Paper or Plastic? June 21, 2009
Neither.
Baby in a Happy Heinys cloth diaper.
We’ve decided to go with cloth diapers right from the get-go for our little one. Of course, this decision was based upon an extensive amount of web research and debate, but basically for me it just sounded uncomfortable (would YOU want to wear plastic on your bottom all day?) and the image of landfills steadily filling with my child’s diapers made me, well, dissatisfied. I knew there had to be a better way.
What I didn’t know, at least until this morning, was that the U.S. government, at the federal and local levels, has been trying to promote cloth diapers, and tax or even ban disposable diapers, since the 70’s. I was shocked!
Anyway, I started here and ended up finding a ton of other related information by googling ‘the history of diapers’. There is so much information out there that parents are completely unaware of!
If you’re considering cloth diapers, or just curious, I highly recommend this site for basic information. I also browsed through Cottonbabies.com, just to get an idea of what they look like. They are so simple, and adorable!
This blog looks awful! June 21, 2009
i’m very unimpressed with the ‘theme’ options here on wordpress. i’m going to see what i can do with a stylesheet next week and maybe get this looking like something interesting and related.
i’ve thought about maybe creating the whole site from scratch, hosting it somewhere else, and then importing the domain here, but wouldn’t i lose the connectivity that wordpress is based upon? if anyone stumbles upon this and has some input, please, input away!
in the meantime, man, this thing is ugly.
Ch ch ch changes….. June 21, 2009
Oh my, I haven’t seen this thing in a while.
Big changes here for E and I: we’re expecting our first baby this fall! I have been obsessed with all things parenting, pregnancy, and baby since March, and I think my head may explode if I don’t find an outlet for all this information soon. E is pretty sick of hearing about diapers and baby slings and strollers.
I’ve also become very interested in making our life ‘greener’. I guess some of this comes from the realization that we’re bringing another person into our little world, and I want it to be as safe and healthy as possible.
So, I hope my readers (all two of you!) don’t mind the shift in gears here. Quite a few changes coming ’round here.
To paint, or not to paint? February 27, 2009
That is the question.
I hate our apartment. Hate. it. I’ve been debating the paint for a while, and at certain points had even gone to the store to buy supplies only to change my mind and come back home.
I’m not painting. Screw it. I’d have to move everything, patch and sand the walls, paint, move and hang everything again, and then primer the walls back to this hideous white when we move next January. Screw it. I’ve decided I’ll just suffer through it (only 10 more months), and hopefully by the time we move, we can buy a little house and stay for a while. We’re hoping to add an additional family member early next year; I’ve already picked out the nursery paint colors and theme. How ridiculous is that.
In the meantime, I’m trying to embrace the white. Or something. I hate our apartment.
Cloth Napkins February 26, 2009
I’ve been slooooowly introducing ‘green’ solutions in our home over the past couple of years. I don’t know if E hates ‘green’ because he hates hippies, or because it requires less laziness. Anyway, he can get over it. The recycling has been an ongoing battle.
My newest introduction is the use of cloth napkins instead of paper ones. I’ve already transitioned from paper towels to old dish towels and scraps, of which I have a very large collection in the laundry room. It was only a matter of time before the paper napkins were out too. Not only does it save money, but it reduces the amount of trash we throw out, and I’m down with that.
There’s more on the paper vs. cloth debate here.
I originally bought some cloth napkins from Target, however they were rather boring and I couldn’t justify spending $20 on napkins, and so only bought a pack of four. For such small scraps of fabric, these puppies are expensive! Ridiculous.
So, I took a trip to ye olde thrift store and picked up a vintage-print bed sheet for $2. Thanks to my trusty new sewing machine I was able to whip up 12 napkins (from half a sheet) in a couple of hours (and it only took me that long because I’m still figuring this sewing shtuff out, okay?)
My lovely new napkins:
- For those messy eaters!
E approves, and so do I. It was so satisfying, I’m pondering making some for all my friends and family, in something less retro, of course.
Learning to sew… February 22, 2009
Throw pillows are easy. Clothes are so difficult! I wish I knew someone around here who knows how to sew, I need help.
I decided to ‘alter’ the crotch of a pair of lovely Gap pants I got from Goodwill ($4, really you can’t beat Goodwill) and the end result was less than perfect. E commented that it looked ‘like a permanent camel toe’. Feel free to Google that one.
Photos of Cat Stairs January 21, 2009
I’m just a horrible person. I forgot to put up these pictures of the cat stairs I made for Princess last month!
