Pictures of Pictures

We moved into our house six months ago and are still working on hanging up our pictures. I've made it one of my goals this year to frame all of our prints and get them hung and I figured, why not start now?

I've been dreading hanging our picture collage because it's a pain finding a nice design and getting it hung up straight. I wasn't particularly happy with how M hung them in our old apartment so he passed the job off to me this year so I would have no one to blame but myself if I didn't like it! I saw an easy method for hanging pictures over at Young House Love and thought I'd give it a whirl.

 I basically traced the outline of each frame onto a blank piece of paper then made a dot where the nail should be. I taped the papers up on the wall and played around with different designs until one was found that both M and I liked. I then used the pencil markings and hammered the nails into the proper places, tore down the papers, then put the frames up in their spaces. Sounds complicated but was actually pretty simple.

I know not all of the spacings are the same, but that's what makes it imperfectly perfect. We tried to choose pictures that represented different places we have traveled to. Starting with the large frame in the top right we have Kilimanjaro. Going clockwise is San Juan, the Brooklyn Bridge, M on our Caribbean cruise, Khao Lak in Thailand, me with Wanalee, an engagement photo taken in High Park in Toronto, Lake Eyasi in Tanzania, Cliffs of Moher in Ireland, and another from sea kayaking during our Thailand honeymoon. The middle cluster of four frames were all pictures taken in the homeland, Belgium.

I'm happy with how it turned out! 

Now come, on, let's be a bit more realistic here. If I take a couple of steps back you can see what our place really looks like. Toys everywhere!

I love walking down the stairs now because there's something fun to look at and I'm reminded of some pretty crazy adventures we've been on.

A Pinterest Challenge

I'm back with another Pinterest inspired post! I'm on a roll with two in a row! This time I'm joining a six week Pinterest challenge that I saw over at Everyday Reading. The point of this challenge is to do six things you've pinned over a six week period. Sounds doable! Here are my six choices:

                                                                                                      Source: wholeliving.com via Jill on Pinterest
1. Creamy cashew dip. I've read rave reviews about it. I have all of the ingredients, now just need to find the time to make it!

                                                                              

                                                                                                      Source: foodvee.com via Jill on Pinterest

2. Baked banana chocolate chip donuts. Healthier than regular donuts. I wonder if they'll taste as good? I see these in my future one weekend morning. 

                                                                                        Source: simplysugarandglutenfree.com via Jill on Pinterest

3. Broiled grapefruit. It's been described as a "sweet, tangy, bruleed masterpiece for your taste buds". We shall see! 

                                                                                               Source: osxdaily.com via Jill on Pinterest

4. This pin shows how to put your iPhone into kid mode. I desperately need this, especially during those long car rides where I throw my phone back to Little m to get her to stop crying and then find out she's written an email, phoned someone, and liked someone's post on Facebook. 

                                                                                         Source: modernparentsmessykids.com via Jill on Pinterest

5. An alphabet book for Little m. I actually started one many months ago and then stopped halfway. This will probably be the pin most difficult to complete as it takes planning in order to take appropriate photos plus time to design the book. I think she'd really love the finished product. 

                                                                                                           Source: make-it-do.com via Jill on Pinterest

6. My mattress needs some serious cleaning thanks to my schwetty husband. I'm hoping this baking soda trick will be helpful in defunkifying it a little.

See you back in six weeks with an update on how things went! 

What's Cookin? (v.2)

I've recently been putting a huge effort into meal planning and making better choices for my family. I say huge effort because it's true - finding recipes that are somewhat healthy, picking up the necessary groceries, and then actually executing and preparing - it's a lot of work! I often start making dinner during Little m's nap time because cooking with a little ankle biter is not exactly fun.

Here are a few meals that I've made recently that turned out quite well - all from Pinterest of course. If you're not following me on there yet, what's your excuse?!

                                                                        Source: peasandthankyou.com via Jill on Pinterest

This is truly one of my favourite recipes to make for dinner. Even the husband gives it two thumbs up. It's basically a healthier version of lasagna that's made with zucchini instead of pasta noodles. I've made this multiple times now and it never disappoints. The cheese on top gets all crusty - so good!

                                                                               Source: bevcooks.com via Jill on Pinterest

My sister from another mister put this recipe for Thai Coconut Chicken Curry on her Facebook page and raved about it, so I had to give it a try. I liked it but it wasn't spicy enough for me so I'd definitely add more red curry paste in next time. The hubs said he would have preferred chunks of chicken rather than shredded so I may try that as well. Overall, it was pretty good!

