweeter since his parents are visiting and were able to babysit for us. I left the mini van at home for them (you know, in case they wanted to take the baby out for ice cream and needed car seats) and so was driving hubby's car and enjoying his music selection. One of the CDs in the rotation is U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind, an album that I listened to repeatedly during a stressful period of my life back in 2004. I was studying for my comprehensive exams in graduate school (an endeavor which, by the way, does not sound at all stressful to me right now, compared to motherhood) and thinking that my life was so hard and that I was probably going to fail and that maybe I should quit. Blah, blah, blah.

Anyway, the song "Stuck in a Moment" was a favorite of mine then and the line that always got to me was, "You are such a fool/To worry like you do." I've been a fool like that almost my whole life, but I do think I'm learning to worry less.

I listened to the song tonight on my way downtown and different lyrics resonated with me. One was the line about trying to find "a decent melody/A song that I can sing/In my own company." Sometimes I lose my own melody and song. I start compare myself to others, especially other moms, and decide I am just not enough. But it's up to me to find a song, so to speak, that works for me. The melody that makes me happy. I may sound pitchy and off key, but if I can have fun singing it, then it's all good. (It's late and I've had two whole glasses of wine so please forgive the musical analogy, especially since I don't know much about music.)

There are times when I do feel stuck in my moment -- the moment when I lose patience with the kids, feel hopeless about the messes surrounding me, wish I had more close friends who lived close by, and, you know, blah, blah, blah. But Bono knows, "It's just a moment/This time will pass." I don't want time to pass too quickly, don't want my children to grow up too fast, don't want to look back and regret that I didn't enjoy it all more. No sir. But I do want to remember that I'm never really "stuck" and that I don't need to judge myself by my worst, most frustrating, toughest moments. Sometimes I let a "bad" morning become a frustrating afternoon and then the longest day ever. But, if "it's just a moment," the moment is over, and I can start over, find my melody and sing my song as best I can.

Patron of the Arts

My Bub is not quite the uber-crafter that his older cousin Fancy is, but he does enjoying crafting and creating. Cutting out pictures from magazines and catalogs, drawing, painting, gluing, “sticker-ing” – all the creative work you would expect from a preschooler, as well as some speciality work such as affixing stickers and small plastic objects to empty Diet Coke cans and calling the finished product a “trophy.” He also specializes in live art installations wherein he uses his little brother as a tabula rasa and covers him with toys, clothes, baskets, and diapers.

He warmed my heart a couple of months back by describing himself as an “art man.”

The trophies and brother “sculptures” are a bit difficult to display. We have, however, found a way to give our “art man” his own gallery.

I bought some clothes line and clothes pins at our local hardware store, and my father-in-law got the job done with just a hammer and a few nails.

Voila! It’s a breakfast nook and an art gallery!

Notice how Bub even has a t-shirt hanging on the line!

Here’s a view a few weeks into the school year with fall creations from home and school rotating into the collection.

I’m happy with the gallery because it gives me a dedicated place to go with many of art man’s creations. The only problem? Bub’s a bit of a diva in that he’s only allowed for one of Little Bit’s creations to make it into the gallery. (It's the black and red line piece to the left of the art man's leaf man.)

There remains the perennial problem of what to do with the pieces after they rotate out. I’ve been deferring the question by placing them in a bin, which will eventually overflow and force some decisions. I guess some will get filed in the circular file and some will get saved. Decisions, decisions. But then, how much do you save and where do you put it? And, by the time anyone is interested in looking back at it, will you still be able to find it? Will it matter?

A person who has every significant* piece of writing she has done since seventh grade struggles will these issues, you know?

If there are art men and women in your life, how do you display their creations? Then, how do you decide what to save? Have you ever tried the tip from a few years ago (on Oprah, I think) about photographing the art and collecting the digital images in photo books?

What did your parents save of yours? Have you revisited your childhood works? Have your children seen your childhood creations?

Enough questions. How about some answers . . . Please share in the comments.

*Let's loosely characterize as "significant" anything that includes words and, um, sentences.