As of this entry, my son has kept his underwear clean and dry for the fourth day in a row! Mind, these are normal, cotton undies -- not the disposable ones. Earlier attempts to use regular underwear have come to (very) bad ends...and messy ones, at that. At this point, however, we simply can not buy him any more and are doing a lot of finger-crossing and praying.
A made it through Thursday evening at church, through school all day on Friday, and was away from home on Saturday about half the day and home the rest. All dry and clean. He made it through church this morning, and lunch, and it's now mid-afternoon. He has also slept in them overnight, and had no issues. Woo hoo!! I am so unbelievably proud of my kiddo. (I realize that if you're new to this site, you may think that this is not much of a big deal. I assure you, it is to us).
I'm really hoping the diaper bag days are (finally) at a close, albeit about 4 years later than most parents get to do it. The average age for autistic children to be potty trained is actually 5, so we're not doing too badly. A is six and a half.
It's been a rough go up to this point. There were tears on both our parts at various stages in the game, his because we were altering his routine and he simply did NOT want to do it, mine because I was so, so very frustrated to be cleaning the poopy butt of a stubborn 6-yr old kid that ran past the bathroom to go hide in a corner and poop in his pants.
Poop gets much more potent the older you get (why,yes; you may call me Captain Obvious). Two-yr-olds are starting the smelly process, but are also generally potty trained around that time and it's flushed down the toilet. My son has had years to perfect his "aromatic bouquet", and also perfect his bathroom-dodging techniques. It takes a full scrubdown with multiple wipes or a washcloth to get the caked-on poop off his butt after he's sat on it. I can say with absolute certainty that changing an older child's dirty underwear is a much different animal than changing a toddler's dirty underwear -- more mess, more smell.
BUT! Hopefully that is all behind us now!
Yay.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Fun with Preschoolers
My husband is really enjoying getting to be home with the kids right now. He missed most of A's early milestones, and missed a lot of K's too because of long work schedules or being away from home altogether. But now he gets to be a part of all of the guts-and-glory that is parenting.
For example, he got to watch our newly-4-yr-old daughter get her first "wedgie". We normally drive small cars, but we used a van on Thursday and she practically did a split climbing down out of it. K got a mortified expression on her face and her mouth hung open for a second before exclaiming, "My underwear! It's in my butt! Up in there!!!" We had to explain, while laughing, that she just needed to rearrange her foundation garments and she'd be OK. She had the most horrified expression on her little face, though.
Z also gets to "enjoy" K's constant chatter. I recognized the hunted expression on his face when I got home from work on Friday...I've sported that very same look myself on occasion. She also has a way with words. Today, I was explaining that she only needed one stool to sit on, not two or three. She asked why, so I explained that because she only has one bottom, she only needs one chair or stool to sit on at a time so we could share the others.
She looked at me very sweetly, and then proceeded to tell me that she had a little bottom, and A had a little bottom, but I had a "very big, large bottom" and so did her daddy -- and then started to describe how butts help us poop. Fabulous. While I'm glad she has an idea of how certain things work, this was not exactly the best conversation to be having in the church building. And, of course, this was all in front of our preacher. Of course it was. He didn't bat an eye, and I'm really hoping that his conversation he was already having with my husband at that moment somehow distracted the preacher or prevented him from hearing exactly what charming conversations I was having with my youngest.
K has also been taught that to "flex", or "make muscles", they have to be accompanied by sound effects. However, her father did not teach her the usual grunts associated with body building. I don't know why I would think he would; then again, this bit of knowledge(?) is not something I ever really thought about teaching to our daughter. Apparently, when raising your arms up on either side of you and making a large "U" shape, you have to meow like a cat. If you have one arm up and one arm down, like an Egyptian, then you have to squeak with the movements back and forth like a squeaky toy. And, if both arms are flexed downward, then you can grunt. I learn something new every day.
K is also convinced that I have insects in my cranium. I had a cold and told her that I had a bug. Later on, I mentioned that I was feeling "stinky" and rotten. K put two and two together, and now believes that when I'm congested that I have a "stinkbug in [my] head".
Adorable? Yes. Funny? Oh, yeah. Future blackmail material? You'd better believe it.
For example, he got to watch our newly-4-yr-old daughter get her first "wedgie". We normally drive small cars, but we used a van on Thursday and she practically did a split climbing down out of it. K got a mortified expression on her face and her mouth hung open for a second before exclaiming, "My underwear! It's in my butt! Up in there!!!" We had to explain, while laughing, that she just needed to rearrange her foundation garments and she'd be OK. She had the most horrified expression on her little face, though.
Z also gets to "enjoy" K's constant chatter. I recognized the hunted expression on his face when I got home from work on Friday...I've sported that very same look myself on occasion. She also has a way with words. Today, I was explaining that she only needed one stool to sit on, not two or three. She asked why, so I explained that because she only has one bottom, she only needs one chair or stool to sit on at a time so we could share the others.
She looked at me very sweetly, and then proceeded to tell me that she had a little bottom, and A had a little bottom, but I had a "very big, large bottom" and so did her daddy -- and then started to describe how butts help us poop. Fabulous. While I'm glad she has an idea of how certain things work, this was not exactly the best conversation to be having in the church building. And, of course, this was all in front of our preacher. Of course it was. He didn't bat an eye, and I'm really hoping that his conversation he was already having with my husband at that moment somehow distracted the preacher or prevented him from hearing exactly what charming conversations I was having with my youngest.
