Duh. Dinners Saved!

Fun platter from my dear friend, Denise. I use it every night:

I am keeping the promise I made to myself this new school year to cook only one dinner each night. I had been catering to the kids schedule & palette by cooking them an earlier dinner then cooking Josh & I a second dinner later. Twice the time & mess. What was I thinking? With the idea of one main dish on the table each night, I knew there would be some unhappy taste buds as new flavors are forced upon the kids. I imagined my chili, beef stew, and enchiladas sitting cold on their plates as the night wore on. This is a no brainer tactic and I'm sure we all try to put a mix of veggies & fruit in our kids diet, but this platter has saved my dinner drama. Along with whatever main dish I am serving I fill this platter with an assortment of fruits, yogurt, and cut veggies. If the kids are not fully consuming the main dish, (they must at least try several bites) they are then reaching for the platter. I do not jump up and throw some pasta on the stove or nuke some nuggets- although it is tempting. They fill their bellies on this stuff rather than go to bed asking for crackers in bed- which I have been known to sneak in. 

Little Trends

 I guess these elastic hair bands are the new rage. They're being worn as much as bracelets as in your ponytail. I'm sure they're out and over with already in the Big City, but the girls in New Canaan have yet to catch on...but it's only a matter of days. It reminds me of the day before Crazy Bandz made it out here. They get up to speed on little trends like this and given all the long locks that flow from these girls, these hair bands will be stocked in all the cute shops downtown like tomorrow. I'm trying to be one step ahead and get some of mine in stores before the Fed Ex truck makes it out here. Not sure if I have the energy to knock on doors peddling my wares. I feel so pathetic. But they are really sweet & my packaging will make them sweeter. So keep an eye out in the mail for your little package of hairbands. I'm making them by the dozen.

Learning 'Fancy'

The three sisters: Aunt Helen, Grandma, & Aunt Anne

Lathered in Ban de Soleil Orange Gelee. 

Theresa &amp: I 

Sitting 'cheesecake' bejeweled for cocktail hour. Grandpa is peeking over at us on far left.

A summer project checked off the list just in time: My newly organized jewelry drawer with stacked trays. Many pieces I inherited from Aunt Helen and my favorite charm bracelet is from Aunt Anne.

Aunt Anne & Aunt Helen were my Grandmother's unwed sisters from Queens.  Their visits to my Grandmother's house, which was next doors to ours, filled my childhood with ideas of what was fancy. Michelle just reminded me that Aunt Anne & Aunt Helen used to travel from NYC up to Lake Sunnyside in the woods with all of their costume jewelry in tow. A few pieces were the real deal- (such as the shamrock charm bracelet in the far right of photo). As they unpacked their suitcases, perfumes filled the air. They would wrap each piece of jewelry in tissue paper or in the original Lord & Taylor boxes closed with rubber bands. My Grandmother would leave the top drawer in their guest room empty. Upon their arrival, the three of us little girls would plop on the bed in our wet bathing suits as they unpacked their stylish boxes.

We were in awe. They would take out each necklace, matching clip-ons and lay them neatly in the drawer. They had no children of their own, so playing with us and sharing all of these fancy things was a highlight of their trip. They would throw us each a set of pop-beads and we would alter them to different lengths and small bracelets. We would try on the dangly clip-on earrings but would take them off since they were quite painful. They would then hang all of their outfits in the spacious empty closet, calling them foreign names like "blouses" and "slacks" and "tunics". This would take hours. They would linger in the bedroom with us laughing, talking and being silly until cocktails were served before dinner.

We would then walk the catwalk out into the living room. Someone would announce us as we entered the living room. We were dressed to hills with gobs of their jewelry hanging from our limbs. The three of us little girls looked silly, but they looked classy. They had teased their hair with a spritz of spray, put on fresh lipstick, matching jewels and a splash of Chanel No. 5. All this just to hang in "the woods" with their dear "country-bumpkin" family for a week or two.

My Marathon Hour



This new school year brings me an extra hour of "free" time thanks to Beckett's later dismissal time. From 2:15 to 3:15 and have a new plan that will hopefully save my soul. I'm sure you're think I'll sneak in an hour of Yoga or finally start my Tracy Anderson Metamorphosis CDs you have all been hearing about for 2 years. Nope. I realized what will make my weekday afternoons and evenings at home with the kids significantly easier.

