WWRW: Two for the Moms

Everybody's talking about The Nesting Place: It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect to Be Beautiful.  I first heard of this book by Myquillin Smith over at Conversion Diary and since read it about it on a few WWRW links.

Can you see those coral wedges in the cover photo above?  Those are identical to Susan's coral wedges and they are from Payless Shoe Source.

Did you notice that the chair is missing a leg? It was the very last thing that caught my eye...after I finished reading the whole book.  A stack of old but attractive books is propping up the chair, and on that stack is a plastic dinosaur.

"It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful."

There are lots of good takeaway quotes in this book about home decor/organization/spiritual acceptance of one's circumstances.  Smith forces one to really examine the purpose of one's home.

Smith has a gift for thrifting and re-purposing furniture and home accessories.  From the photos, I spied several items that had been rearranged in different rooms.  And of course, I want to rearrange all my furniture and go thrifting, and paint all the things RIGHT NOW!

Smith has great ideas for the budget minded decorator, but she has no advice for the mother of a newborn who is sitting and nursing 98% of the day, and scrambling for personal hygiene and sustenance in between. Survival mode doesn't last forever though.

I should have read this book last summer.

I'm getting lots of inspiration for the future though.  Crazy ideas like tossing out the pecan wood china cabinet with the swirls carved in it (that I hate with every fiber of my being) and either replacing it with a long thin table against the wall with wall-mounted shelves above, or...wait for it...re-painting the Ethan Allen girl's desk complete with hutch (that we got free from someone in the homeschooling co-op) and using that instead.

Maybe I can take some pictures of what I'm talking about and share with you on Friday.

One last thing about The Nesting Place: It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect to Be Beautiful, my library did not own it, and the other librarys weren't allowing inter-library loan, SO I had to buy it.  Sight unseen.  Totally worth it too.

I've also been reading My Sisters the Saints: A Spiritual Memoir by Collen Carroll Campbell. (Not as quickly as The Nesting Place, because there are no pretty pictures in this book.)

My Sisters the Saints: A Spiritual Memoir is Campbell's autobiography interspersed with biographies of various female saints and the impact they had on her at different points in her life.

I'm not terribly into this book yet, mostly because the only story in that I'm not already familiar with is Campbell's.  Campbell has identified some good "saintly" bios that I have yet to read.  Good book recs are always appreciated here.

Campbell's writing is clear and concise and when I force myself to put down the social media, the YA books, and the homeschooling catalogs, she helps me to focus on the important things. Things more important than furniture placement.

If you wouldn't mind leaving a comment, it would be most appreciated.  Other link-ups require this.  I'm just asking nicely.  :)

An InLinkz Link-up

7QT: Still Pregnant.

1.  Forget Anna and Elsa.  Jill is only interested in Leonor and Sofia.  She's been asking repeatedly who the Real princesses are, and I was finally able to deliver some names and images besides Princess Kate.

They are lovely little girls, and they have silver shoes just like Jill's.

Also, they are Catholic.

2.  Father's Day was super lame around here.  I thought I'd have somethingone for Patrick for the big day, but it he/she has not arrived as of yet.  

I keep checking my email for tracking info, checking those baby apps hoping to see "Today you will have your baby." but nope.  Nada.

Patrick spent most of Fathers' Day re-creating our Korean Barbecue experience. Food is his recreation and his love language. 

These are Korean dumplings and the traditional 12 side dishes at the authentic restaurant we went to when our kids were out-of-town.  We don't know what most of those dishes are, and neither did our server.

His Father's Day gift to himself.  Omelet thingies here ^.

He made the Galbi beef short ribs, sauteed bok choy, pickled kimchi cabbage, Asian cucumber slaw, and those little omelet roll ups with the green onions served room temp.  Those omelet bites are incredible with a little soy/chili sauce mixture drizzled on them.  Everything was scrumptious.  Even Jill cleaned her plate, eating mostly omelet bites and beef.

Korean beers and water.  I'm pretty sure the water is Gangnam Style.