K has also been taught that to "flex", or "make muscles", they have to be accompanied by sound effects. However, her father did not teach her the usual grunts associated with body building. I don't know why I would think he would; then again, this bit of knowledge(?) is not something I ever really thought about teaching to our daughter. Apparently, when raising your arms up on either side of you and making a large "U" shape, you have to meow like a cat. If you have one arm up and one arm down, like an Egyptian, then you have to squeak with the movements back and forth like a squeaky toy. And, if both arms are flexed downward, then you can grunt. I learn something new every day.
K is also convinced that I have insects in my cranium. I had a cold and told her that I had a bug. Later on, I mentioned that I was feeling "stinky" and rotten. K put two and two together, and now believes that when I'm congested that I have a "stinkbug in [my] head".
Adorable? Yes. Funny? Oh, yeah. Future blackmail material? You'd better believe it.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
On the Brink
Things are looking up at the H house!
For starters, our son, A, has finally started completing his work at school. Much to the delight and surprise of his teacher, I might add. I'm not entirely sure she believed me when I told her he could read, spell, and write because A has flat-out refused to do most of his work this year.
In the last month or so, he has started filling out his writing sheets, doing his addition and subtraction, and been generally behaving himself in the classroom. Yay! This is a relief not only for his teacher, but also for me and Z. Knowing your son can do things, but having a stubborn child who refuses to do things for anyone but mom and dad is not a good combination when there are special needs in the mix. The teacher can only assess his abilities on her observations and experiences, not what A does when he's at home.
We're still having an issue with how they do the testing, as a good portion of it is verbal and our son is NOT overly verbal. He has made great strides, and can hold mini-conversations with Z and I, and a few other close friends, but on an over-all scale he is nowhere close to his peers. A's mini-conversations tend to be sentence fragments, rather than entire grammatically correct sentences, but we understand what he's trying to convey and are just glad he's making the effort. We can tell that it takes an enormous amount of concentration and energy to do what he is able to do, and as long as he's doing his best (and not being a lazy butt) we're fine with that.
Our son is, by the way, a lazy butt if he thinks he can get away with it -- he'll try to see if he can get out of doing whatever someone requests by ignoring them, or starting to stim while watching them out of the corner of his eye. If you're firm with him, and tell him to do whatever it is again, he'll stop stimming, sigh, and then actually do what he was asked to do. The key is knowing when A is trying to get out of doing something, and when he's genuinely stimming or off in his own world. The people that have figured the differences out, understandably, are the ones who spend the most time with him -- and since A is mainstreamed in a "normal" kindergarten classroom, his teacher's attention is divided between A and the other 17 kids in the class. As the year has progressed, she's figuring out A's cues.
In other news, our son has worn regular cotton undies for two days straight without any incident. We still have to prompt him, as he rarely volunteers to go to the bathroom on his own, but he has done a terrific job keeping his pants clean and dry. Of course, he also hasn't pooped in two days, so the streaking has not been an issue.
Our son, like a lot of autistic children, has some muscular weaknesses throughout his body. In addition to his fine-motor skills in his hands, he also lacks some core strength and bowel strength. In our research and conversations with other parents of autistic children, a lot of auties have issues with constipation and impaction. We have to make sure we feed A lots of foods that "make him go", such as sweet potatoes, spinach, and grapes, and try to avoid foods that stop you up, such as bananas, apples and apple juice, and cheese or yogurt. We also have to periodically give him an oral laxative and insert suppositories. If these don't work, then we have to do an old-fashioned enema.
The upside is, these things do what they're supposed to and things get moved on through. The downside is, if we don't do these things, he gets impacted and that means a trip to the hospital. AND another downside is, the more we have to resort to these measures, the less his bowels will do the work on their own; they become dependent on the laxatives and enemas.
"Poop" is a regular topic of conversation around here. Just keepin' it real, this is some of what we deal with on a daily basis.
On the non-crappy side of things, I started a new job this week! Fate had a conversation with irony and arranged this one for me: I was eligible for all sorts of state and federal assistance programs until I started my new job, and now I help people with their applications for those same programs. I have been blessed with the opportunity to help people who are -- literally -- where I just was, last week.
I know (some of) what they're going through, so I think I'm really going to enjoy parts of this job. Everyone has a unique story, and I know what a blessing and relief it is when your family is taken care of. The parts I won't enjoy are in there, too, as there are some clients who have some....interesting philosophies...regarding entitlement issues and how to improve one's financial position, and I am going to have to tell some people "no" and deal with the fall-out. Luckily for me, I am not making the final decision on the eligibility issues, so I don't have to sweat or fret about making the right or wrong decision, I just have to let them know what the decision is. It won't help me when I have to tell someone I would love to help "no", though.
I'm going to have to learn how to emotionally distance myself from our clients, or I'm going to have a lot of heartbreak and bad days. This is not to say I can't be compassionate or caring, those qualities must be shown to everyone to provide dignity and respect to the client. I just can't cry every time I have to turn someone away who is in desperate need. And I also can't get mad or too frustrated if I get a client who is obviously lying and trying to pull a fast one, like yesterday.
