Stress management

Whenever I get a little too stressed lately (which seems to be often since my stress management skills are worse than nil these days) I pull up this photo of my nephew. My sister sent it to my phone titled "Mr. Easter 2010."


Aside from the fact he's cute enough to be on a baby food bottle, I like to think about how simple his life is: eat, poop, sleep. And I try to remember that as long as I've got those bases covered, the rest isn't worth worrying about.

Catching up

A pattern has developed: The weeks seem to swallow me whole and leave me sputtering with relief by Friday night. Come Saturday morning all I want to do is lie in bed reading. Then I remember I haven't blogged all week. Where did the time go?

So here's a quick report of the highlights.

Wednesday night I taught the pre-teen church girls about money management. They had to figure out how to spend a month's salary of $1,200 and still cover all their expenses. (Congratulations! You've just graduated from college, found your first job, got your first pay check and moved into your own place. Now go find out for yourself why being a responsible adult is overrated!)

Most of them decided to buy just one week's worth of groceries for the month "Because I'm small, so I don't eat much." That left them with more money for shopping and movies.

The number one complaint of the night (heard from multiple girls):

"This is so unrealistic because I'm going to make way more money as a movie star/pro soccer player/fashion designer/best-selling author. And I'll be famous so people will give me stuff for free."

Yeah. No wonder the nation had a negative savings rate until the recession hit.

On Thursday night I gave a "speech" to a group of really impressive women executives. I use "speech" loosely here because it was really more of a 20-minute ramble during which I shared way too much information. People said nice things afterward and my boss (who was the only man in the room) didn't fire me. So I guess it went okay. I stressed about that gig for a year. The fact that they gave me a year's notice only made it worse. I do much better when you spring things on me last minute. Less time for the worry machine inside my head to do it's magic.

Today my dear friend Jenny is coming up from Charleston. Here we are walking one of the bridges down there on my last visit in October.

This afternoon we're going to the new modern art museum (this will be visit #4 for me - I love the place!) Later on, we'll head to the skating rink for the 40th birthday party of my boss' wife. I got the invite when I told him I celebrated my 30th at the skating rink. Great nerd minds think alike.

Satisfying my sweet tooth is a full time job

Friday night I had a hankering for peanutbutter chocolate chip cookies so I made a batch and promptly put them all in the freezer. (Okay, not ALL of them. My hips had a few.) They go in the freezer in little baggies so that I don't eat them all at one time. When you have to wait for a cookie to thaw, you're a little less inclined to inhale it. A little.

By Sunday afternoon I wasn't feeling the peanutbutter love, though, and I got a hankering for shortbread instead. So I dug up a Blue Ribbon recipe for Thumbprint Jam cookies in my "Blue Ribbon Recipes from State Fairs" cookbook (my favorite cookbook of all time). I used shortening instead of butter, rolled the balls in chopped pecans and topped them with a dollop of lingonberry jam from IKEA.

Unfortunately they were too messy to freeze in little packages per my usual, so I loaded up a few plates and took them to work. Big hit!

Secondhand success

I finally found the perfect end table/lamp combo at an antique store yesterday for $25. It's more old-fashioned than antique, which is probably why it was cheap. And it's EXACTLY what I've been trying to find for who knows how long. Hooray!

And a special bonus: I took a few of my old dresses to a vintage shop and traded for this one that would make little orphan Annie proud!

Patrick who?

I don't know much about Saint Patrick except he maybe founded Ireland? Whatever. My sister Annie has accomplished way more in her short 31 years. And for all the things she puts up with from her family (immediate and extended) she's a saint three times over. Plus she's much better looking than some old guy in a monk outfit. Much. I hereby re-christen March 17th "St. Annie's Day." No need to wear green or fear getting pinched by annoying people. St. Annie's Day is best celebrated with big smiles and open hearts, just like the holiday's namesake.

Caboose and caboodle

My littlest niece is cute Addison.
Her birth meant our family now had a sun!
Bright eyes, red hair,
energy to spare,
this great girl has no comparison!



The baby of the crew is Ryan.
For his attention we're always vyin'!
His giggles are sweet
and his smiles a real treat.
To say he's not cute would be lyin'!

Another

I have a sweet nephew named Leo.

Bet someday he'll join the rodeo.

He loves to run wild,

but he's a very good child.

With his cool mom and dad, they're a trio.

