tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74878056872788773362024-03-06T22:01:25.860-06:00HAUSFRAUthe life domesticDarbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.comBlogger352125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-54546467044300083972013-03-21T13:06:00.002-06:002013-03-21T13:06:49.689-06:00Books and book-related furniture<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">To the right of my pillow is a rickety, yet fetching, vintage typewriter stand, stacked with books and magazines and parts of the Sunday New York Times. Every time I set a cup of coffee on the stack, I know I'm risking a spontaneous batch of<i> </i>bean-scented<i> papier mache</i>. But I never let the stability of a piece of furniture get in the way of aesthetics, damn the risk. If a Mad Men-era secretary could perch a twenty-pound typewriter on it, the books should be fine, right? But seriously, I digress. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">This post is about books, and a few gems in the stack are worth mentioning: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;"><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/French-Kids-Eat-Everything-Discovered/dp/0062103296/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363881961&sr=1-1&keywords=french+kids+eat+everything">French Kids Eat Everything</a></i> is the latest in a new genre of parenting books that draw from other cultures to remedy more regrettable aspects of American child rearing. Whether or not you admire <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Battle-Hymn-Tiger-Mother-Chua/dp/1594202842/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363882032&sr=1-1&keywords=battle+hymn+of+the+tiger+mother">Tiger Mother</a></i> and <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/French-Kids-Eat-Everything-Discovered/dp/0062103296/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363881961&sr=1-1&keywords=french+kids+eat+everything">Bringing up Bebe</a></i>, there are some really intriguing and useful ideas about food and meal times in <i>French Kids</i>. I'm a bit of Francophile and desperately aspire to chicness (which is totally self-defeating because desperation is seriously un-chic). I loved the book for it's insider look at French attitudes on parenting and food. The rigidity of French food culture is problematic for me, though, because I'm lazy and bound by "bad" American habits. But it gave me a sense of agency (it's up to me to educate my kids about food) and a new enthusiasm for introducing them to new flavors. We've also adopted a new rule: no more eating in the car.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">My book club (called Bluestocking Erudition because we're hoping to be mistaken for a rock band) just finished <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Major-Pettigrews-Stand-PETTIGREWS-Compact/dp/B008NXOQNI/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1363890841&sr=8-3&keywords=Major+Pettigrew+audio">Major Pettigrew's Last Stand</a>. I listened to the book on CD, so this isn't technically a title from the typewriter bedside table. But I love listening to audio books and this one, read by Peter Altschuler, was good. The narration was perfect for voicing the decorous Major Pettigrew, but I confess that I cringed when Altschuler switched accents for the American and Pakistani characters. All the same, it's a lovely, mannerly romance novel for any fan of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Home-Mitford-The-Years-Book/dp/014025448X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363891551&sr=8-1&keywords=Jan+Karon">Jan Karon's Mitford books</a> or <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/programs/?filter=alphabetical">Masterpiece Classic</a>. Which I am. Is it a terrible contradiction to be a Francophile and an Anglophile at the same time? Oh well. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;"><br />I've been a sad sack ever since I finished <a href="http://www.doriskearnsgoodwin.com/">Doris Kearns Goodwin</a>'s amazing biography of Abraham Lincoln, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Team-Rivals-Political-Abraham-Lincoln/dp/0743270754/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363891853&sr=1-1&keywords=team+of+rivals+the+political+genius+of+abraham+lincoln">Team of Rivals</a> (because it's SO long that you get used to reading it for months and SO good that you never want it to end). So there was a nonfiction-shaped hole in my heart when I finished. But excellent news, I may have found my new non-fiction fix: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/1491-Revelations-Americas-Before-Columbus/dp/1400032059/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363892004&sr=1-1&keywords=1491">1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus</a>. Basically, the people who lived here prior to Columbus' arrival were vastly more advanced, numerous and culturally complex than we've been taught. Totally. Fascinating. This title's been out for a while and there's another book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/1493-Uncovering-World-Columbus-Created/dp/0307278247/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363892457&sr=1-1&keywords=1493">1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created</a>, that describes the changes wrought by Columbus' arrival in the New World. So that's up next. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">I won't bore you further, but I'd also like to mention <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Supper-Lamb-Culinary-Reflection-Paperbacks/dp/0375760563/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363892558&sr=1-1&keywords=the+supper+of+the+lamb+a+culinary+reflection">The Supper of the Lamb</a>, by Robert Farrar Capon. It's a crazy mash-up: part cookbook, part cultural critique, part theological meditation, narrated in colorful and bossy tones by a priest/cook. And Bluestocking Erudition had our first real book club fight about it because some loved it (me) and some hated it. But this is my blog, so I can say: this book is amazing, read it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">What are you reading?</span><br />
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<br />Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-66795473739193197882012-03-01T17:15:00.001-06:002012-03-01T17:20:38.408-06:00Riding the range once moreFacebook killed my blog. But I'm bringing it back.<br />
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Right now, I'm on a spring-cleaning-organization-mega-purge. The surfaces in my house are pretty clear. The cupboards, closets and drawers are wedged so full of flotsam that they either won't open, or won't close. Attention must be paid. <br />
<br />
Thanks to a friend, I found <a href="http://simplemom.net/">simplemom.net</a>'s spring cleaning guide, <a href="http://simplemom.net/project-simplify-2012/">Project: Simplify 2012</a>. I'm going to post before-and-after photos, filtered through Instamatic for hipster-licious effect. That way I, at least, will see how much I've done and be motivated to keep things orderly and nice.<br />
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Do join me. <br />
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<br />Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-2422745395349321712011-07-06T13:53:00.000-06:002011-07-06T13:53:20.148-06:00ashley's cupcakes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div> from claire's birthday party. did i photograph the children? no. but the cupcakes, definitely. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkuKuzDwi4zbn2OFPy8GlzqAQdBFwAQOUAAXndOSPQ2GckABvgXMZGT9E5j0iIzOzXQ62fWTviUi2Td2QVYyLlbNW6my3-I6UC1W2B0jcrnIP0MG_pIyZ2mJzt8CRzmmSYWHehPAz0-A/s1600/IMG_0273.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkuKuzDwi4zbn2OFPy8GlzqAQdBFwAQOUAAXndOSPQ2GckABvgXMZGT9E5j0iIzOzXQ62fWTviUi2Td2QVYyLlbNW6my3-I6UC1W2B0jcrnIP0MG_pIyZ2mJzt8CRzmmSYWHehPAz0-A/s320/IMG_0273.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-82325127475293549672011-07-06T09:25:00.000-06:002011-07-06T09:25:49.943-06:00summer hoursit's been bothering me that we're sleeping late in the morning and staying up late at night. this morning i decided to stop fretting and hang an imaginary "summer hours" sign over our schedule.<br />
<br />
i went to gap kids a few days ago because it was an emergency. the elastic in peter's shorts failed and he had to hold them up manually, which seriously messed with his whole attitude. so we got new ones on sale. the point of this anecdote, really, is the sale part. all the summer clothing was on markdown. "fall fashion" signage was everywhere. that means, in the retail world, anyway, the summer is over. <br />
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thus, we resolutely keep summer hours and allow the days to stretch as long as they naturally go. bedtime is hereby suspended. Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-733592282658001752011-05-23T14:23:00.001-06:002011-05-24T06:04:10.474-06:00afternoon to myselfit's blazin' hot on the front porch and the neighborhood children are screaming bloody, bloody murder while they splash in their kid pools. my boys are at the zoo with nanny and boppy. lead belly is singing about the rock island line. the iced coffee has gotten warm and totally unappealing. the whole world can go hang itself, i'm off duty.<br />
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this street goes nuts when the weather warms up. all the crazies, ahem, the neighbors, come out. some of it's kind of charming like the guy who practices his trumpet with his windows open and the easy front-porch chats with people. our block has a ton of kids and they stop by, walking dogs or getting their guinea pigs some fresh air. last week two little girls set up a lemonade stand and shouted about it all afternoon. i'm a firm supporter of local business so i bought some even though they were charging one dollar a cup. it was from a powdered mix, which was a wee bit soul crushing. but what the hell. if a kid's selling something, i'll buy it because some day my little butter beans will be hawking lemonade themselves. i'll just make sure it's<i> real</i>. in case you come over to buy some.<br />