There will be a learning curve, but I'm glad to both have a job, and have a job where I can help people at a time when they need it most.
For starters, our son, A, has finally started completing his work at school. Much to the delight and surprise of his teacher, I might add. I'm not entirely sure she believed me when I told her he could read, spell, and write because A has flat-out refused to do most of his work this year.
In the last month or so, he has started filling out his writing sheets, doing his addition and subtraction, and been generally behaving himself in the classroom. Yay! This is a relief not only for his teacher, but also for me and Z. Knowing your son can do things, but having a stubborn child who refuses to do things for anyone but mom and dad is not a good combination when there are special needs in the mix. The teacher can only assess his abilities on her observations and experiences, not what A does when he's at home.
We're still having an issue with how they do the testing, as a good portion of it is verbal and our son is NOT overly verbal. He has made great strides, and can hold mini-conversations with Z and I, and a few other close friends, but on an over-all scale he is nowhere close to his peers. A's mini-conversations tend to be sentence fragments, rather than entire grammatically correct sentences, but we understand what he's trying to convey and are just glad he's making the effort. We can tell that it takes an enormous amount of concentration and energy to do what he is able to do, and as long as he's doing his best (and not being a lazy butt) we're fine with that.
Our son is, by the way, a lazy butt if he thinks he can get away with it -- he'll try to see if he can get out of doing whatever someone requests by ignoring them, or starting to stim while watching them out of the corner of his eye. If you're firm with him, and tell him to do whatever it is again, he'll stop stimming, sigh, and then actually do what he was asked to do. The key is knowing when A is trying to get out of doing something, and when he's genuinely stimming or off in his own world. The people that have figured the differences out, understandably, are the ones who spend the most time with him -- and since A is mainstreamed in a "normal" kindergarten classroom, his teacher's attention is divided between A and the other 17 kids in the class. As the year has progressed, she's figuring out A's cues.
In other news, our son has worn regular cotton undies for two days straight without any incident. We still have to prompt him, as he rarely volunteers to go to the bathroom on his own, but he has done a terrific job keeping his pants clean and dry. Of course, he also hasn't pooped in two days, so the streaking has not been an issue.
Our son, like a lot of autistic children, has some muscular weaknesses throughout his body. In addition to his fine-motor skills in his hands, he also lacks some core strength and bowel strength. In our research and conversations with other parents of autistic children, a lot of auties have issues with constipation and impaction. We have to make sure we feed A lots of foods that "make him go", such as sweet potatoes, spinach, and grapes, and try to avoid foods that stop you up, such as bananas, apples and apple juice, and cheese or yogurt. We also have to periodically give him an oral laxative and insert suppositories. If these don't work, then we have to do an old-fashioned enema.
The upside is, these things do what they're supposed to and things get moved on through. The downside is, if we don't do these things, he gets impacted and that means a trip to the hospital. AND another downside is, the more we have to resort to these measures, the less his bowels will do the work on their own; they become dependent on the laxatives and enemas.
"Poop" is a regular topic of conversation around here. Just keepin' it real, this is some of what we deal with on a daily basis.
On the non-crappy side of things, I started a new job this week! Fate had a conversation with irony and arranged this one for me: I was eligible for all sorts of state and federal assistance programs until I started my new job, and now I help people with their applications for those same programs. I have been blessed with the opportunity to help people who are -- literally -- where I just was, last week.
I know (some of) what they're going through, so I think I'm really going to enjoy parts of this job. Everyone has a unique story, and I know what a blessing and relief it is when your family is taken care of. The parts I won't enjoy are in there, too, as there are some clients who have some....interesting philosophies...regarding entitlement issues and how to improve one's financial position, and I am going to have to tell some people "no" and deal with the fall-out. Luckily for me, I am not making the final decision on the eligibility issues, so I don't have to sweat or fret about making the right or wrong decision, I just have to let them know what the decision is. It won't help me when I have to tell someone I would love to help "no", though.
I'm going to have to learn how to emotionally distance myself from our clients, or I'm going to have a lot of heartbreak and bad days. This is not to say I can't be compassionate or caring, those qualities must be shown to everyone to provide dignity and respect to the client. I just can't cry every time I have to turn someone away who is in desperate need. And I also can't get mad or too frustrated if I get a client who is obviously lying and trying to pull a fast one, like yesterday.
There will be a learning curve, but I'm glad to both have a job, and have a job where I can help people at a time when they need it most.
Cooking Venture -- Greek-Style Spinach Pie
Spinach is one of the first things we harvest in the spring-time here. It is very tolerant of cold weather, and when planted under cloches or in a cold-frame, you can get a very early harvest! It is so refreshing to have fresh greens after a long winter.
One of our favorite things to do with spinach in this house is to incorporate it into a variety of Greek and Mediterranean dishes. Our favorite, hands down, is spanikopita. The traditional version calls for many, many sheets of phyllo pastry and a lot of butter that's brushed between the pastry sheets. While it tastes fabulous (sometimes I swear I hear an angelic chorus when I take my first bite), it is loaded with a lot of fat. And the fat cells in my butt are the friendly sort, always welcoming to newcomers.
