I'm just about 4 months pregnant right now, and not really showing much yet. I just look chubby. But I know that in the next 2 months all of that will change and I will start having trouble with my normal wardrobe. Plus, the weather is getting cooler.
Last time around, I adopted a uniform that consisted of gaucho pants and long tank tops with sandals. I looked AWFUL. I hated my body and was pretty depressed about it for the last 2 months. So this time I decided to try a different approach, and one that steered clear of sweats (which sound sooooo comfy right now).
I read an article by Gwyneth Paltrow last year where she talked about her seasonal "uniform." She figures out the basic silouhette that she wants to use for a season and she buys a few things that mix or match within that silhouette, and she's good to go. She doesn't really have to think about what she's wearing for more than a few minutes. (Fewer choices seems to be the key here.)
I knew that a good maternity uniform could be key to enjoying this pregnancy. And I knew that I should start looking for one now, because stores begin stocking clothes about 3 months in advance of the season when they expect customers will be wearing them.
For a couple of months I've been pondering this, wondering how celebrities manage to look so good when they're pregnant. And then I realized that their secret is this: they hire stylists to pick out their clothes for them.
Of course they do! Could I find a stylist to help me in the same way? (My brain is justifying things these days that would normally seem completely ridiculous.)
A quick Google search wasn't turning up anything helpful. And then I remembered that Nordstrom offers a free service where stylists can help you pick out clothes for special occasions, or whatever your needs may be. I booked an appointment right away.
The stylist asked me which celebrity(ies) I would like to emulate, and I chose the following three because they're of similar age to mine, they all look really comfortable in these clothes, and they don't look like they tried too hard:
Jessica Alba
Jennifer Garner
Sarah Michelle Gellar
In studying these photos, I noticed something new: they all use "props" to take the emphasis off of their belly! A bright scarf, a big bag, a headband or hat. They also tended to dress in layers: tank tops with shirts and jackets, or wraps around the shoulders.
When I showed up for the appointment, the fitting room was filled with cardigans and long-sleeve tunics, scarves, stretch pants, and big blousy tops. The long-sleeve tunics were great but way, way too expensive ($98 for a t-shirt? Really?). The big blousy tops were too "maternity" for my taste. The stretch pants were great -- really good quality, non-shiny, and comfortable.
Here's a photo of me trying on one sample of my Maternity Uniform, as well as a snapshot of some of the items I ended up buying, which included:
3 linen scarves, 2 cardigans, 1 loose flowy wrap thing, a black maxi dress, black stretch pants, denim-colored stretch pants, a bat-wing sweater thing.
It was really fun and the service was totally free. Plus, even though I ended up spending more money than I probably would have if I'd gone in alone (only because I found more good things to buy, I think), there was no pressure to spend a lot on any one item. When I balked at the very cute, $298 BCBG cardigan, the stylist gave me a knowing nod and swept out of the dressing room to find a more practical option.
My friend Olivia recommended this to me. I think it was after we'd had a conversation about dissatisfaction in life, and how I was feeling stressed and like I didn't have a proper appreciation for the value of "the moment." You know what I'm talking about, right? It's all the rage these days. "Living in the moment." Well, I haven't been able to figure out how to do it.
Anyway, I saw the book again on a blog where a woman lists all the things she has read during the year (some good picks, too) and she reviewed the book, saying that it changed her life. Olivia said the same thing about it. So I put it on my list at the local library.
I'm not very deep in the text yet. Maybe 25 pages? And what's really REALLY annoying is that my version has this enormous font that makes me feel like I'm being treated like a kindergartener. But I'm continuing to read it because the premise of the book is a little crazy, somewhat amusing, and certainly intriguing.
The author says that we're all crazy. Actually, that we all have a voice in our heads that is crazy. The voice that we hear talking inside of our heads (by this I think he means the narrative that plays as we think about stuff throughout the day) is not the real us; it's a crazy person. The real us is something else, like a silent audience that just listens to the babble that we know as thoughts.
This crazy voice is our ego, and it compels us to do (and think) things that are unpleasant and unhealthy. So, if we can learn to dissociate from "the voice," then we can become free of all the stuff that's bringing us down: the endless desire to buy stuff so that we can look good and compete with others; the urge to say mean stuff about other people so that we feel better about ourselves; etc, etc. He references all sorts of religious leaders throughout his monologue, showing how the stuff that they said (in their respective texts) supports his theory. Apparently Buddha is on board with it, as is Jesus and a few others. (Forgetting their names at the moment.)
It's interesting stuff. I'll let you know more when I finish it. But that could take a while, because I usually can't read it until after I've put the munchkin to bed, and it's lights out for me very soon after that, so my pace is about 5 pages a night. Pathetic.
There's that voice again!
I'm on a roll now :) Ever since I started this blog, I wished that they had a cityscape wallpaper for San Diego that I could use in the design. But they don't, because San Diego doesn't really matter.
This one actually resembles the view in my neighborhood much more than a beachy one would. We have lots and lots of power poles in these parts. Lots of crows, too. And you can see the buildings downtown if you walk about a mile west of here and stand on the edge of Florida Canyon. Yup, this one works. Hope you like it.