                                                                 Source: wendyweekendgourmet.com via Jill on Pinterest

I made quite a few changes in this recipe for Chicken Tortilla Rollups. First off I cut the amount of cheese back by half and then used a lot less Greek yogurt because I ran out. I also just made regular guacamole to go with it rather than the avocado crema that's in the original recipe. I found these rollups to be a bit bland for some reason. Maybe it's just my palette but it could have used something to spice it up. Now that I think about it, the recipe called for serrano peppers and I didn't have any, but they would have given it the extra kick I'm sure. I would make this again!

                                                                         Source: doughingrogue.com via Jill on Pinterest

Copycat Whole Foods Detox Salad - my favourite recipe all week. It's as healthy as healthy gets and so simple, yet so tasty! It's basically a bunch of veggies chopped up in the food processor, some seeds, raisins, and then a light oil (only 1T) and lemon dressing. This takes a bit of time to prepare but I halved the recipe and still came out with four lunch servings. I really can't wait to make this again.

                                                                    Source: pinterest-yummies.blogspot.com via Jill on Pinterest

This is a recipe for oatmeal in the crock pot. I made this on Friday night and it was great waking up the next morning and having breakfast already prepared. I don't ever add sugar to my oatmeal so I cut out almost all of the sugar that was called for and added raisins instead. I wouldn't make this particular recipe again but I would look for something similar to try. Same same but different.

Bon Appetit!  

36 in 365: 2013 Edition

(source)

It's back! 36 goals in 365 days. Only a month or two late. That seems right around my normal level of procrastination!

First things first - how did I do with last year's goals? I'm giving myself one and a half thumbs up. I fully completed 22/36 goals, which is a success rate of 60%. Not too bad! Definitely some room for improvement though. Here's my list from last year if you'd like to check it out.

Now, onto my goals for 2013. I've had quite a lot of time to think about what I want to accomplish this year and have decided to keep things simple and (hopefully) achievable.

36 in 365 Goals (Round Five):

Get Busy:
1. Write a day in the life of Little M post each month, starting in February (0/11).
2. Try out five new toddler friendly recipes (3/5): Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffin (success!), Very Berry Muffins (yummy), Toddler Approved Banana Mini Muffins (only tried a few because Bama ate them - but a bit bland)
3. Make fifteen new recipes that I've pinned on Pinterest (15/15): Detox Salad (delicioso), Crock Pot Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal (pretty good), Raw Apple Snack (probably wouldn't make again), Coconut Curry Chicken Soup (not bad), Chicken Tortilla Rollups (quite good), Crock Pot Pork Chops (tasted like mom's home cookin'), Creamy Cashew Dip (tasty treat), Shrimp Scampi (quite good), Black Bean Burger (probably wouldn't make again), Sausage Bean Kale Stew (surprisingly delicious), Chicken Taco Bowls (easy and good), Banana Chocolate Chip Donut (tasty treat), Cauliflower Leek Soup (yum), Broiled Grapefruit (nice), Homemade Cadbury Creme Egg (so ridiculously sweet)
4. Taste or cook or bake with three ingredients I've never used before (3/3): fish sauce and red curry paste for this recipe, kumquats, the Peruvian delicacy of guinea pig
5. Read 25 books from my Goodreads list (25/25).
6. Read the parenting books that I've been meaning to get to.
7. Watch the third season of Downton Abbey with my mammy.
8. Hit publish on my New Zealand recaps.
9. Blog a total of 60 (or more!) posts this year.
10. Start writing in my One Line a Day journal.
11. Organize the garage.

Get Crafty:
12. Go on the Productive Parenting website and find five activities to do with Little m (0/5). 

13. Add 25 more items to my list of 101 things (37/101) that make me happy (5/25).

14. Make a really cool Christmas gift for my Goddaughter.

15. Finish framing and hanging up all of our artwork.
16. Figure out three activities that Little m can do while standing in her learning tower (0/3). 

Get Places:
17. Climb another mountain.
18. Explore three Chicago neighbourhoods (0/3).
19. Bring Little m to eight new parks (8/8): Haas, Erhler, Chi Che Wang, Fellger, Humboldt, South Lakeview, Holstein, Maplewood
20. Make a real effort to attend or host play dates for Little m.
21. Travel to two American states (2/2): Wisconsin, Washington D.C. plus Maryland
22. Take a picture of myself in front of the White House. 

23. Get to the dog park with Bama once per month (1?/12).
24. Bring Little m to a parade: Blackhawk's Parade
25. Go to Milwaukee.
26. Eat at Little Goat. 