Soooo, after some experimentation, I have come up with a lower-fat version using pie crusts. Notice I did not say "fat-free", pie crust has enough lipid storage-inducing action of its own. But the fat content of the pie crust is still much, much lower than the traditional phyllo and butter combination. Without further ado, my perversion of Greek spinach pie:
Non-traditional Greek-style Spinach Pie
2 pounds fresh spinach -- washed, stemmed, and chopped
olive oil
1 medium onion -- finely chopped
1 bunch of green onions, or about 4 to 5 scallions -- finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh snipped dill
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
4 large eggs
8 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 to 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (if you have kefalotiri cheese, use that)
1/4 tsp salt, to taste (optional, depends on how salty your feta is)
freshly ground black pepper -- just a few grinds
pinch of freshly ground nutmeg -- a little goes a long way
crusts for a covered 9-inch pie (two pieces of pastry, one on top and one on bottom)
Preheat oven to 375 deg F.
Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet, over medium heat. Add onion and green onion/scallions, cook until softened (about 6 minutes).
Add chopped spinach a little at a time, cooking until wilted and liquid is released. Once all the spinach has been added to the pan (and this takes a few minutes), turn up the heat to "high" and cook until the liquid is gone and the spinach is fairly dry. Stir often to prevent burning!! The liquid evaporation will take about 10 minutes or so.
Add the dill and parsley, mix well. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Place spinach into colander and press to remove any excess liquid that might be in there.
In a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Add the cooled spinach mixture, the feta, parmesan cheese, salt, a few grinds of black pepper, and the pinch of nutmeg. Mix well, ensuring the egg is completely incorporated (otherwise you'll get weird veins of scrambled egg in the middle of your spinach pie...just speaking from experience here).
Lightly grease a glass/ceramic pie dish with cooking oil. Place one crust on the bottom of the dish, making sure it fits on the bottom and up the sides, and filling in any holes or gaps. Put spinach/egg/cheese mixture into crust, spreading to evenly fill. I tend to make mine a little higher in the center and lower around the sides, but that's just my preference. Top with the other pie crust, sealing around the edges. Cut a few vent slits on the top of the pie with a sharp knife.
Bake for 45 minutes or so, or until your crust is golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
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NOTES: If you don't grow your own spinach, you can buy 2 of the 16-oz bags of fresh spinach at the market, or 3 of the 10-oz bags will get you close enough. I've also used 3 10-oz boxes of the frozen chopped spinach and it turns out just fine. DO NOT USE CANNED SPINACH, I can tell you from experience that it just does not work out well.
Also, you really do want to drain the cooked spinach mixture in a colander. This is important, because if there is extra liquid it makes the finished dish soggy and limp, and the crust is slimy. This goes for making it the traditional way with the phyllo, too. Removing all that liquid makes the dish have more body and a pleasing texture. You don't have to let it cool before doing this step, I just don't like to burn my hands. Allowing it to cool slightly also prevents the hot spinach from immediately cooking the eggs in the next step.
I have found that it is generally cheaper to buy a solid 8-oz block of feta and crumble it myself, than to purchase it already crumbled.
You can use dried herbs in place of the fresh ones, just use way less since dried herbs are so much stronger in flavor.
You can make your own pie crusts, or buy a box of 2 at the market.
My kids scarf this recipe, even my anti-vegetable son. He loves it!
Enjoy!
One of our favorite things to do with spinach in this house is to incorporate it into a variety of Greek and Mediterranean dishes. Our favorite, hands down, is spanikopita. The traditional version calls for many, many sheets of phyllo pastry and a lot of butter that's brushed between the pastry sheets. While it tastes fabulous (sometimes I swear I hear an angelic chorus when I take my first bite), it is loaded with a lot of fat. And the fat cells in my butt are the friendly sort, always welcoming to newcomers.
Soooo, after some experimentation, I have come up with a lower-fat version using pie crusts. Notice I did not say "fat-free", pie crust has enough lipid storage-inducing action of its own. But the fat content of the pie crust is still much, much lower than the traditional phyllo and butter combination. Without further ado, my perversion of Greek spinach pie:
Non-traditional Greek-style Spinach Pie
2 pounds fresh spinach -- washed, stemmed, and chopped
olive oil
1 medium onion -- finely chopped
1 bunch of green onions, or about 4 to 5 scallions -- finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh snipped dill
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
4 large eggs
8 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 to 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (if you have kefalotiri cheese, use that)
1/4 tsp salt, to taste (optional, depends on how salty your feta is)
freshly ground black pepper -- just a few grinds
pinch of freshly ground nutmeg -- a little goes a long way
crusts for a covered 9-inch pie (two pieces of pastry, one on top and one on bottom)
Preheat oven to 375 deg F.
Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet, over medium heat. Add onion and green onion/scallions, cook until softened (about 6 minutes).
Add chopped spinach a little at a time, cooking until wilted and liquid is released. Once all the spinach has been added to the pan (and this takes a few minutes), turn up the heat to "high" and cook until the liquid is gone and the spinach is fairly dry. Stir often to prevent burning!! The liquid evaporation will take about 10 minutes or so.
Add the dill and parsley, mix well. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Place spinach into colander and press to remove any excess liquid that might be in there.
In a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Add the cooled spinach mixture, the feta, parmesan cheese, salt, a few grinds of black pepper, and the pinch of nutmeg. Mix well, ensuring the egg is completely incorporated (otherwise you'll get weird veins of scrambled egg in the middle of your spinach pie...just speaking from experience here).