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the downside of summer on chicago street includes drunken frat parties at the rental house next door and odd, shifty folks at the door selling magazines. many, many of them. last summer this weird guy came to the door selling snow-globes and paperweights with plastic roses inside. we also get jehovah's witnesses in droves. and the skinny white kid with the afro who regularly ambles through our yard yelling for his mom's dog, violet. there's also someone on the block who's fond of revving his motorcycle and zooming up and down when it's really late at night. and DO NOT get me going on july fourth.<br />
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but right now there's a meadow lark in the tree and things are nice. come over.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-68489186381470186712011-05-02T09:57:00.000-06:002011-05-02T09:57:01.428-06:00summer's coming<iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ri0lhb2jfvM?fs=1" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="344" width="425"></iframe>Hi Teri,<br /><br />open the windows, crank up the lead belly and mix the mojitos. the cold gray spring is moving out. it's going to be a good summer. with lots of tomatoes. get your apron on and let's cook up sunday supper together.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-50163665947619555072011-02-12T09:13:00.002-06:002011-02-12T09:13:38.273-06:00i'm right in the head, don't worrysorry if that last post was scary - several friends have asked worried questions and yes, all is well. :)Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-8652081003114019502011-02-08T11:21:00.002-06:002011-02-08T15:13:37.898-06:00right in the head<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8JZLxk2-RVMhr00YdWgJgf-0Ke9vKFXlT79C1kyG6axdG3Bn12qpXdP1PgozeE4Zv4ZE0qNBhyAZVvnjRkPLBs93YsqAZIYFmF1oKJU5_5QPCEzum3_w2R4Pb8VknK3P9MbCk1z9Tyw/s1600/8c_mrs_dalloway_1928.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8JZLxk2-RVMhr00YdWgJgf-0Ke9vKFXlT79C1kyG6axdG3Bn12qpXdP1PgozeE4Zv4ZE0qNBhyAZVvnjRkPLBs93YsqAZIYFmF1oKJU5_5QPCEzum3_w2R4Pb8VknK3P9MbCk1z9Tyw/s200/8c_mrs_dalloway_1928.jpg" width="136" /></a>do you ever have times when your mind gets all boggy and weird, like you can blow through important things without noticing them, but get really obsessed with dumb details? or like, you go so deep into some idea or worry, and realize you were completely on auto pilot while driving to the store, and you can only hope you obeyed traffic laws. this has been happening to me lately and it feels kind of gross, mentally. i had a couple of weeks when i felt bright and lucid and ready for whatever, which highlights the boggy feelings of now. it's like sharing an inner life with <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mrs-Dalloway-Virginia-Woolf/dp/0156628708">mrs. dalloway</a>. <br />
unlike mrs d, i am not, i assure you, suicidal. just maybe...februcidal. feeling that brand of pathos unique to february and march.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9eFSfFLS9h2_uxitzK9skdVAFF2ITvPtQnho1nAxifG8HQzATtPUPfwLPnqi3sUNGz-IOfqE3D1G1_A8HsalFgle3YfRMQUUrl6CRpouF6teYWqvMYTKXAUpXlFn9bI7K_CBZmDuxBA/s1600/the-christian-faith.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9eFSfFLS9h2_uxitzK9skdVAFF2ITvPtQnho1nAxifG8HQzATtPUPfwLPnqi3sUNGz-IOfqE3D1G1_A8HsalFgle3YfRMQUUrl6CRpouF6teYWqvMYTKXAUpXlFn9bI7K_CBZmDuxBA/s200/the-christian-faith.jpg" width="161" /></a></div>and now for some good news. i'm reading a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_26?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=the+christian+faith+horton&sprefix=the+christian+faith+horton">systematic theology</a> and really liking it. this is good because it requires some intellectual discipline, and though i'm slow and out of practice, i'm stretching into it like an old bird wing. it's also good because it's a rigorous, articulate examination of god, the bible, and theology, and if i'm going to be a christian, i have to engage it that way, before i can feel it in my bones. it also reminds me that i'm a member of a really big group of believing people through all of time. and that my great-grandma ethel prayed that i'd love jesus, and i do. <br />
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what's going on with you?Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-77347291075333075372011-01-22T15:49:00.000-06:002011-01-22T15:49:15.716-06:00ice like morselshe giveth snow like wool: he scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes.<br />
he casteth forth his ice like morsels: who can stand before his cold?<br />
he sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow.<br />
ps. 147 <br />
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eagerly hoping for the day when he melteth all of this.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-9421099564284490932011-01-20T21:34:00.000-06:002011-01-20T21:34:12.674-06:00talk therapya really clean kitchen is good like medicine. i just worked really hard on it and am savoring the fruits of my labors. the smudgy floor doesn't count.<br />
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tonight i made a weird chickpea thing with chicken and udon noodles. i just made it up. it was a mishmash of thai ingredients: ginger, kefir lime leaves, fish sauce, coconut milk, sweet chili sauce, a little of this, a little of that. i thought it was going to be amazing but it turned out sort of odd. <br />
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more snow tomorrow, i hear. let us take a cleansing breath.<br />
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when i vacuum the floor i feel like one of those monks who make intricate pictures out of colored sand. like it's really precious, important work, that also totally doesn't matter. the wind can blow, or in my case, pete can walk by with a handful of cereal, and it all goes away.<br />
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hmmm.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-50566290646383314812011-01-19T10:34:00.000-06:002011-01-19T10:34:43.230-06:00potty hero rides againben's potty trained, finally, once and for all. the potty party got us off on a good foot, but consistency's been lacking until this week. now things are rolling along nicely. praise-a-lujah.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-30499632027395047382011-01-12T21:04:00.000-06:002011-01-12T21:04:38.622-06:00c is for cookieben asked to make cookies today. several hundred times he asked. finally tonight we did it and they turned out pretty good. oatmeal with a few chocolate chips. it was the recipe from the quaker oats drum. i tried some fancy kinds from some good cookbooks and websites, but i still think the humble quaker oat recipe pretty much kicks it.<br />
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andrew's in the other room watching "modern family" and laughing really, really hard. he might be crying a bit, by the sound of it.<br />
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three days ago i declared i was done nursing (if this seems to be too much information, i rationalize it this way: my blog is about the life domestic, of which lactation is well and truly a part. and also i wish we lived in a culture that took note of milestones like weaning. so i'm going to take note right now). pete's kind of mad at me, but i knew he was ready to stop when, last week, he climbed down from my lap and walked off during the middle of his snack. all right, i said to him, the jig is up. of course now he's gripey and holding a grudge. but who isn't, these days. anyway, here's to the wonder of breastfeeding and here's to god for thinking of it in the first place, and here's to you, girls, for all the hard work. mazel.<br />
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by the bye, my genius sister ali and i, and a few of our smarty smart friends, are writing a blog about the king james version of the bible, which turns four hundred this year. it's called <a href="http://kjb400.blogspot.com/">"that old tongue, with it's clang and flavor."</a> check it out, if you like. it's an appreciation of the most influential book ever written in english, so, some literary thoughts, some devotional thoughts, etc. etc.<br />
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night night.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-611071056202448382011-01-09T06:52:00.000-06:002011-01-09T06:52:08.331-06:00the right manandrew: where should we go for our weekend away.<br />
me: it'll be in march, so we should not go anywhere north of nebraska.<br />
andrew: let's go to chicago.<br />
me: (grumbling noises) it will be *%&;#*$ unpleasant in chicago, in march.<br />
andrew: but we're just going to hang out in book stores and coffee shops the whole time anyway. hardly be outside at all.<br />
me: hmmm.yes. Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-37804824577724401422011-01-05T11:25:00.000-06:002011-01-05T11:25:29.597-06:00shut up, maxihello from<a href="http://www.bluelinecoffee.com/"> blue line</a>. the hipsters are thick as fleas on a dog. i'm too groomed to be here.<br />
<br />
have you ever wanted to write, but been frozen. with fear. that you're such. a cliche. even if no one ever, ever reads any of it, you're still just - ugh. ugh.<br />