Get Healthy:
27. Consistently attend Bar Method classes five days a week until my membership runs out.
28. Come into my L shape for the entire set during round back in Bar Method.
29. Hold crow for at least five seconds.
30. Use up all of the yoga classes that I bought Groupons for.
31. Lace up my skates and take Little m to the ice rink.
32. Make teeth brushing for Little m a daily habit. 
33. Kiss and hug the hubs more.
34. Reach my goal on DietBet, join a second game, and reach that goal as well (and go on to win a third and fourth!)

Get Giving:
35. Volunteer once a month (lost track/12).
36. Get involved somehow in my neighbourhood association.

Ready. Set. Go. 

Passport Artwork

I've been wanting to make a piece of artwork from old passport stamps ever since I saw Brooklyn Limestone do it here. It's actually been on my 36 in 365 list for the last two years. And I'm happy to report, I have finally gotten around to doing it! 

(click to enlarge)

The first piece on the left has stamps from Ireland, France, and USA. The middle has France, the chunnel in England, and Colombia. The piece on the right includes Japan, Portugal, and Thailand.

It was really quite simple so I shouldn't have waited so long to do it. I basically followed the instructions in the blog post that I linked to above. I bought three wooden rectangles and sawtooth picture hangers from Joann Fabrics and spray adhesive from Target. This cost me around $10 if I remember correctly, and the spray adhesive was much more expensive than anything else. M scanned our passports for me and I fiddled around with them on iPhoto to make them a proper size. I printed the pictures out on our home computer and then after realizing I didn't have a sharp enough exacto knife, just cut the proper size paper with scissors. I sprayed the adhesive onto the paper then plopped it onto the wood and voila, there you have it. The hardest part was finding a good place to hang them. I finally decided on a spot in our staircase.

I love walking down the stairs and being reminded of some of the cool places we've traveled to and the fun times we've had. For someone who is rarely crafty, I am so proud of myself, and happy to cross this off the list! 

WEverb Days 11 - 14

WEverb Day 11: spend/save [LIVE]
Are you richer or poorer this year compared to last?

Technically we are poorer this year than last year, mostly because we bought a house plus I'm a stay at home mom and haven't worked a "real" job in two and a half years. Everyone asks if I miss teaching and the answer is simple - no! I feel so fortunate to be able to stay at home with Little m, I wouldn't trade it for the world, even if this means watching our money a little closer. So while technically we are poorer, I feel 100 times richer because I get to spend my days with the world's best baby.

WEverb Day 12: toss [GROW]
2012 was the last time for ___________.

Living in Lincoln Park. Sharing laundry facilities with crazy people. Being woken in the middle of the night by wind chimes. Dealing with street parking (hallelujah). Waking up for midnight feedings -not me, baby. iPhone 3GS. One Tree Hill.

WEverb Day 13: associate [LISTEN]
What blog/book/article spoke to you the most in 2012?

Emily at Oh! Apostrophe wrote a blog post about breastfeeding a toddler and oh my, she could have taken the words right out of my mouth. When Little m turned one year old, I felt almost embarrassed saying yes when people asked me if I was still nursing. I don't know why but I got the vibe from a number of people that as soon as a child turns one, it's weird to continue breastfeeding. Well I got over that quickly, especially after reading Emily's post on this very matter. She has a child a few months older than Little m and every blog post I read of hers I want to bookmark. She also has great info about cloth diapering and toy recommendations.

WEverb Day 14: walk [LIVE]
Describe the path to a favourite place of yours to walk in 2012. What's meaningful about the place or the journey?

Little m started walking right around her first birthday in August. Once she got steady enough, I started letting her walk on her own, instead of sitting in her stroller, when we take our dog out. Even if we just go up and down our block, I get so much joy out of watching her walk around because it makes her so happy. It's like she just wants to yell "FREEDOM" with every step she takes. Once the Halloween decorations came out, it was even more fun and now that the Christmas lights are out, she's loving every moment of walking around our hood. She also likes to make pit stops to sit on everyone's front steps, which is ultra cute.

A Day in the Life of Little Miss M (at 15 months)

I really enjoyed documenting a day with Little m last month so I decided to do it again! Here's what a typical day looks like with the little munchkin at 15 months of age.

6:45am Little m is up, and ready and raring to go. I go into her bedroom and nurse her so that M can continue sleeping in our room. Usually I pull her into our room so that I can stay cozy in bed for a few more minutes, but I know M's been working a lot lately and needs the extra sleep.

