Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Sinking Feeling

Fall is the perfect time to bust out the roasting pans for awesome roasted vegetables. I found sweet potatoes and butternut squash finally in season and decided to make them for dinner the other night.
Butternut squash is a tricky vegetable. It's hard to peel, hard to cut, and really delicious. This squash makes you work for it. Now we'll start with the peeling. I tried to do it like Giada showed me. She cuts off the ends, then again in half so she can take her knife and just cut the skin off. Massive fail because my knives need sharpened. So I busted out my peeler and got to work. Not easy, but it got the job done. The sweet potatoes were much easier. The result was awesome, and I couldn't have been happier with the meal.
After dinner I was trying to clean up and realized that peels had clogged our garbage disposal. On a side note: Patrick HATES garbage disposals. If he had a list of things he hated passionately, it'd go like this - 1. Black Eyed Peas with Fergie, 2. Dirt 3. Garbage Disposals. If we ever get to build a house, he won't put in a garbage disposal.

So since the sink was clogged I left dishes all over my counter tops to be cleaned later. We ran some errands and picked up liquid plumber and hope that it'll break up the clog and I'll be good to go. No such luck - the next morning it's still clogged. Ick. Instead of calling a plumber, I emailed my dad for help. I remembered all the times my dad was under the sink after my mom tried to put potato skins down the drain. SEE!!! I GET THIS NATURALLY. THIS IS NOT MY FAULT. Of course I get the lecture - "this is why you always put newspaper in the sink when you peel vegetables" but he said he'd stop by and fix it.

My dad fixed it in about 3 minutes. He's so great. Thanks dad, if you still read my blog.
I let the pan that I roasted the veggies in soak overnight - this morning I cleaned it. I figured anything crusted on would be soft enough that it would go right through the drain. WRONG. I clogged it again. But I really thought it was ridiculous that something so soft and small could clog the sink.

Patrick was not pleased (obviously) and it was too late in the morning for him to fix it. I walked away from the sink hoping that I wouldn't turn into the Hulk and throw the sink out the window. Later in the morning I go back over to see if the water was still standing in the sink and saw that the reason the sink wasn't draining this morning: THE STOPPER WAS IN THE BOTTOM OF THE SINK. *sigh* I blame it on the infant who just learned to roll over. Next week she'll want to go to a Miley Cyrus concert.

Thursday, November 5, 2009

I'm Totally That Mom

I hate you already and I'm only 1 week old.

Our munchkin is almost 2 months old now. I don't remember life before her - it's a little hazy, but life is hazy in general right now. She's fantastic, funny, happy, and all around perfect. I have no problem passing her off to my family members when we're all together. It's not that I don't love her, it's that I want to share her with everyone. But I'm totally THAT Mom.

  • I took her to Irish Fest when she was 12 days old.
  • I took her to a college football tailgate when she was one month old.
  • I breastfed her in the middle of Starbucks.
  • I changed her diaper (twice!) in the middle of Starbucks. *Starbucks should put a diaper changing station in the bathroom. Maybe not in urban areas, but in suburbia it would really help me out.
  • I take her to lunch with my friends.
  • I have no problem leaving her with any of her grandparents and going to a movie.
  • I dressed her up like a hotdog for Halloween.
  • I let her cry for a few minutes before I pick her up.
This doesn't look cute, I look stupid! I can't even EAT candy!

I'm totally that mom ... the mom who believes that my life doesn't stop because I had a baby. That mud and dirt are toys. Imagination trumps video games any day. Sesame Street is better than Barney. Camping is more fun than staying in hotels. We'll go to Disney World when she's too heavy to carry, potty trained, can tell me if she's hungry, tired, hurt, or happy, when she's old enough to remember how magical it really is.

I love her more than anything in the world. I can't imagine how she experiences every day, but mine starts with her smiling and squirming when we get her out of her crib. I can't stand the thought of something ever happening to her, and I'm so lucky that she's healthy.


So I'm just like every other mom I know. I love my kid. We're figuring it out. There's no perfect system. I'm going to make mistakes, but I'm also going to do my best to raise her with a sense of humor, love, and compassion. I'm totally that mom.

Monday, July 20, 2009

I Just Realized I'm Really Married


4 months ago, Patrick and I got married. We had decided that it was going to happen anyway, the baby just pushed up our timeline. At first it was so bizarre saying "my husband" all the time. I got used to it. We've been looking for a house for a month now, and soon we're going to be doing a second look at some top choices and taking my mom along for advice and or approval. Actually, she'll probably disapprove of the house we end up getting if it's not in her school district but whatever.

Patrick started a new contract this week (yay!) and asked if I could pick up groceries since we've been out of town and had no food. He left me his American Express Card. THE CARD WITH NO LIMIT. The card that gave us enough points for my KitchenAid mixer, cookbook stand, and deep fryer. It's gold colored for a reason. Instead of thinking about the shopping spree I could go on for baby and me at Target, all I could think about was buying groceries. Not at Whole Foods, either.

That's when it hit me. I'm really married. We're in this together. There's no I or me anymore. There's us. There's doing what's best for us. And all those years I scoffed at wedded bliss - I guess I just wasn't ready for a team sport. I would never give advice on marriage or "making it work." I'm usually the cheerleader, telling my friends to go for it or that their significant other is great. I've been given a good blueprint from my parents - married forever and to see them enjoy the relationship Patrick and I have is a pretty good blessing.

With all the obstacles we've been through this year (and it's only July?!?) we've grown closer. Which is more than I could have asked for. You don't know how much better life can be when you're with your best friend. Luckily, I realized I'm married to mine.