Caught ya!

Limerick #4

My nephew in Texas is Haston.

Play tunes and you'll be amazed. In

rhythm he has no match.

All songs and smiles - he's a catch!

Never met him? Such good times you're wastin'!

Limerick #3

I know a great girl named Hannah.
Her laughter is God's gift - like manna.
She likes fancy dresses,
but not cleaning messes!
Her kingdom's a real fun-o-rama!

Lame Limerick #2

I know a cool kid named Colby,

With Jedi tricks better than Obi!

He's an awesome breakdancer,

Won't take 'No' for an answer.

He lives his life in high-def Dolby!

Taylor Swift for Poet Laureate!

We did poetry and rhymes with the girls from church last night. They each brought their favorite and FOUR of the ten read a Taylor Swift song. She's way more successful and rich than I'll ever be, but Taylor Swift's songs are really, really bad examples of poetry when read aloud by 10 years olds.

After suffering through that, I taught the girls to write limericks.

Now I'm on a limerick kick, so let me present a series of very lame rhymes in honor of the best nieces and nephew a girl could find, beginning with the eldest:

I know a great athlete named Luke,
Whose skills we first thought were a fluke.
But he proved us all wrong,
With his legs, long and strong.
Now in soccer he's both King and Duke!

Only YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires

All of Charlotte is bedded-down for the night under a gray comforter of rank smoke. Apparently the South Carolina Forest Service is doing a "controlled burn" which is an oxymoron. May as well call it "a wildfire we started, thinking it would do more harm than good." I bet these "controlled burns" are like holidays for forest service people. I bet they circle "controlled burn days" in red on their calendars and bring treats to celebrate. I live a good 30 miles from the nearest South Carolina Forest Service land, but right outside my door it smells like someone rounded up all the food-encrusted styrofoam plates at a church picnic and tossed them onto a bonfire made of wet wood and pine needles. Awesome job on that controlled burn, forest service folks. Smokey would be so proud.

Flying really puts things in perspective

No, I didn't have a near-death experience on a plane. But I flew on planes with two people who thought they would - and had panick attacks to prove it. All sorts of drama getting to Utah. But coming home was where the real perspective-putting happened. I flew Continental, which I apparently don't do very often because I was SHOCKED when they served breakfast on a 2-hour flight. Cereal, milk and a banana never looked so good. On the next leg it was a little sandwich on a dinner roll, some M&Ms and carrots. Pretty paltry as meals go, but I'm so used to bringing my own peanuts and having to BEG for a sip of water I swore right then and there to fly Continental as often as possible.

Not too, often, though because no amount of free cereal and sandwiches can make up for the sheer nightmare of connecting flights required to get from Charlotte to SLC.

While in Utah, I made the most of it, though. My friend's play had a spectacular debut. And as you can see from the photos below, I spent some quality time with family. Mostly eating and shopping at the mall. And a birthday party complete with pinata that doubled as a headdress for the birthday girl.

Catching up

This here photo was from early January when some friends and I paid a visit to the new modern art museum in Charlotte. The "Firebird" stands outside. I'm not a big fan of modern art. (Just ask my sister about the hysterical fit I had at the Pompidou in Paris. Toilet bowls never were and never will be art.) But this new museum in Charlotte is incredibly accessible and more about the European artists. It was all collected by a single Swiss family from artists they knew. There's a family portrait of them by Andy Warhol! And a Jasper Johns print that hung in their TV room. And a precious Mario Marini bronze sculpture of a horse that's shiny in spots where the kids used to hold on when they "took pony rides." If anyone ever comes to visit me in Charlotte (and I wouldn't really recommend it) this is the one place I'd look forward to taking them. Then we'll hit the road for Charleston or the beach, because Charlotte's pretty boring beyond that.

In other news, I got roped into emceeing the children's talent show for church. The highlights were the 4-year old girl dressed like Shirley Temple and singing "On the Good Ship Lollipop" and another 4-year old (this one a boy) "dancing." They put on some rock music and he ran around in circles at top speed for 3 minutes throwing in the occasional pony kick. I love little boy dancing! My nephew Colby is the king of it, though. Watch out America's Got Talent!

Speaking of nephews (and nieces!) I'm off to see them tomorrow for a few days in Utah and will be attending the WORLD PREMIERE of a play written by a dear friend of mine. How cool is that?