Continual State of Becoming

This was really good and not at all difficult to make.  The sauce could also be used over pasta.  Im sure I'm not the first person to ever make a roasted tomato sauce like this, but I didn't follow a recipe.  Instead I changed one from a tv show... Chucks Day Off on the Cooking Channel.  He made a smoked tomato-tarragon sauce and it looked really good and simple.  Except I don't have a smoker, so I decided to try and roast it instead.  The first time I made it, the tarragon was a little too powerful, so this time around I used basil instead (figuring it was a more classic pairing).  I liked it much better this way.  It's super easy and quick because you dont have to do much careful chopping (like you would when you make a marinara since it all goes in the processor)  So here's how I made it: 4 medium tomatoes, quartered 1/2 a medium onion, roughly chopped 2 cloves garlic, smashed 3 of the biggest basil leaves I've ever seen in my life Olive oil, salty, pep...

Yay!  I finally figured out how to read Library eBooks on my iPad.  Ive been reading a lot lately and some people have asked me if I'm considering getting a Kindle or Nook or something like that.  But I get nearly all of my books from the library for free.  And as convenient as an eBook reader would be, I just can't justify spending all that money for a device, and then even more money for books. Right now my monthly book budget is right around $0.  It's hard to improve on that.  But one thing I have been waiting for, knowing that it eventually has to happen, is a way to borrow library books on my iPad.  I mean you can borrow eBooks on your computer, but I'm not about to sit at my desk and read a whole book.  How much harder could it be to get the book on my iPad?  Apparently it's not as simple as I think it should be, but it is finally possible.  Unfortunately I only have like 300 books to choose from (stupid DRM), but I'll take what I can get for now, because ...

I cannot begin to describe my frustration with trying to keep the house clean while we are doing showings.  I didn't think it would be that bad because I tend to keep the house fairly clean in general.  But not spotless... because that would drive me insane... and guess what?  It is driving me insane.  Trying to keep a house perfectly spotless and relatively unlived-in looking with a toddler and a husky (in her peak shedding season) is beyond frustrating.  I spent most of today cleaning the house only to have everything I do undone not even 5 minutes later.  Vacuum the living room, Eve walks through and clumps of fur fall onto the carpet.  Put away miscellaneous toys, gadgets, water cups, etc. only to turn around and see that Dylan pulled out his 50 alphabet blocks and spread them evenly throughout the upstairs level, wipe the counters then spill milk all over them.  Ugh.  At least we didn't have any showings today... though I think that's the most frustrating part.  I do a...

As we prepare for a possible move (staying in the same area) I've been thinking about a lot of my previous moves and my take on moving in general.  I moved a lot as a kid... a lot.  Herndon VA was the 11th city I had lived in and at that time I was a sophomore in high school.  My parents still live there, and I still live in the same general area (only about 30 mins away).  It's crazy for me to think that I've lived in this area for nearly 14 years, and that Matt and I have been in the same house for over 7 years. There have been pluses and minuses to moving so much.  I definitely think it had a big impact on the person I am today, for better and worse.  But now that I've finally been in one area long enough I've finally experienced how a stationary place changes over time. For instance:   • Radio stations change their programming.  I didnt know this happened.  Actually I didnt really ever think about it enough to guess that this ever happened.  I still remembe...

Lizards are everywhere outside of my hotel!  Fortunately, not inside, though I wouldn't be surprised if one found it's way in.  Whenever I walk anywhere they all scurry into the bushes. I'm sure Dylan would be in heaven. Harmony's wedding was beautiful :) Of course, I expected no less.  Picture perfect day, the weather wasn't too hot or too cold, there was a nice breeze, it was really perfect.  Followed by a fun and lively reception (thanks in large part to a Latin band).  I'm so glad I was able to make it down here for it.  It also made me think of my own wedding... What a good and perfect day that was as well.  I wish we could get married again, it was fun!  Maybe we'll have to have some kind of vow renewal celebration in the future.  I've made it a good way into my book.  I'm hoping I'll be able to finish it, but it will be close.  Not much else to comment on since the whole point of this mini-vacation was to take advantage of being able t...