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there's a really snide person in my head, making fun of everything i write. she's so mean! what's her name. she's the opposite of kristy energy. if i'm going to tell her to shut up, she needs a name. she's sitting at the table next to me, talking about san francisco with the thin, bearded guy. i'm going to give her a name she'd hate. she'd like to be named jeanne or matilda. i'm going to name her maxi. partly because i'm looking out the window at the <a href="http://www.maxiwalker.com/">max i. walker</a> sign, but mostly because maxi's laden with awful meanings.<br />
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maxi, why don't you go out and smoke a cigarette. you're just such a killjoy. here i am, with a few minutes to myself, and i just want to write a little bit, and you're completely killing the moment with your hypercritical vibe.<br />
<br />
so anyway.<br />
i bought a HEAP of vegetables and a silicone (?) steamer thing that fits into a pot, so i can steam the hell out of them and eat them like candy. too bad i'm so lazy. i'd rather toast an english muffin and smear it with jelly. but it's time to address the post-holiday state of affairs. thusly, we commence a broccoli and green bean binge. i would like to do one of those detoxes, but i'm afraid about the no coffee thing. the first day or two would be super awful. yes, maxi, i know that any self-respecting woman should be able to tough out a detox. and may i just say, you're such a hypocrite with the smoking.<br />
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huh. it feels good to yell at my inner critic. you should try yelling at yours. name her, or him, and bitch the critic out. so cathartic.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-42836847474852102912011-01-01T14:17:00.000-06:002011-01-01T14:17:04.816-06:00amnesiac's top tencan't remember much of 2010.<br />
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i'm typically a big one for year-end reflection, but being the parent of a one- and three-year old has effectively rendered that part of my brain (the part that does long-term memory, hell, even short-term memory) powerless. as though, somewhere in the evolutionary process, the maternal brain decided that responding to the needs of the immediate moment beat the pants off stuff like navel-gazing.<br />
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so when i try to remember, i get a big smear of odds and ends. with that disclaimer firmly in place, i offer this top ten list.<br />
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hausfrau's top ten stuff of 2010:<br />
<ul><li>best feeling: comforting my little boys. being able to set their little worlds totally to rights - when the rest of the world is so wrong and complicated and stupid - is the best feeling ever. ever ever ever. </li>
<li>most satisfying day of work: cooking for gina's tasting party. being in the flow of cooperative labor, without interruption, and surrounded by friends; this is good in some primal sense. </li>
<li>happiest marriage moments: well, i'll tell you the second happiest. ;) good long talks over maudite and dinner at dario's. candle on the table. </li>
<li>best party: mad men party @ cheryl's. but there were also lots of excellent birthday parties this year, too. it was a year for good parties.</li>
<li>most listened-to album: contra, vampire weekend</li>
<li>richest comradeship: oh, this one could take paragraphs. you, friends, near and far, know how much i love you, how much i want you to move into all the houses on my street, and make life a perpetual block party. </li>
<li>most norman-rockwell family outing: picking pumpkins at the orchard. andrew wore that hat i love.</li>
<li>most essential household item: electric blanket. hands down.</li>
<li> favorite crutch: nap. under the electric blanket. followed by coffee, if i need to perk up. or a vodka and cranberry, if i need to perk down.</li>
<li>best popular fiction: it's been a big year for vampire novels on my night stand (although i still refuse to touch the twilight books). another favorite novel (completely vampire-free) was kazuo ishiguro's never let me go. at least i think i read all of those. see the above comments about memory loss. </li>
</ul>best wishes to you, dear reader, for a happy and peaceful new year. <br />
<ul></ul>Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-5231286147066391602010-12-24T21:25:00.001-06:002010-12-24T21:38:02.186-06:00merryhappy love and merry times to you.<br />
and to you your wassail to.<br />
<br />
i'm in my kerchief and andrew's in his cap.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-37069458488388393012010-12-21T08:26:00.000-06:002010-12-21T08:26:34.432-06:00just what you were looking for if you like lauren winner and cooking <a href="http://www.laurenwinner.net/">lauren winner</a> on <a href="http://www.booksandculture.com/articles/webexclusives/2010/december/winner121510.html">the joy of cookbooks</a>. yay.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-51885367301701938292010-12-16T08:42:00.001-06:002010-12-16T08:44:24.494-06:00mixed signalsmy subconscious is sending me confusing messages. last night i dreamed that i was invited to join an elite cheerleading squad. in the same dream, one of my sisters said, "everyone's getting worried about the bald spot on the back of your head." huh. i must be feeling really confident/sexy and really insecure/ugly at the same time.<br />