That hour I will spend at home racing against the clock to accomplish a multitude of things, which I can do since I multitask so God damn well. With that hour counting down I will: unload dishwasher, start dinner, put out table settings for kids to set table later, load of laundry, tidy up, walk Scout, make my bed if I hadn't already and oh yeah- use the bathroom - alone.

If you have these daily tasks already nailed down and figured out, well good for you. It helps me to put this hour's worth of duties down on virtual paper so it seems real and possible. I know I can do it. I did it yesterday and it changed my world. Homework started, dinner started, all without my attention being pulled in 8 directions.

So from 4:00-7:30 I'm hoping to build in a family walk, maybe a game night, a movie night and even sneak in some playtime. That's my Metamorphosis, Tracy.

The Makings of a Headboard

I thought I'd walk you through a really easy project I finally completed. I had made a smaller headboard for Beck's room, and loved the way it made the room feel a bit more "done". I took all the measurements, headed to Home Depot for 3/4" plywood and then to Joann Fabrics for the grey felt and batting. I double up the batting for a thicker headboard. I first thought I wanted wool felt, but it was so scratchy so I went with a much softer thick felt.

The plywood comes in 4 X 8 sheets and since I wanted my headboard to span 9' I had to add on and here you can see the band aid strip of plywood to join the 2 together. I mounted another one on the opposite end to make even distance once hung on wall. The batting is folded over for 2 X thickness.

I cut the corners at a diagonal.

Fold in one side and staple in place.

Overlap the other side until it is a tight corner.

Then go to the center of each side pulling very tight and stapling as you work your way around.

Here it is ready for the felt layer, which is stapled on in the same way.

Holy crap this thing is so much heavier than I expected. I would have used 1/2" plywood, except I didn't want it to warp over time since it's so long.

I had to change the way I had planned on hanging it due to the weight. My father suggested this way: cut a long strip of 2 X 4 at 45 degree angle. One piece is mounted into many studs along the wall....

and the other to the back of the headboard. He's pretty smart. This technique could hang an elephant from your wall. Be sure your screws do not go through to the other side.

Before.

After.

PS- 1. The mirror is only there because it fell off of Beckett's door and we just haven't gotten around to re-hang. It wasn't a design decision. 2. I still have to patch the holes just below the window from the track lighting the previous owner chose to hang. I have nightmares spiders crawl out of them.

My Art Room is Done!

I finally finished my art room. The only thing left is the flooring. We'll install cork tiles and baseboard trim when we do the rest of the basement. As I was setting it up it reminded me of when I was around 10 years old and I was obsessed with playing school with my sisters. I was determined to set up an entire classroom in my parents dank, moldy cellar. I brought down staplers, reams of paper, a broken telephone, chalkboard, and old school books. We'd take turns being teacher until someone would quit and we'd all scramble like hell out of there. No one wanted to be the last one left in that scary basement. We'd return down there a few days later to find all the supplies warped and moist from the moldy air. Pens stopped working and everything was musty. We were out of business and our classroom was eventually abandoned. Home Depot is delivering a huge dehumidifier this week and hopefully that will save my supplies and keep the moisture at bay. Until then, I managed to entice the kids down to test it out. They loved the space, made a mess, and split. Later this evening, I'm going to geek out, pour myself a glass of wine and use the space to finish Petra's baby book- until I get spooked out and run upstairs.

Next Project

Looking for some upholstery fabric in orange for the dining chairs. If you've ever attempted this- let me know any helpful hints. Looks like you just unscrew the seat, pull off the old and get to work with the new. I have my staple gun ready and I'll replace the ancient layer of batting. As far as the fabric- I have to order online. Can't seem to find stores that carry many solids. Will Scotch Guard for sure. Judging from how disgusting the current tan fabric became within months of my kid's spills- it's worth the extra step. I'll post some finished photos. Here's the nasty 'before':

Where is Everybody?

Photo: "Empty Backyard" Darien, CT

My dear friend, Denise moved from NYC to VA a few years ago. I imagined her meeting all sorts of fun suburban moms on the playgrounds or walking past their yards say hello to neighbors playing outside. I was wrong. She told me she is often the only one at the playground as her sons wander around in shock coming from the loud, crowded jungle-gyms in the city. Meeting mom friends or new friends for her kids would take some digging around. 

