what you've missed

you know how i set a goal to read 50 books in 2012?  NAILED IT.  finished my 50th last month, only halfway through the year.

(we're going to overlook the glaringly obvious lack of whatever in my life that allows me to read such a ridiculous amount and just skip right to the "congratulations, you're awesome!" bit.)

white collar marathons.  

neal caffrey.  i rest my case.  

silas refuses to watch it with me.  but it is the best. (ps, season 4 just started!!  i'm waiting for the perfect moment to settle down with a bowl of brownie batter celery sticks and enjoy episode 1.)

ps again--i was absolutely convinced for the entirety of seasons 1 and 2 and most of season 3 that kate was still alive.  i haven't completely banished the thought.

cheesy dip-stuffed bread bowl.  it seems to be impossible for silas and me to watch an episode of masterchef without delicious snacks at hand.

food coloring and shaving cream.

sirius is in LOVE with silas.  and only silas.

bread stuffed with butter and cheese and slathered with more butter.

delicious brownies from katie imhoff's recipe.  

chocolate cupcakes.  stuffed with cookie dough.  topped with a fluffy cookie dough frosting.  this was a win.  (but, as i told silas, definitely not for lightweights.)  ;)

i've been watching dc cupcake while i pit bowls of cherries (my hands look ridiculous after all the cherries and beets i chopped yesterday) and dreaming of the bakery i will open some day.  

it's going to be delicious.

fo rilz?

in the past few months, the car has been...less than cooperative.

he held up his toast and said, "look!  helicopter!"

several weeks ago i arrived at the park with the boys and stepped out to realize that the car was emitting smoke.  (which explained the burning smell i had noticed on the way there.)

we had to leave it there and walk home.  my parents drove down from scottsdale to help out, and took the car in.  that little visit ended in a slew of repairs that totalled about $800.  (thank you, mom and dad.)

the catalytic converter (i'm not going to pretend i know what it is) is broken or something, so we bought a new one and took the car in.

turns out we bought the wrong one.  aaaaaand, if we want it fixed--$1400.

(we decided we can live with it the way it is.)

bought 4 new tires.

blew one out 2 days later.  completely flat, and beyond repair.  replaced it.



took the car in to get the transmission drip pan (?  or something like that) fixed.  while they were fixing it, they found that the people in Utah who had worked on our car a few years ago had broken off a screw and left it there.  $100 extra onto our bill for that.

for a while, the cd player wasn't working, due to the fact that tesla had fed some quarters into it at some point.  the radio, however, was working.

a week or so ago, silas got the quarters out.  (cd player still didn't work.)

a couple days later, the entire thing stopped working.  it won't even turn on.



while the car was in the shop a couple days ago (for the transmission thing), someone swiped tesla's car seat and the jogging stroller.  (kind of our fault for leaving them unattended, but while i'm airing grievances...)   :)

and this morning, i walk out to the car, put the key in the ignition, turn it, and...nothing.

well, not completely nothing.  the a/c and the lights came on (not the radio, of course).  but the engine made no sound.

well...c'est la vie, i guess.

now i need to go find someone to teach my class on sunday...

sometimes crunchy is disgusting

i've turned out to be a lot "crunchier" than I had expected.

 if you'd asked me 5 years ago, my motto would have been "why make it when you can buy it?"

but now I've started to cross the great divide and am trying to make myself at home in the "why buy it when you can make it?" camp.

 crunchy.

 granola mommy.

i did not expect this.