Lightly grease a glass/ceramic pie dish with cooking oil. Place one crust on the bottom of the dish, making sure it fits on the bottom and up the sides, and filling in any holes or gaps. Put spinach/egg/cheese mixture into crust, spreading to evenly fill. I tend to make mine a little higher in the center and lower around the sides, but that's just my preference. Top with the other pie crust, sealing around the edges. Cut a few vent slits on the top of the pie with a sharp knife.
Bake for 45 minutes or so, or until your crust is golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
************************************
NOTES: If you don't grow your own spinach, you can buy 2 of the 16-oz bags of fresh spinach at the market, or 3 of the 10-oz bags will get you close enough. I've also used 3 10-oz boxes of the frozen chopped spinach and it turns out just fine. DO NOT USE CANNED SPINACH, I can tell you from experience that it just does not work out well.
Also, you really do want to drain the cooked spinach mixture in a colander. This is important, because if there is extra liquid it makes the finished dish soggy and limp, and the crust is slimy. This goes for making it the traditional way with the phyllo, too. Removing all that liquid makes the dish have more body and a pleasing texture. You don't have to let it cool before doing this step, I just don't like to burn my hands. Allowing it to cool slightly also prevents the hot spinach from immediately cooking the eggs in the next step.
I have found that it is generally cheaper to buy a solid 8-oz block of feta and crumble it myself, than to purchase it already crumbled.
You can use dried herbs in place of the fresh ones, just use way less since dried herbs are so much stronger in flavor.
You can make your own pie crusts, or buy a box of 2 at the market.
My kids scarf this recipe, even my anti-vegetable son. He loves it!
Enjoy!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Sew What?
WARNING: This post has been rated "D" by the DGAU (Domestic Goddess Association of the Universe), for showing graphic detail of the Domestically Disabled.
If you're a crafty person with a modicum of skill with a needle, read this at your own peril. The author is not responsible for any twitches, eyebrows arched in disbelief, or gobsmacked expressions that may occur while reading this post.
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If you're still reading this, let it be known once again that as talented as I am at some artistic media (including music and paint), sewing eludes me. It seems so simple, a child could do it. In fact, children do do it, every day in various countries of the world. (I almost edited that last sentence, but then decided, what the heck? I'll leave it in there for my own base amusement).
Having been unemployed for two months now, my husband and I are trying to find things to do around the house to keep ourselves busy, make things better, and stay out of each other's hair. We rounded up all the partial cans of paint under the stairs and mixed a few together to paint the kitchen a nice, mediterranean-type of yellow -- like a sun-washed, aged stucco found on an old Italian farmhouse. At least, that was the goal; we actually came pretty close.
I think the lingering paint fumes may have had something to do with my next move: "Hey!" I thought to myself. "I have all this material from these old red-and- gold striped curtains, so I'll just use it to make some valances for the kitchen windows."
For those that don't know, I'll repeat again that I am a sewing dunce. I was actually banned from touching the sewing machines in 7th grade Home Ec because I broke two of them. The teacher wasn't sure how I'd managed it, either, but I had to hand-sew my final project, which was an apron. Perhaps that is why I really don't enjoy this particular craft to this day...I didn't own a thimble and got pricked quite a lot. I even used to be pretty upset at the Biblical Eve. I figured that if she hadn't have goofed up in the Garden, then I wouldn't be having to suffer through sewing class in Junior High School because there wouldn't be a need for it.
Fast-forward twentyish years, and here I am attempting this activity once again. I told myself it wasn't that difficult, and to quit being so put off by the idea of sewing. I know lots of people that sew lots of cute things. I should be able to do this, right? Right? So, I get out my little basic sewing machine that I was given a number of years ago...it's cute, yellow, and only makes one straight stitch, in the forward direction only. It would appear to be idiot-proof, and yet somehow it was not the case.
After fumbling with the darned thing for about an hour, I got it to actually sew. Yes, I read the directions. Then it took me another hour and a half to cut and pin the fabric I was trying to sew, to make it all even so my valances matched in length. I had three windows to do, so a total of six hems were required. I stabbed myself a few times, but I shook it off because I was sooooo determined to do this, and do it right. I sat down at the little sewing machine, and put my first piece of material in place...and stared at it for a moment. I started sewing...did you know it is very easy to sew a crooked line? I can apparently do those very easily.
I ripped out the first seam, and tried it again. Three hours later, I have one valance completed because I wasn't going to do it over yet again, half of another valance done, and think I'm starting to get the hang of this stuff. The last seam I had completed was moderately straight, and I only had to do it once. Foolish mortal. It was at that point that I broke the sewing machine needle. And lots of thread. (Did you know that it is a very important thing to make sure the "foot" is all the way down before you start to sew? Now I do, too.)
So, after another couple of hours, all three curtain panels are done and I got them hung. It only took me six hours to get these done (an average of one hour per seam). I have two short, straight panels on the side windows, and a bunched version the same depth that is over the larger sink window. Now that I look at them, I can see that they are in desperate need of an iron, but at this point I am too tired to care. I'm gonna have to claim the "domestically disabled" status for this, too. I generally only iron when I'm angry.