Some of the credit for that feast goes to Micaela for inspiring me to seek out the mysterious flavors of Korean cuisine.  Go check out her series of interviews with homeschoolers, including one with yours truly.

3.  Run out of summer fun yet?  Multiple rainy days in your part of the world?  

Enter the giveaway for hundreds of pages of Childrens' Activities here.  Also, check out some of the links for free downloads of dot-to-dots, coloring pages, mazes, and more!

4.  

Yesterday, I got a package from my sweet sister-in-law, Adaire.  A care package! With chocolate, and lip balm, and hair ties, and jewelry, and the cutest mug you ever saw!  The hair ties and lip balm are going straight in my birth center go bag, should I ever need to actually go there and birth someone.  The chocolate might not be with us very much longer.

The whole kit and kaboodle was adorably packaged.  You really made my day, Adaire. The package and the prayers.  Thank you!

Go check out Ruthiebox, and send someone some love in a care package.

5.  Speaking of surprises and prayers, sometimes you find things where you least expect them.

My kids know their phones are subject to random checks.  Technically, their phones are our phones, since we pay for them.  

Earlier this week I found someone's phone surreptitiously peeking out from under a sofa cushion and decided to take a peek at what she's been up to.

She had been texting a male acquaintance the usual, "hey"  "what's up" stuff.  He asked if she was going on the upcoming group trip to a theme park this weekend. She replied, "Idk.  My mom is due any day."

His response, "Oh, that's right. I've been praying for her."

Some kid who likes my daughter is praying for me?  

Sigh.  

Tears.  

6 & 7.   How to Cope with Being 40 weeks Pregnant at the End of June when Temps are in the 90s and You Don't Have Central Air Conditioning

Aside from window units, box fans, ceiling fans, and plenty of Red Raspberry Leaf Tea (iced), I rely on two very important products.

This is Culver's Lemon Ice.  Culver's Lemon Ice is my very best friend.  One scoop is 100 calories and zero fat.  For $1.99, I can face another day.  Cue One Day More theme music...

This is Dr. Teal's Lavender Epsom Salt Soaking Solution.  I put about a cup or more in my bath before bedtime and I not only watch my cankles disappear, but I can sleep comfortably until the birds start chirping at the buttcrack of dawn. The 4 to 40 bathroom trips don't even phase me.  Grace told me about this magic brew, but my midwives recommend it too.

That wraps up another whiny week with Jessica.  Go see Kathryn for people with better quick takes and better attitudes.  Do I dare to hope that I'll be in a better mood next week with better news?

7 Quick Takes: Owning January IN THE FACE!

1.  About this post's title,

when someone gets "owned" around here, we say "owned IN THE FACE!"  Owning something IN THE FACE (it always has to be in all caps) is so much more satisfying.

Now, I have made an indelible mark on the English language.  My work here is done.

2.  All of these things happened yesterday:

Woke up.
Out of tea.  (Coffee is gross, people.  Tea is good for you and doesn't give you nasty breath.)
Took Jill and Edmund to the library, where Jill and I went to Toddler Storytime.
Jill kept swatting the hand of a would-be friend (we don't like to be touched).
Edmund used his 30 minutes of unsupervised library time to  check out 59 DVDs which are due in one week.
Emergency Costco run.
COSTCO WAS OUT OF TEA!!!!!!

Would they EVER EVER EVER run out of coffee?!???

Stopped at overpriced grocery store WHERE THEY WERE OUT TOO!  At least the shelf for the big boxes (100 bags $4.99) was empty, so I got 48 bags for $3.99.  Normally, Costco has 300 for like $6 or $7.

Went home.  Opened back of car, 24 eggs immediatlely fell out and broke on the driveway. Jill stomped on a few on her way in the house.

While I went outside to clean up the damage, Jill stomped her eggy, snowy, salty boots all over the upholstered living room sofa.

Tears.  Hot angry tears.

Then I called Patrick and itemized all of the above and included complaints about not watching Once Upon a Time with me the previous night, because HE doesn't know anyone who likes it.