I am very proud to say that I made this dessert idea up all by myself. Well, I adapted it actually from the blueberry and nectarine crostata that I made earlier this summer. But the results were excellent, both in terms of the startle factor and the flavor. A definite repeat. They are AWESOME if you serve them within a few hours of baking, but perfectly fine served even the next evening, as I did for Michael's Halloween party bake sale at his school.
Dragon Eyes (or whatever spooky name you want to give them; Michael preferred "bloody eyes," but I thought that was too gross)
See: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Rustic-Nectarine-and-Blackberry-Crostata-with-Cornmeal-Crust-106869.
NOTE: this recipe makes for about 35 mini-tarts
Crust
3 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup polenta (coarse cornmeal)*
3 tablespoons sugar
zest of 1 lemon
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 sticks chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup (or more) ice water
1 egg, beaten to blend (for glaze)
Raw sugar crystals for sprinkling over the top before you bake
Filling
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
about 20 strawberries sliced in "rounds"; **reserve about 35 1/2-inch slices in a separate bowl to make the "eyes"
1 small bag of frozen blueberries (the small kind), thawed, strained and rinsed **reserve about a 1/4 cup for the "pupils" of your eyes.
A pinch of the lemon zest and about 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
PREPARATION
For crust:
Combine first 5 ingredients in processor and blend 5 seconds. Add butter; using on/off turns, blend just until butter is reduced to pea-size pieces. (To ensure a flaky crust, be careful not to overwork the butter.) Add 1/3 cup ice water. Using on/off turns, blend until dough comes together in moist clumps, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into two balls; flatten into disk. Wrap; chill at least 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Chill. Let soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.)
For filling:
Stir sugar and cornstarch in medium bowl to blend. Mix in fruit. (But not the fruit that has been reserved for the eyes!) Let stand until juices are released, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add to food processor and waz it up for no more than 5 seconds, just to create smaller pieces but not so much as to make it into a smoothie.
Preheat oven to 375°F. Roll out dough on lightly floured sheet of parchment paper to 1/4 inch thick, turning dough occasionally to prevent sticking. Using a water glass, cut circles approximately 3 -5 inches in diameter. Place 1 tsp chopped-up fruit and juices into center of dough. Place 1 strawberry "round" in center (nestle it into the chopped fruit) and 1 blueberry in the hole of the strawberry. Fold top and bottom portions of the dough over the fruit, like eyelids. Pinch the edges to make the corners of the eye and hold in the fruit and juices. Transfer to parchment-lined cookie sheet, brush folded border with egg glaze; sprinkle with raw sugar.
Place baking sheet with mini-tarts in oven. Bake until crust is golden brown and fruit filling is bubbling at edges, about 23 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool 5 minutes; slide large metal spatula under tart to loosen from parchment.
Remember the photos I posted about 3 weeks ago? The ones of the project in our backyard? Well...not much has changed.
We poured Mesa Buff (a tint) concrete into the forms that you see in my previous post. It was a hot day, and as they removed the forms the concrete set up too quickly and left a rough surface. Our contractors vowed to come back the next day and put on a smooth top coat. However, they hand-mixed the concrete with the tinting compound, and apparently didn't add enough of it or didn't mix it enough, because the layer that appeared the next day was all wrong.
I'm not much of a details person. My husband, however, is all about the details. And he was about to have an epileptic seizure after he saw the re-surfaced wall.
A week later, the contractors were back with jackhammers, peeling off the bad coat so that a new one could be put on. They brought in a new concrete specialist who seemed to be pretty good. Maybe a little too good, actually, because he decided to excavate the gas line that runs across our backyard and suggest that we get it replaced because it appears to be corroded.
I called the utility company, which proceeded to send out three inspectors in 3 days, who decided that our gas line needs to be relocated to the other side of our yard because its current path -- too close to the surface and running under our carport -- is not compliant with new building codes. (Mind you, the line was put in in 1920.)
So here I am. Six weeks after we started the backyard project. So far it is costing about $1,300 more than it was supposed to, but that cost will go up once I get the call telling me where my new gas meter will need to go. And who knows how long it will take to get it relocated, or to get the asbestos test to show that it's safe, or to get a copy of the waiver that I may sign so that the old gas line can stay buried under the new concrete pad.
Is this the result of buying an old house, or do people who buy new houses have similar issues? Is it better to just invest in a big, blank, beautiful piece of property somewhere and rent in the city where you work until you can afford to retire?
I'm not sure what the answer is. But I know that Nick and I have both begun to look at each other with sad, tired eyes and feel like we're not enjoying the day-to-day as much as we would like, mostly because of this house. I have to believe that there's a better way to live.
One with less clutter and lower monthly payments.
Slowly but surely we are making progress. It's a good thing, too, because I'm getting a little sick of having nothing but dirt in my yard. Makes it really, REALLY hard to keep the house clean.
Here are the revised forms for our patio and seating wall. Our contractor originally used a sub who built a wall similar to our plan, but not exactly like it. He basically made the wall less curvy than it was supposed to be because he had bought a plywood that was too thick to bend adequately. I guess he was hoping that we wouldn't mind, but anyone who knows N knows that he always cares about the details. Always. So, they tore the whole thing down and brought back the bobcat, rebuilding the forms over the weekend.