Here's a couple of examples of what I finally produced. They're not perfect, but they'll work. It's the principle of the thing, y'know? I made 'em and bled for 'em, so they're staying up there for a while. You'll notice that even though both of these windows are in the same room, the yellow looks different in the two pictures. This is because I have a naked fluorescent bulb perched over the sink that bathes everything in a garish light. Incidentally, the bunched curtain's hem is actually even (I know; will wonders never cease?), it just looks wonky in the picture due to the angle.
I'm thinking those paint fumes must have been pretty darned strong, because a few days later, I decide that the descent into sewing hell hadn't really been all that bad, and decide to attempt a new project. Please select from the following:
Does this look like:
A) a hand puppet that conveniently doubles as a voodoo doll,
B) Gumby had a run-in with an incinerator,
C) a maxi-pad on steroids, or
D) a cloth representation of a 3-yr-old's drawing of an airplane?
I can tell you that it's none of the above, although the maxi-pad is the closest. Because we are unemployed, keeping my son in disposable butt covers is becoming a challenge. I am trying to figure out ways to make a washable, reusable liner for his undies that is both comfortable, but also really absorbent so we don't have accidents in public. Something tells me this first attempt is just a bit off the mark, but it's my first try.
I used old fleece sweatpants as the outer layer, for both his bum's comfort and the "gripping action" of the fleece, similar to how a flannel-board works. I figured it would help the liner to stay in place in his undies. The "wings" are supposed to have snaps set in place, and will lock under his briefs much the same way "wings" do on a feminine product. I lined the bottom with a vinyl fabric, and put the interior of an old pair of training pants and two layers of super-absorbent chamois cloth in the middle.
Next try, I'm going to use part of an old fabric-covered travel baby-changing pad as the water-proof element and fiddle with my proportions a bit. The current prototype hangs out the top and bottom of my son's briefs...my measurements were a little too generous. I knew you had to allow some extra room for seam-allowances, but didn't know how much. To my credit, though, I stitched the whole mess together inside out, and flipped it right-side out, so all the seams are on the interior of this...thing. What you see is the unfinished bottom where I haven't sewn it all shut yet. You can also see that I am having to repair one of the "wings" which was pulled loose during the flipping portion of the project. A few unflattering terms may have come loose, too, while I was trying to turn it inside out.
Due to all the time I'm spending getting to know my sewing machine (and my seam ripper), I am starting to re-think my original classification of the act of sewing. I no longer think it deserves a place in Dante's Inferno, in a Canto reserved especially for the craftily inept. Although I am far from being competent with a needle and thread, this sewing stuff does show some promise...not including the incinerated Gumby, of course.
If you're a crafty person with a modicum of skill with a needle, read this at your own peril. The author is not responsible for any twitches, eyebrows arched in disbelief, or gobsmacked expressions that may occur while reading this post.
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If you're still reading this, let it be known once again that as talented as I am at some artistic media (including music and paint), sewing eludes me. It seems so simple, a child could do it. In fact, children do do it, every day in various countries of the world. (I almost edited that last sentence, but then decided, what the heck? I'll leave it in there for my own base amusement).
Having been unemployed for two months now, my husband and I are trying to find things to do around the house to keep ourselves busy, make things better, and stay out of each other's hair. We rounded up all the partial cans of paint under the stairs and mixed a few together to paint the kitchen a nice, mediterranean-type of yellow -- like a sun-washed, aged stucco found on an old Italian farmhouse. At least, that was the goal; we actually came pretty close.
I think the lingering paint fumes may have had something to do with my next move: "Hey!" I thought to myself. "I have all this material from these old red-and- gold striped curtains, so I'll just use it to make some valances for the kitchen windows."
For those that don't know, I'll repeat again that I am a sewing dunce. I was actually banned from touching the sewing machines in 7th grade Home Ec because I broke two of them. The teacher wasn't sure how I'd managed it, either, but I had to hand-sew my final project, which was an apron. Perhaps that is why I really don't enjoy this particular craft to this day...I didn't own a thimble and got pricked quite a lot. I even used to be pretty upset at the Biblical Eve. I figured that if she hadn't have goofed up in the Garden, then I wouldn't be having to suffer through sewing class in Junior High School because there wouldn't be a need for it.
Fast-forward twentyish years, and here I am attempting this activity once again. I told myself it wasn't that difficult, and to quit being so put off by the idea of sewing. I know lots of people that sew lots of cute things. I should be able to do this, right? Right? So, I get out my little basic sewing machine that I was given a number of years ago...it's cute, yellow, and only makes one straight stitch, in the forward direction only. It would appear to be idiot-proof, and yet somehow it was not the case.
After fumbling with the darned thing for about an hour, I got it to actually sew. Yes, I read the directions. Then it took me another hour and a half to cut and pin the fabric I was trying to sew, to make it all even so my valances matched in length. I had three windows to do, so a total of six hems were required. I stabbed myself a few times, but I shook it off because I was sooooo determined to do this, and do it right. I sat down at the little sewing machine, and put my first piece of material in place...and stared at it for a moment. I started sewing...did you know it is very easy to sew a crooked line? I can apparently do those very easily.