 (i've made granola.)

my explorations into the land of green are mostly limited to the edible arena.  i do not craft.  i do not sew.

but i do cook!   as you are probably well aware.

i make salad dressings (in leftover containers that once contained delicious gelato--which i did not make but did wholeheartedly enjoy),

breads,

various vegetable dishes--some delicious and some kind of disgusting,

 delicious

 delicious

kind of disgusting, unfortunately. 

applesauce,

and, of course, baked goods by the truckload.

currently i am trying out a homemade toothpaste.  the jury's still out. 

sometimes you try something out that everyone is raving about and it turns out to be a complete failure.

i made a homemade laundry detergent last year.  i was happy at first, but after a while--not a fan.  maybe i'll try another recipe in the future but for now i'll stick with the store-bought stuff.  i ruin our clothes enough as it is.

and sometimes, no matter how much other people love something, it's just not for you.

this morning i tried oil-pulling.  it's something i've seen mentioned on several blogs recently, so when i saw the coconut oil at sprouts yesterday i thought, why not?

(why not, indeed.  let me tell you, "why not" is not usually a good reason to try something.)

this morning i awoke and padded into the kitchen to get some coconut oil.  i took small spoonful, placed it in my mouth, and--

ran into the bathroom and gagged over the sink as i tried to rinse my mouth out as quickly as possible.

then i dropped to my knees and dry-heaved over the toilet for a few minutes.

which is how silas found me when he walked into the bathroom this morning.

i'm not sure what triggered the massive gag attack (something about the feel of a ball of oil in my mouth--ugh), but allow me to pass on some wisdom.

 if you have a gag reflex that is even halfway-decent, DO NOT TRY OIL-PULLING.

DO NOT DO IT.

DO. 

NOT.

DO. 

IT.

you have been warned.

fermentation to perfection

i was informed that my last post made me sound a wee bit depressed.  if it did, i apologize.  i didn't intend to give off "wallowing in my own sorrow" vibes.  i'm good.  things are good.  desmond hit me over the head with a huge plastic toy today.

(i'm not depressed.)

silas is a very patient man.  i think living with me is like a refiner's fire for his character.  by the end of our lives he's going to be practically perfect.

the other day he came home and i pointed to a bowl on the counter and announced gleefully, "i'm fermenting rice!"

he just shook his head.  he didn't share my pride or enthusiasm for home fermentation.

just so you know, it went to a good use.

steamed sourdough bread!

(i know, what?)

i found this recipe and was curious enough to try it.  the verdict?

interesting.  i actually really liked the flavor and the heartiness of it.  the only thing i wasn't crazy about was the texture, the middle wasn't as dry as i would have liked it to be.  (easily remedied by toasting it, btw.  mmmm.)  maybe i need to steam it longer?  who knows.  but i am proud of myself for making it.  i feel so hardcore.

another recipe i am a fan of is this homemade "ice cream".  i've seen tons of recipes like this floating around but i never actually tried one until last week, when tesla was sick.  (it was the only thing i could convince him to eat.)  he looooves ice cream (except when he says "ice" it rhymes with "grass".  think about it) and this was a big hit.

sometimes we have it for breakfast.  i even snuck some kale in the other day and he was none the wiser.  it seems to go over better than smoothies (even though it's practically the same thing), and the thickness makes it easier to eat with a spoon.  slightly less messy.  (but still pretty messy)

lovely weather lately.  it's only been in the 90s.  (i never thought the phrase "only in the 90s would pass my lips.  or my keyboard.  arizona has lowered my standards.)  today it even rained for 5 minutes!  i love love LOVE rainy, cloudy days.  although i'm told by my friends in the northwest that it gets old.

remember the game Perfection?  i saw it at target for $5 and bought it on a whim (i think roughly 80-90% of target's revenue comes from impulse buys).  it was a very fruitful whim to follow, it turns out.  tesla loves it.  i love that he sits there by himself and puts all the pieces in, since i usually can't get him to do puzzles.  use those problem-solving skills, little man.


and i have an announcement to make!

i am halfway to my goal of reading 50 books in 2012!  looks like i'm on track to finish strong.  in the beginning i questioned whether or not this goal was realistic, but who am i kidding.  of course it is!  i have no social life!

wait, that's not totally true.  i went to playgroup today.



less than a month until MASTERCHEF SEASON 3!!!!