First time on a trip all by myself.  A truly introverted vacation so far.  I've been gone from home for less than 12 hours and I've made my way through about 200 pages of East of Eden (look at me reading a real book for a change), listened to  about 4 albums on my iPod, did about an hour of yoga, ate dinner by myself (where I knocked out a good 20 pages while waiting for food), successfully navigated through the airport and streets of Orlando.  There's been a minimum of interaction with other people, so i haven't even had many conversations.  It's been nice and peaceful.  Though every time I see someone with a toddler I think "oh Dylan... i wonder what he and Matt are doing." and my hotel has a bunch of outdoor fun areas and I keep thinking that Dylan would low to run around in the soft grass, then I remember that he's a plane ride away.  It's a good thing that I miss them, but I'm still going to enjoy my alone time. So Matt and I have been t...

Yay!  I get so excited when I have new music to listen to.  I am currently working my way through the following: Mumford and Sons: Sigh No More Amazon has been recommending this CD/Band for me for a long time.  I think because I recently purchased several Avett Brothers discs and apparently these bands go hand in hand (even the people who do the Grammys think so).  So after I saw their Grammy performance, I decided to go ahead and get the disc.  I loved their energy and sound.  Plus apparently I'm all into alt-folksy stuff now. Bright Eyes: In The People's Key My sister Sarah is obsessed with Bright Eyes like I am with Wilco.  She got me listening to them and I'm happy she did.  I instantly became a Conor Oberst junkie.  This is supposedly the last Bright Eyes album though, which is sad.  This album leans more electronic-y than my preferred Oberst stuff, but it's still good.  And I love his lyrics.  Sarah is going to see Bright Eyes in concert next month (I'll...

On Sunday night I made Garlic Roasted Chicken and Vegetables for dinner.  This is a delicious recipe and very simple to prepare.  I've sent to several mommy friends when they've had babies and it has been well received over all.  Since the meal itself is so good, I figured I'd share my favorite way to eat the leftovers (which I happen to think may be even better than the dinner).  I usually make rice to go with the chicken, which is essential for the leftover recipe.  All I do is cut up some of the leftover chicken into cubes, then I throw some rice, vegetables, and the chicken in a sauté pan (with a little olive oil) and let it heat up.  As usual when I make leftover rice, if you can get some of the rice to brown and crisp up it's extra good.  Then pour into a bowl and enjoy.  Takes a whopping 5 minutes to make.  If it seems a little dry you can add a tablespoon or so of chicken stock, but I find that the residual juices from the night before are plenty good. This ca...

In March, a good friend of mine from college is getting married in Florida.  I recently made the arrangements to attend the wedding, and guess what... I'm going by myself.  I'd love to go with Matt but we both agreed that we didn't really want to leave Dylan for that long (especially being so far away) and it's a kid-free wedding so we couldn't bring him with us (we also had a kid-free wedding), so I decided to attend solo.  And I realized something, I've never travelled by myself... Ever!  Which is just crazy, especially since I'm not someone who minds doing things by myself.  So I'm really looking forward to this experience.  I'm sure I'll enjoy being independent for a few days, having a quiet room to relax in and read a few books, and then when it's over I'll be even happier to come home to my husband and kid.  My only concern is having to navigate my way through Orlando, but I will be sure to have detailed directions for everywhere I ...

I have always found the following confusing: how we pronounce lose and loose so differently from how we pronounce chose and choose. The more I think about it, the more confused I get and the less convinced I am that choose is even a word (seriously, look at it, it's weird). End of Friday Morning Ramdomness.