I ripped out the first seam, and tried it again. Three hours later, I have one valance completed because I wasn't going to do it over yet again, half of another valance done, and think I'm starting to get the hang of this stuff. The last seam I had completed was moderately straight, and I only had to do it once. Foolish mortal. It was at that point that I broke the sewing machine needle. And lots of thread. (Did you know that it is a very important thing to make sure the "foot" is all the way down before you start to sew? Now I do, too.)
So, after another couple of hours, all three curtain panels are done and I got them hung. It only took me six hours to get these done (an average of one hour per seam). I have two short, straight panels on the side windows, and a bunched version the same depth that is over the larger sink window. Now that I look at them, I can see that they are in desperate need of an iron, but at this point I am too tired to care. I'm gonna have to claim the "domestically disabled" status for this, too. I generally only iron when I'm angry.
Here's a couple of examples of what I finally produced. They're not perfect, but they'll work. It's the principle of the thing, y'know? I made 'em and bled for 'em, so they're staying up there for a while. You'll notice that even though both of these windows are in the same room, the yellow looks different in the two pictures. This is because I have a naked fluorescent bulb perched over the sink that bathes everything in a garish light. Incidentally, the bunched curtain's hem is actually even (I know; will wonders never cease?), it just looks wonky in the picture due to the angle.
I'm thinking those paint fumes must have been pretty darned strong, because a few days later, I decide that the descent into sewing hell hadn't really been all that bad, and decide to attempt a new project. Please select from the following:
Does this look like:
A) a hand puppet that conveniently doubles as a voodoo doll,
B) Gumby had a run-in with an incinerator,
C) a maxi-pad on steroids, or
D) a cloth representation of a 3-yr-old's drawing of an airplane?
I can tell you that it's none of the above, although the maxi-pad is the closest. Because we are unemployed, keeping my son in disposable butt covers is becoming a challenge. I am trying to figure out ways to make a washable, reusable liner for his undies that is both comfortable, but also really absorbent so we don't have accidents in public. Something tells me this first attempt is just a bit off the mark, but it's my first try.
I used old fleece sweatpants as the outer layer, for both his bum's comfort and the "gripping action" of the fleece, similar to how a flannel-board works. I figured it would help the liner to stay in place in his undies. The "wings" are supposed to have snaps set in place, and will lock under his briefs much the same way "wings" do on a feminine product. I lined the bottom with a vinyl fabric, and put the interior of an old pair of training pants and two layers of super-absorbent chamois cloth in the middle.
Next try, I'm going to use part of an old fabric-covered travel baby-changing pad as the water-proof element and fiddle with my proportions a bit. The current prototype hangs out the top and bottom of my son's briefs...my measurements were a little too generous. I knew you had to allow some extra room for seam-allowances, but didn't know how much. To my credit, though, I stitched the whole mess together inside out, and flipped it right-side out, so all the seams are on the interior of this...thing. What you see is the unfinished bottom where I haven't sewn it all shut yet. You can also see that I am having to repair one of the "wings" which was pulled loose during the flipping portion of the project. A few unflattering terms may have come loose, too, while I was trying to turn it inside out.
Due to all the time I'm spending getting to know my sewing machine (and my seam ripper), I am starting to re-think my original classification of the act of sewing. I no longer think it deserves a place in Dante's Inferno, in a Canto reserved especially for the craftily inept. Although I am far from being competent with a needle and thread, this sewing stuff does show some promise...not including the incinerated Gumby, of course.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Fancy Feast -- Pumpkin Muffins
My daughter requested a tea party breakfast a couple of nights ago, to which I absently replied, "Sure! No problem!" before I really thought about it.
I completely forgot about her request until I'd put her brother on the bus yesterday morning. I was cruising around the kitchen trying to figure out if I wanted to make something or just do cereal for breakfast when her request ricocheted from somewhere in the depths of my brain.
Luckily, at this age she's also pretty easy to please. I found a can of pumpkin hiding in the pantry (you have to watch those rogue cans, you know) and decided I would make these delectable "nuffins". They are great for sneaking in some beta carotene and fiber in your kids' (or your) diet.
Pumpkin Muffins
--------------------------------------
2 1/2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 T cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3 eggs
1 3/4 cup plain unspiced pumpkin (1 regular-sized can)
3/4 cups veg oil
1/2 cup raisins
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease 18 muffin cups.
In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients well. In a separate bowl, beat eggs, add pumpkin and oil, stirring to combine. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients until everything is just moistened and incorporated. Do not over mix!! Add raisins, stirring just to combine.
Fill 18 muffin cups 3/4 full (you can also do 12 muffins and 2 mini loaf pans with this recipe). Sprinkle tops with cinnamon and sugar. I keep some on hand in a shaker and use it on toast, but in case you don't, here's a nice ratio:
2 T sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until done.
Here's something that I do that helps when filling muffin cups: I use the small gravy ladle that comes with your "serving" set from your flatware. Note that this is NOT a standard ladle, generally used for soups or drinks. Using the (small) gravy ladle means less drips and mess than using a straight spoon, and one ladle-full is generally just right per muffin cup.
*******************************************************
Be sure to note the obnoxious rings around my burners. I have not found a cleaner yet that will take them completely off, and I can't use abrasives on my ceramic cooktop. So here they are, for your viewing pleasure. Hey, just keepin' it real.