Sorry Internet friends.  Your opinions hold no cred with him.

Next, I put away the groceries and sent Edmund and Jill to watch a few of these animated DVDs about Greek Mythology (they are only 23 minutes each) so I could lie down on the sofa, before I had to drive to tutoring.

While I laid there, I thought about Bobbi, and how her husband is facing six months of chemo but she's still tweeting smiley faces.

Then the dog freaked out because someone was coming to the door.

Could it be the UPS man with my fabric for the Embroider-along?

No, it was my true love, with 24 brand new intact eggs and this bouquet of flowers.

3.  No more self-pity.  Pinky swear.

Kudos to Clan Donaldson for the e-card!

3.  Who doesn't love a good conversion story?

More flower pics, because they make me happy.

Or in this case, a re-version story.  This one is sort of the opposite of VH1 Behind the Music, because this rock star re-discovered his faith.

4.  Want to see John Watson from Sherlock compared to an adorable hedgehog? 

Of course you do!

5.  Ohmygosh.  Heather has a bad day/week and turns it into something gut-bustingly funny.

6.  

Heather's tale reminds me of the time we had three under four, and had just moved into this fixer-upper house, which came with a pink-tiled bathroom and a pink toilet seat.

Right after we moved in, on the hottest day of the year (no a/c here!), with our six-week old newborn (crazy much?), we got some take-out from KFC. Covered in fried chicken grease and instant mashed potatoes and gravy, my two toddlers were wrestled into the bathtub.

I took a moment of private time to use the facilties, only to discover that I now had KFC gravy on my behind.

KFC gravy is roughly the same color as 1960's shellfish pink bathroom decor.

You never wanted to know that, did you?

(I admit I am curious to know what kind of pictures Heather would draw to tell my story.  Perhaps that's why it happened to me and not to her.)

7.  A Very Large Thank You to all who gave me splendid ideas for new baby books that are NOT about sibling jealousy.  I am going to compile a complete list with the suggestions from the combox and the Facebook page and publish it around here somewhere. New Baby Books For the World!

Catch some less awkward takes over at Jen's link-up.

7 Quick Takes

  

1. Or an apology with a side of whine.

I very much wanted to blog more than once this week, but with my terrible cold and my getting a new laptop, and the usual third week of Advent rush-around-second-guessing-every-gift-and-returning-things-and-starting-over, I just didn't get to it.  I'm sorry.

Remind me to never get a new computer again.  Moving pictures,  music, email accounts, and bookmarks is a lot like moving house (something else that should not attempted during the third week of Advent).  First world problem as the Chef pointed out.

2,3,4.  Good Christmas Picture Books

There are many picture books for this season and many of them are not worth your time or money.  The Baker's Dozen:  A Saint Nicholas Tale retold by Aaron Shepard along with the following titles are a few exceptions.  The Baker's Dozen is about generosity and baked goods and having really good illustrations.  And if the spirit moves you, you can recreate the St. Nicholas cookies in the story like the other Jessica did here.

Stephen's Feast by Jean Richardson combines the feast of St. Stephen (December 26th) with the story of St. Wenceslaus and again, lovely illustrations.  I made the Chef read it, and he had never heard the story of St. Wenceslaus.  If you've never paid attention to the umpteen verses of the carol, try to snag a used copy of this out-of-print treasure.  Our library system owns it, maybe yours does too.

Simcha Fischer recently posted about Tasha Tudor's books (again with gorgeous illustrations) and that brought to mind my obsession with all things Tasha Tudor, which in turn brought to mind my obsession with all things John S. Goodall.  If you like Tasha, you will also enjoy John S. Goodall.   So sorry for sending you on another wild goose chase for out-of-print treasures.

Where is the publishing house that wants me to tell them what to re-issue?  

John S. Goodall's An Edwardian Christmas is filled with wordless pages of gloriously detailed watercolored paintings.  Fans of Downton Abbey and/or Anne of Green Gables will appreciate the glimpses of the "downstairs" life and the puffed sleeves. 