7:00am Diaper change number one. I decide to change the babe into her clothes. Usually I wait until after breakfast because she often makes a mess and ends up staining her clothes, even while wearing a bib. We are both feeling under the weather today and I know we won't be going anywhere fancy.

7:15am We head downstairs and sit in the window and play one of Little m's favourite games - dress up Pooh Bear with hair clips and elastics. This can be a very time consuming game and Little m will pass me each individual clip or elastic, which I put on Pooh's ears, nose, and paws. Afterwards, Little m takes them all off, then we repeat the game. Over and over again. It's cute.

8:00am Time for breakfast. Little m runs over to her drawer and pulls out a bib. Smart cookie. We're heading out of town so the cupboards are looking bare, but I round up some homemade banana coconut bread and some dehydrated strawberries. She loves the bread - I'll have to remember to make it again soon. The husband is working from home today so he visits for a bit and then heads downstairs to  take a call.

8:30am Bamalamadingdong is waiting patiently to go for a walk. M takes the dog for his morning walk, but is busy all morning with calls, so we bundle up and take him ourselves. Here's what Little m thinks about that idea:

Apparently I take too long getting ready. Little m is working on developing some patience but once we get outside she's happy to look around and point at the birds and Christmas decorations.

9:00am Back inside and it's time to read books. I sit on our bench and Little m runs back and forth to the bookshelf, bringing me books, one by one. She will sometimes sit through an entire book, but for the most part she looks at one or two pages and is ready for a new one.

9:30am We head upstairs so that I can get showered and dressed for the day. Little m is finally okay with letting me shower while she's awake. She used to freak out and pound on the glass door the entire time, but now she's happy to play and empty out the bathroom cupboards while I get ready.

10:30am It's time to head out and pick up the little boy that I babysit. Before that though, we make a super quick stop at the grocery store to pick up some necessities: chicken soup, cough drops, and orange juice. Blah.

11:15am Back at home and it's time for lunch. Little m has a peanut butter sandwich and some pieces of apple. I try to give her some chicken noodle soup but she wants nothing to do with it. So picky some days! She plays for a bit with the little guy and then it's mama's favourite time of the day - nap time. She'll sleep anywhere from 1.5 - 2.5 hours and today she's out cold from 12:30pm - 2:30pm.

2:30pm Little m is coming to the point where she can interact with other kids. She is in love with the little guy I watch and for the next hour they have fun with the toys and play kitchen. Little m pretends to make soup and we stir it and take turns having pretend bites. She thinks this is hilarious.

3:30pm The little guy gets picked up and we get ready to head outside to take the dog for another walk. Little m is happier this time because I mention Christmas lights. She is very helpful these days and I ask her to get her coat and hat out of our storage bench and she does. I tell her to get her shoes and she takes them and sits on our stairs and starts trying to put them on her feet. She's not quite there yet but that doesn't stop her from trying!

4:00pm We head inside and Little m proceeds to live up to her nickname, "The Destroyer".

She makes messes like this all day long but now I've become a bit wiser. If she makes a mess, she cleans it up, or at least helps me.

4:30pm I need to start thinking about making dinner so I plop Little m on the couch and turn to my best friend, Barney to keep her entertained for the next ten minutes. Yes, just ten. I wish it was thirty. Kidding, kidding. But jeez, why is tv so magical? Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.

Here she is, her brain slowly turning to mush. She's so in love with Barney that she won't even look at me, trying to get her attention to take the picture.

5:00pm It's dinnertime and I've made us breakfast because that's all that's left in the fridge. Little m is overjoyed with her dinner, as you can see below. Sometimes this child drives me crazy and pushes her tray away before she's even tasted anything. She ends up eating a little and then I give up and let her down. The fight's not in me today.

5:30pm Little m's daddy is done work for the moment and comes upstairs to have dinner and give me some relief. Here's a video of Little m showing off her new word:

Oy, how is she growing up so quickly? Already telling her mom and dad nooooooooooooo. We do more hair styling and I can just eat her up, she's so super cute in the evenings. When I ask her for a kiss and she actually gives me one - ugh, my heart melts.

6:00pm Bath time! Daddy joins us for family bath time and I guess I didn't give Little m enough liquids today because she drinks the bath water nonstop! We read a couple of books and get ready for sleeping. I nurse her for ten minutes or so before bed and she is out like a light.

6:45pm The babe is sleeping peacefully and I'm feeling like death so I bring a pillow to the couch and remain there in the horizontal position for the rest of the night.

10:00pm Goodnight!

See you next month for another day in the life of Little Miss M!