Miss K loved her fancy "tea" party for breakfast. She opted for the royal hot chocolate with marshmallows instead of tea but that's OK. Aren't princesses allowed some concessions every now and then? We noshed with a tiara (of course), blanket spread on the floor like a "picnic", and an artful display of toy food from K's play kitchen, lovingly arranged by K herself.
I did question the plastic food replicas, but was informed in no uncertain terms that they needed to be there. Apparently I'm too gauche to know that play food is a required presence for all fancy tea party breakfasts. I really need to learn current hostessing etiquette...
I completely forgot about her request until I'd put her brother on the bus yesterday morning. I was cruising around the kitchen trying to figure out if I wanted to make something or just do cereal for breakfast when her request ricocheted from somewhere in the depths of my brain.
Luckily, at this age she's also pretty easy to please. I found a can of pumpkin hiding in the pantry (you have to watch those rogue cans, you know) and decided I would make these delectable "nuffins". They are great for sneaking in some beta carotene and fiber in your kids' (or your) diet.
Pumpkin Muffins
--------------------------------------
2 1/2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 T cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3 eggs
1 3/4 cup plain unspiced pumpkin (1 regular-sized can)
3/4 cups veg oil
1/2 cup raisins
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease 18 muffin cups.
In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients well. In a separate bowl, beat eggs, add pumpkin and oil, stirring to combine. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients until everything is just moistened and incorporated. Do not over mix!! Add raisins, stirring just to combine.
Fill 18 muffin cups 3/4 full (you can also do 12 muffins and 2 mini loaf pans with this recipe). Sprinkle tops with cinnamon and sugar. I keep some on hand in a shaker and use it on toast, but in case you don't, here's a nice ratio:
2 T sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until done.
Here's something that I do that helps when filling muffin cups: I use the small gravy ladle that comes with your "serving" set from your flatware. Note that this is NOT a standard ladle, generally used for soups or drinks. Using the (small) gravy ladle means less drips and mess than using a straight spoon, and one ladle-full is generally just right per muffin cup.
*******************************************************
Be sure to note the obnoxious rings around my burners. I have not found a cleaner yet that will take them completely off, and I can't use abrasives on my ceramic cooktop. So here they are, for your viewing pleasure. Hey, just keepin' it real.
Miss K loved her fancy "tea" party for breakfast. She opted for the royal hot chocolate with marshmallows instead of tea but that's OK. Aren't princesses allowed some concessions every now and then? We noshed with a tiara (of course), blanket spread on the floor like a "picnic", and an artful display of toy food from K's play kitchen, lovingly arranged by K herself.
I did question the plastic food replicas, but was informed in no uncertain terms that they needed to be there. Apparently I'm too gauche to know that play food is a required presence for all fancy tea party breakfasts. I really need to learn current hostessing etiquette...
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Promises...
The weather has all of a sudden turned fabulous, we should have highs in the 50's here tomorrow. On a sunny morning a few days ago I was walking our two dogs and reveling in the way the day felt. It was still cool, but the smell of the damp earth, combined with the angle of the sun and seeing the buds start to form on the trees, hinted and promised spring's doorstep.
I also have tulips, hyacinths, and daffodils just starting to poke their sleepy heads up above the surface in my front beds. That's a relief! I wasn't sure what my tenants left and didn't leave. So I'm at least guaranteed some spring flowers this year. If I can get some seeds I was given last fall to germinate, I'll have some nice beds this year (cross your fingers).
I was also laughed at when I was running errands today; I know it's only the 6th of March, but I picked up a handful of vegetable and herb seed packets. Some things, like tomatos and peppers, need to be started here in the next couple of weeks to be ready to set out in May. I scored several heirloom varieties of tomatos, carrots, and beans, so I'm excited to grow them this year! Not only can I save the seeds and not have to buy more next year, but this is also some of the same things my grandparents grew up with. There is a neat historical context to the whole thing.
We'll see how it all goes; I spent less than $13 on 22 seed packets. At least I know we'll be eating well come June/July timeframe...we just have to make it until then! (I'll be setting out spinach and lettuce in rigged cloches to get a jump start, since they're cool-growers anyway).
Promises of springtime, and promises of a bountiful harvest beckon.
I also have tulips, hyacinths, and daffodils just starting to poke their sleepy heads up above the surface in my front beds. That's a relief! I wasn't sure what my tenants left and didn't leave. So I'm at least guaranteed some spring flowers this year. If I can get some seeds I was given last fall to germinate, I'll have some nice beds this year (cross your fingers).
I was also laughed at when I was running errands today; I know it's only the 6th of March, but I picked up a handful of vegetable and herb seed packets. Some things, like tomatos and peppers, need to be started here in the next couple of weeks to be ready to set out in May. I scored several heirloom varieties of tomatos, carrots, and beans, so I'm excited to grow them this year! Not only can I save the seeds and not have to buy more next year, but this is also some of the same things my grandparents grew up with. There is a neat historical context to the whole thing.
We'll see how it all goes; I spent less than $13 on 22 seed packets. At least I know we'll be eating well come June/July timeframe...we just have to make it until then! (I'll be setting out spinach and lettuce in rigged cloches to get a jump start, since they're cool-growers anyway).
Promises of springtime, and promises of a bountiful harvest beckon.
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