What was that?  Wordless?  Yes. Goodall's books are wordless, which means you can see/tell a different story every time.  Other Goodall favorites are Shrewbettina's Birthday and Creepy Castle.

5.  DVD recommendations for your holiday viewing pleasure



A Housewifespice Facebook fan messaged me this query yesterday:

Jessica, can you give me a fast list of good dvds to rent for the holidays? my 8 kids here (11mos-17 yrs old) are getting sorta stir crazy and i am not up for an outing. thanks so much.

To which I responded with this stream of consciousness deluge:

Holiday DVDs or other? We really enjoyed the new Amazing Spider-Man, we watch a lot of superhero stuff, Superman, Batman Begins, Elf, Christmas Carol with George C Scott, the new Muppet movie, the new (90s?) Sabrina, the old Sabrina, anything Pixar, the newest Star Trek (one scene to fast forward when he wakes up with a green chick), I'm thinking about watching the old Star Treks with the fam, Apollo 13, Rise of the Planet of the Apes....Really old but good is The Magnificent Seven. Sports, we like Miracle (hockey), Field of Dreams, the Rookie. Not a lot of chick movies here, Sweet Home Alabama, Emma with Gwyneth Paltrow. My kids love the Marx Bros. That's just off the top of my head.

Of course, I forgot to mention that the only thing that everyone loves, toddlers to teens, is Shaun the Sheep.  But if she's a faithful reader she must already know that.

6.  Our Family's Holiday Must See Movie that you will probably never see

 

We are leaving Sunday for a week of cousin frenzy in the Lou.  We plan to eat, drink, and be merry, hopefully with some movie-going in between.  There will probably be the annual showing of the barely viewable VHS copy of my mother's favorite Christmas movie of all time, Little Lord Fauntleroy starring Ricky Schroeder and Alec Guinness.

 



  

 

It's never on tv anymore, not since the 80s, and it's very hard to find.  I've never seen any other movie version of Little Lord Fauntleroy, so I don't know how they compare.  Oddly enough, during the ballroom scene, where young Ricky sings "Oh, dem golden slippers..."  I always crave Golden Grahams cereal.  I probably shouldn't share my inner most thoughts like that.

 

7.  The Very Best Gingerbread Cookie Recipe that All Children Love

 

 

My senior year of college, my three roommates and I did a Secret Santa/Advent Angel gift exchange.  I don't remember who had me, but I got this adorable tiny cookbook of Christmas cookies.  Eighteen years later, (gosh that makes me sound like a grown-up, what a poseur am I)  I have lost the cookbook but still have the ah-mazing gingerbread cookie recipe that I discovered within its miniscule pages.

 

My kids are always puzzled by other peoples' gingerbread.  It's always too spicy or crispy/crunchy.  Ours is deliciously mild and chewy.  It pairs best with a hot cup of tea and a reading of The Gingerbread Man retold by Jim Aylesworth.  And I have a batch chilling in the refrigerator right now.  I buy those itty bitty raisins called currants to decorate them with, and if I'm really ambitious, I might use white icing too. 

 

Without further ado, I present you with

 

Gingerbread Cookies

 

Combine these ingredients:

 

1 and 2/3 cup softened butter

1 cup packed brown sugar (Dark is best, but either is fine.)

1/4 cup unsulfured molasses

1 egg

In another bowl, combine these ingredients:

3 tsps. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
AND 4 cups flour  Do Not Forget to add this as I did when I typed it the first time!

Add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients while mixing at low speed, and rubbing your tummy and patting your head. 

Divide dough into quarters and refrigerate for an hour or 48.

Roll, cut, add your currants or other bling.  Bake at 350 degrees on ungreased cookie sheets for 10 minutes.

Let cool for 2 minutes.

My notes say this recipe makes 10 dozen.  I say that depends on the size of your gingerbread man cookie cutter.

Have a blessed Christmas!  And here's Jen for more QTs.