I'm an INFJ according to all the Myers-Briggs assessments Ive done.  I pretty much agree with that.  (introverted, intuitive, feeling, judging). I know that one test can't possibly capture my entire personality, which is fine.   But knowing that I have a stronger introverted tendency, than extroverted helps me identify and explain certain behaviors I have so I think it's a valid label to that degree (one day I'll write a post about my take on labels.) I remember reading somewhere that J types like to make lists, I cant remember where I heard that though so it may not be true, but I'm pretty much basing this post on that, so i hope the reason I remembered it is that there is something truth to it. (ha!- this statement right here totally reinforces my INFJ-ness).  I am a list-aholic.  Seriously, I keep lists of some of the most ridiculous things.  There's the obvious to-do lists as well as grocery and shopping lists (which I couldn't get through the week wi...

I've been in a list making mood lately.  Which isn't really saying much since I am pretty much always in a list making mood, but it's been even more than normal lately.  Since seeing live music makes me really happy I decided to make a list of some of my favorite concerts.  So here they are:   1.  Jeff Tweedy in Charlottesville last month.  I still can't believe that I went to this.  It was incredible from start to finish. 2.  Wilco in Pittsburgh this past April.  Mostly because they had no opening act and played for just about 3 hours so we got to hear lots of their music.  Secondly, because they did a small, acoustic set in the middle of the show and there's nothing more I love than breaking things down like that.  Thirdly, because they performed Laminated Cat.  Fourthly, because the venue was a beautiful small chamber ensemble type theater, our view was great, and the sound was amazing. 3.  Bob Dylan with the Racontuers opening for him.  Front row seats again...

A few random thoughts and things going on lately: 2011 is off to a fairly uneventful start.  I made a bunch of personal resolutions in late 2010 that I have been doing well with.  I added one official 2011 resolution (in addition to the few personal goals I mentioned in my last post), which is to stop watching TV while Dylan is napping (at least during the week).  I've only had one slip up so far, but otherwise I really like the restriction, I can do anything else I want.  So a lot of time I clean, try to get through a few productive tasks, but I also read, listen to music, take a little nap, and surf the Internet. I remember when I was younger and I'd get a new CD and take it into my room, listen to it over and over while reading the lyrics until I knew all of the songs completely.  I miss doing that.  Now I'm lucky if I even learn the name of a song.  Case in point, the other night I was listening to a Bright Eyes song and thought, "for some reason this song alwa...

My annual end of the year survey. 1. What did you do in 2010 that you'd never done before? I purged stuff in the kitchen.  It was probably the only room I the house that i had never gone through before, and it is so much nicer after four rounds of decluttering.  Not only are the tops of the cabinets empty, but so is the top of the fridge... AND I even have a whole shelf in one of the cabinets that is completely empty. 2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Last year I said I was going to eat less sweets, and I totally forgot all about that.  But I've actually been giving it some thought this time so this year I have more things to work on: -empty out our storage unit. -finish reading the music dictionary -be able to touch my toes (when stretching) 3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes, a couple of my friends from mom's group. 4. Did anyone close to you die? No.  I just wish I could say the same for som...

I recently made a short winter playlist that I thought I'd share in case anyone out there is dying to know what music I'm listening to these days (doubt it).  I don't make playlists often because i usually like to listen to one group/musician at a time.  But this list includes some of my current favorite songs... whenever they happen to come on I find myself hitting the repeat button-- a few times.  At least I know where Dylan gets that from; we had to listen to Christmas Eve in Sarajevo nonstop on the way home from my parent's house today. I've had this blog for quite a long time now, so I may be repeating myself, so I apologize in advance if that is the case.  I tend to listen to certain types of music in different seasons.  In winter I prefer mellower, more subdued music, so if this list seems to be lacking in energy, that's why. 1.  Remember the Mountain Bed, lyrics by Woodie Guthry music by Wilco and Billy Bragg 2.  Fake Plastic Trees by Radiohead 3.  Sunke...