For years I wanted a country setting for my kids to run around in, play with kids down the block and explore the outdoors. We're finally here. Surrounded by woods- not too deep - but just right for exploring. My kids do play outside. I kick them out constantly and they don't complain. Every so often Beckett asks if he can come in, take a break and watch a show. No prob.

Here's the thing- there aren't really any other kids that play outside. All of the houses around us within a three street radius have loads of kids ranging in ages up to high school- but we never see them. As I drive around and peek into the beautifully manicured lawns of Darien and New Canaan, there is not one person in sight. It's spooky. It doesn't matter what time of day it is or season. No one is ever outside. Today just made me sad. I drove through New Canaan today. It was 6:00PM, well after day camps were let out. People should be arriving home from work, it was sunny & not too hot. Backyard jungle gyms, gardens, and pools were completely vacant. The mass amounts of money spent on landscaping and outdoor kitchens with deluxe gas grills seems so wasted. I'm assuming many kids are inside playing video games, but is that really it? I'd love to knock on the door of a house with a killer jungle gym and ask when the last time the kids used it. No kids OR adults to be found. Doesn't anyone ever pick up a hose and I don't know- spray the driveway?

The best memories of my childhood were in my backyard, all the neighborhood kids over, on their bikes, on our swing set, in our kiddie pool, chasing our dogs, drinking kool aid, making mud pies, catching fire flies, jumping rope, hiding and seeking. Grandma & Grandpa would always set up the lawn chairs and watch the chaos, mom would set up the radio on the back patio blast some Rod Stewart and start us dancing and Dad would eventually throw burgers on the grill....and nailed to the tree in the corner of our front yard where all the cars passed by was a bright yellow sign that said:

"CHILDREN AT PLAY".

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Little girly things for Petra

I've been on a glitter kick for some time now. I'm trying to find interesting taxidermy to glitter, but for now have settled on plastic animal figures. I would love to glitter a deer head with huge antlers. Keep a look out for me- would ya? I keep putting them in Petra's room and she loves them, unfortunately it's a bit of a look-don't-touch situation. I also recently picked up this Ikea rug thinking it's super sweet for a girly touch. After all, as you can see in the photo below, Petra embraces her femininity as she works outside in her pink boot, Hello Kitty undies and of course, a tiara. 

Breakfast in bed

Last night before Beckett went to bed he reminded us since it was his birthday in the morning, he would like breakfast in bed. Ok. He saw me have breakfast in bed for Mother's Day, so he'd like to be treated right on his big day. I woke up a bit early, scrambled some eggs and buttered cinnamon bread, melon & OJ. What I really loved about this moment was when we went in to wake him and remind him breakfast in bed was on it's way, he immediately said, "Go get Petra!" He didn't want her to miss out on it. She stumbled in and ate breakfast with him as the Beastie Boys played. They sat there and chatted, eating and laughing. Good start to a great day. 

Oh Credenza- where art thou?

A major piece of furniture I would love to find next is a credenza for the dining area. It doesn't have to match anything, so that's good. I would hope for a danish piece, low and long to throw some little decorative items on. I have to get on ebay / craigslist, and get crackin'. Here are some inspirations:

Sick Day Sculpture

Beckett stayed home today with strep. Josh stayed home with him and said he basically watched so much TV his eyes bugged out. As soon as I got home, we put the laptop, DS and iPad away. We broke out some cardboard boxes and Beckett started to get the brain working again. He dug through the recycling bin, grabbed tin foil, straws, tape and scissors. He was so excited to built something from scratch, and design it himself. Best part is, he and I worked together without butting heads. Typically, we start fun projects like this and not too far into it, things fall apart and the results are drab.

Beckett turns seven this week and I think there are little signs like this pointing to him maturing and our relationship getting a little closer. I was so proud of him today, he stuck with his idea, made it happen and actually spent the evening playing with his battleship. Happy Birthday Beckett.

Ok- Here's what I really want:

This is the obvious choice for a deck set. We will eventually work our way up to a set like these. They will go much better with the style of the house and as we sip our gin & tonics, we'll feel much more Mad Men.