Try to ignore the popcorn ceiling… that’s what I do, anyway.
The materials used were one 2×2 sheet of particleboard, 5 white metal shelf brackets, 15 drywall screws, 10 short wood screws, white shelf paper, and Elmer’s glue.
I had the lovely people at the hardware store trim the sheet of particleboard into one long piece and three smaller ’steps’. If I did this project again, however, I would not use particleboard, simply because it is a pain to cover and real wood would have been nicer to look at. I was originally worried about the weight of wood boards, but now I’m pretty sure the brackets could hold it.
I purchased enough shelf brackets to support Princess’ weight and not tear a huge hole in the wall. I originally wanted floating shelves, but she is over 15 lbs. and I just didn’t want to risk it. These brackets were also extremely inexpensive, and I barely notice them. The lovely brushed nickel brackets only held 5 lbs. each and were $15 apiece.
I originally had planned to make them lower, but Bax would have antagonized Princess to no end defeating the purpose of the stairs.
Princess now LOVES her little private balcony, and takes her dinner up there, where she can dramatically push her food dish over the edge to signify that she is starving to death and wasting away to nothing. She and Bax also play tag a lot, during which she likes to cheat and run to the top of these :)
DIY Cat Stairs November 28, 2008
I’ve been inspired. I’ve been ogling this post for almost a year now and decided to check out Lowe’s today to see what I could come up with.
By the way, does anyone else hate Black Friday? I didn’t mean to go out but needed a few things, and everyone, everywhere, was so rude!
So here is my master plan:
I bought a sheet of particle board and had it cut into 3 small squares (steps) and one large platform.
I’ve got strong metal brackets and drywall screws.
And now I’m stuck. I obviously need to cover the particle board with something because it’s ugly and I don’t want anyone chewing on it, animal-wise. I tried some fabric that I had and it looked awful, partially because it was too thick and the wrong type of fabric (jersey). Now I’m thinking maybe a roll of wood veneer or maybe even shelf paper? Or maybe some pretty paper coated with some sort of sealant? I want it to look natural. I probably should have just bought real wood but was concerned about the weight.
Princess isn’t exactly delicate herself.
Any ideas would be awesome!
Turkey gravy without the turkey November 24, 2008
So last night I had the pleasure of cooking gravy for E’s Thanksgiving lunch today at work.
I like that they put together these things but I hate how the food sign-up works. Basically the men sign up for something they like, and assume their wives will make it. Lovely. I’m just glad he signed me up for something simple and cheap this time!
Anyway, GRAVY. IMO the person who brings the Turkey should always bring the gravy… so they can use the giblets (I’m not really sure what a giblet is either) and pan drippings. No such luck in my case, and no one around here sells JUST the leftovers, so I was stuck making Turkey gravy without the turkey. Here’s what I came up with:
Turkey gravy without the turkey
Ingredients:
A cup or two of chopped carrots, onions, mushrooms, and celery (use whatever you have)
About 2 tbsp olive oil
Garlic powder (I would have used fresh but didn’t want little pieces of garlic left in the gravy)
4 cans low sodium chicken broth (turkey would have been better but I couldn’t find any)
1 can cream of chicken soup
Various herbs for stock, like thyme, sage, bay, and parsley, plus salt and pepper
2 sticks of butter
flour
1/2 cup or red wine, dry white wine, sherry, or brandy (I didn’t have any (!) so used a little bit of red wine vinegar instead)
First, sautee the chopped vegetables in olive oil with garlic powder. You want them to brown or even burn a little bit. While the vegetables are cooking, throw the chicken broth and other herbs in a pot and simmer. When vegetables are good and soggy and brown, pour them into a blender or food processor along with a cup or so of the stock you’re cooking. Make sure you put the lid on the blender, then blend well. Strain remaining stock to remove any large pieces of thyme or bay, then combine the blended vegetables and stock in the pot and continue to cook.
In a clean sautee pan, melt the butter completely and add about 15 tablespoons of flour while stirring. Continue stirring until all of the white is gone and the mixture turns a nice medium brown color. Add your cup of alcohol and stir, making sure to get any bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the stock mixture a cup at a time, and then add the can of cream of chicken soup. Mix everything together and then taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.
If you get it too salty, add a little bit of sugar or puree a carrot to add to the gravy.
This actually turned out REALLY tasty.
We’re not even having turkey at our house this year – E prefers ham.