We should have concrete by Friday.
So, one of the blogs that I follow on an almost-daily basis is called Pacing the Panic Room. And Ryan recently posted about using cloth diapers, in a very generous and informative way that includes LOTS of description of how they do it, why they do it, and what it means in terms of their daily routine. (You can read the most recent entry here.)
I did the math, and estimate that Nick and I spent about $3,500 on diapers for Michael. ($20 a case, once a week, 52 weeks a year, 3 years.) A full starter kit of Fuzzibunz costs about a tenth as much, and the diapers last throughout the time that your kid wears them. So I decided that if I get a chance to diaper again (and who knows, I might!) I will give these undies a go.
As it happens, Ryan is hosting a giveaway and asks people to post the link to Fuzzibunz on their site. So here it is.
Wish me luck!
(BTW, Margot, the contest is open to Canadians, as well. You'll be in need of them before I will.)
Last week we flew to Washington, D.C. so that N could interview for the next stage of his career at the training centers nearby. It also gave me the chance to spend some time in the office with the people who I normally only hear on the phone or correspond with by e-mail. It was really, REALLY great, and I'm confident that if we move back there, I will be very happy with the overall state of my life, by which I mean that the weather may not be as sunny, but my career will be able to flourish once again.
Anyway, that's boring stuff, and not what I wanted to focus on in this post. What I wanted to share with you is something funny that happened with Michael while we were in the area. Flying into Reagan National Airport at night, we could see all the sights illuminated, including the Washington Monument, and the Capitol building.
Michael recognized the large white dome, and told us that it was The White House.
"No, it's the Capitol," we corrected.
"No, it's the White House. And Bill lives there."
We didn't have a clue what he was talking about. Who could have told him about Bill Clinton? But then it became clear that he had a different person in mind.
"Bill has a funny face, and arms and legs, but no neck. And he sits on the steps and is waiting to go to committee. He says it's a long, long journey to the capital city," Michael explained. "Not many bills make it as far as he has."
And so I was gratified that my purchase of the Schoolhouse Rock video was a good one. I encourage all of you to get a copy, if not for your own children (or grandchildren), then for the simple fact that it's an integral part of our American culture, and very groovy. :)
This week, we're taking a huge step forward in our progress on the back yard. Here are some photos from the work that happened yesterday.
What is so surprising this time around -- and we've done a lot of work on the house in the last 4 years, so we have a lot of experience for comparison -- is how quickly and efficiently our contractor seems to work. He gave us an estimate about a week ago. We took 5 days to think it over. I called to say that the bid seemed good, and we'd like to go over his contract. He brought his Bobcat tractor into our yard THAT NIGHT, showed up the next morning (yesterday) and started working. All. Day. Long. He was here at 7:30 this morning with the concrete dudes, scoping out where the forms that they're building today and tomorrow will go.
So, this means that I'll have lots of easy content for the somewhat-neglected blog this week :) Stay tuned...
Man oh man, I found a blog this week that is really great. A food blog, written by yet another San Diego foodie. But this one has beautiful photos and a fantastic array of recipes. I'm making several of them for my menu this week.
The blog is Sass and Veracity. Check it out. Go back a few pages (I looked back at about 30 yesterday) and see if anything looks good to you.
The woman can cook. And what's fun is that she's always trying new recipes, adventures in cooking. She obviously has mad kitchen skills because the end results appear to be perfect. But though I'm no professional chef, I can appreciate her adventurousness. That's the way I cook, too: always looking for new recipes, loving to try something for the very first time. So much fun!
Anyway, this week I'm making her pomegranate, apple, pistachio crisp, because I have two pomegranate trees on the side of my house and the fruits are starting to swell and redden. I've never used them for anything other than a table centerpiece, and most of them fall victim to birds or splat on the ground or just dessicate on the tree. Such a waste...
I'm also trying several other recipes from her blog, which you will find in the menu below.
Last night I made Jamie Oliver's grilled tuna with peas and fava beans. Except I couldn't find fava beans at Trader Joe's or Ralphs, so I substituted edamame instead (looks similar, right?). The result was excellent. I mean, really, REALLY good. Definitely worth repeating. I ate it before I remembered to snap a photo, so I'm borrowing his. Isn't it gorgeous? You have to serve the dish immediately after the peas and beans are finished cooking, otherwise they start to brown a little.
Weekly Menu
Friday - grilled tuna with oregano oil and favas (or edamames)
Saturday - scallops with champagne grapes and roasted asparagus (found on S&V, but originally on another blog)
Sunday - dinner out with friends
Monday - vichysoise (with mache, because I couldn't find watercress at the store) and tomato tart, for my vegetarian friend who is coming to dinner
Tuesday - pizza takeout
Wednesday - Roasted chicken and tomatoes with cheese grits
Thursday - spinach salad with bacon and pomegranate
I'm looking forward to trying, this creamy greens soup recipe, this jambalaya recipe, and several others.
Oh, and this is a really cool post to read, also.
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