<br />
what did you dream about?Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-12173477611438028852010-12-09T21:50:00.000-06:002010-12-09T21:50:30.146-06:009:45 updateben's a potty hero. he had a total of three successful potties and no accidents at all. petey was a potty anti-hero, trying to push ben off the potty and block his view of "mickey saves santa." so i spent most of the night wrestling peter, trying to keep him from disrupting the delicate process taking place in the kitchen. now both are tucked into bed, amen hallelujah. may i add, all of this was done without the man of the house, who's still slaving away at work. that makes me a potty hero too, i believe. cheers.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-3674977704059354732010-12-09T20:05:00.002-06:002010-12-09T20:05:42.964-06:007:59 updatepotty successes: 1<br />
potty attempts: 5Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-90804592395137654422010-12-09T18:38:00.000-06:002010-12-09T18:38:17.381-06:00potty! party!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjftfST5cWbbuBeQkExuvqpKJ89b_EgMC3UQ7Bc-FSMKMf6oGFxeYoMk71nZWFegy7zP8nKvXrWcsZHLb6mHOGUKLtsWk68_QZqgnddBdGqKJSzfyNFb9Sx-Qp4SZGfcNYbxa_ow1ylaw/s1600/P1010464.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjftfST5cWbbuBeQkExuvqpKJ89b_EgMC3UQ7Bc-FSMKMf6oGFxeYoMk71nZWFegy7zP8nKvXrWcsZHLb6mHOGUKLtsWk68_QZqgnddBdGqKJSzfyNFb9Sx-Qp4SZGfcNYbxa_ow1ylaw/s320/P1010464.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>lord help us. we're commencing a full-scale potty-training extravaganza tonight.<br />
<br />
i've partitioned the kitchen with baby gates, brought in the space heater to warm it up, and covered the floor with a plastic table cloth. most importantly, i'm armed with a jumbo container of disinfectant wipes. <br />
<br />
the diaper has been removed. <br />
<br />
unlimited juice in a brand-new penguin cup.<br />
<br />
christmas cartoons.<br />
<br />
reese's peanut butter cups for a reward in the event of potty success. <br />
<br />
ben just said: did you hear the air come through my bottom? that means i'm going to go potty!<br />
<br />
i'll be live blogging through the evening. totally transgressing the TMI line.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-38417898467599297702010-12-09T08:23:00.000-06:002010-12-09T08:23:40.792-06:00what if i'm a hoarder.yesterday watched an episode of that extraordinarily grim show, <a href="http://www.aetv.com/hoarders/index.jsp">hoarders</a>. while watching (in the kitchen on my laptop) i noticed an empty carton of eggnog on my counter. and a greasy sink of dishes. and - see previous post - dried beans all over the floor. and i thought: oh no. <i>oh no</i>. what if i'm a hoarder? the people on the show don't seem to see their own messes. they don't seem to know what they're doing at all. <i>i could totally be a hoarder and have</i> <i>no idea</i>. <br />
<br />
listen. you have to pinky swear that you will tell me if: a. i'm a hoarder, or b. i look like i'm becoming a hoarder. or if my house smells gross (i think it probably does) or i smell gross. or if i'm becoming paranoid. deal?Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-5342748139045454642010-12-08T18:45:00.000-06:002010-12-08T18:45:19.805-06:00dry pinto beans make the best toysas long as pete stays busy with his sprinkling of pinto beans, i'll sit here trying to write.<br />
i've cast dinner to the wind (chicken drumettes from trader joe's are this evening's offering).<br />
i've cracked open a blue moon winter abbey ale. my shoulders are getting that nice warm feeling that follows a rapidly drunk beer. <br />
ben is "washing the dishes by himself," which guarantees a flooded kitchen floor. then i suppose the beans will float away...<br />
now if i could only think of something to say.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-83742598312560701012010-12-01T10:06:00.000-06:002010-12-01T10:06:11.627-06:00pete eats breakfast (with a cameo appearance from spiderman)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dw0r5IGFAK4eMv4YW5FlZoIQhJGU4CgrD-J--H31zXb7pXrh92-vG-61uSd_-1bpW7aoAyOVF1aXMQQdb4ZQQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487805687278877336.post-51496275135715668682010-11-30T10:24:00.000-06:002010-11-30T10:24:07.321-06:00complaint, with whiningoh my staaaaaaars! <br />
when will this headache/coughing/sneezing/stuffy head END?!?! when. will. it. end. i swear. the headaches. i've single-handedly put down almost a whole bottle of ibuprofin in the last two weeks. and i'm at it again right now, trying to cope with yet another throbbing headache, etc. etc. etc. <br />
thank the dear lord for pbs kids. sid the science kid, you're my hero.Darbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02200095655872285990noreply@blogger.com2