Consider this fair warning for anyone with little kids who come into contact with Dylan in the future...  We are not planning on leading Dylan to believe that Santa is real.  I realize this is not the norm, but this was something that we agreed on long before we had a kid.  We decided that we want to be completely honest with Dylan when it comes to Santa, I also don't want to get caught up in the trap of "you need to be good or Santa won't come." I've felt pretty strongly for a while that being good and doing good are things that should happen simply because they are good... not in order to get something out of it for yourself (though the episode of Friends where Joey tells Phoebe that no good deed goes without self satisfaction comes to mind every time think that.) So how are we handling Christmas now that Dylan is old enough to kind of know what's going on?  Well, at this point it's not so much about us sitting down with him and explaining the myth of Sa...

Okay, so I don't typically follow recipes to a T when I make savory meals, but I do usually use them as guidelines.  They help give me an idea of flavors that work together, as well as ratios of ingredients so that one ingredient doesn't overwhelm the whole meal.  But this is one of the first recipes I kinda made up all on my own.  Not entirely though, I watched an episode of Jamie Oliver the other day and he made a soup similar to this that used coconut milk, so i got the idea there, but I didn't look anything up when I started this I just threw it all together myself.  And it was delicious!  So here is what I would consider to be my first recipe.  There maybe something else like this out there somewhere... But I want to write down my version here in case I ever decide to make it again.  Measurements aren't exact because I don't measure, I just go by look and taste. Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut milk 1 container of pre-cut butternut squash, further cut down to...

On Wednesday, Matt and I made a relatively quick trip down to Charlottesville for a very special concert... We saw Jeff Tweedy! I have wanted to see him on a solo tour for a few years now (really ever since we started listening to Wilco and I happened to come across an amazing review of one of his solo concerts.) Matt also got a DVD of one of his tours from a few years ago and this quickly became one of my favorites. In one of the backstage clips Tweedy says that this is the type of concert you drink a warm glass of milk and put on slippers to get ready for, and that sums it up fairly well. I remember watching it many many times at 2:00 am when I was pregnant with Dylan and having a hard time sleeping. I'd pour myself a small glass of milk (for the heart burn) and sit on the couch and watch it until I felt better and could sleep again. I think it has the same kind of calming effect on me that Agnes Martin paintings do. So while we have seen Wilco several times, I was still hop...

Thanksgiving Dinner I'm documenting our Thanksgiving dinner that we had at the Restaurant at Patowmack Farm.  They actually sent us home with personalized menus, rolled up and tied with a bow, and a small part of me was super excited to add that to my paper mementos collection...  But then i remembered that I'm no longer keeping a paper mementos collection, so instead I'm going to copy the menu onto my blog, and recycle the paper.  This is more for my sake than anything else, but i have had some people ask about the menu, so here it is. Amuse Bouche:  consisted of a trio of pickled vegetables...  Dill green beans, beets, and turnips with tomatoes and olives.  Dylan ate Matt's olives. Peppercorn pear soup with celery cream, button mushrooms and frisee Acquerello organic rice with turkey gumbo, kusshi oysters, and leek fries.  This turkey in this was super delicious, the oysters were weird.  Good on their own, but they definitely stood out as a random ocean taste in this ...

Despite all my claims of being a Purger and striving for a more minimalist lifestyle, I recently learned that I am guilty of both of the above. Hoarding and a collection. How did that happen, and why wasn't I aware of it until recently? Well, here's the story... When I was in high school and middle school I started saving all kinds of paper mementos, cards from friends, notes passed around in class, ticket stubs from movies, paper place mats from restaurants, etc. if it was paper and smallish, it was fair game for being saved. This habit continued on into college and beyond. I managed to keep all these trinkets in a series of shoe boxes stored at the top of our closet, so they really didn't look like clutter at all. And for the most part I had completely forgotten all about them until I cleaned out my closet a few weeks ago. When I came across all these boxes I initially thought "oh, here are my memories, I can't let go of this stuff." but then I realiz...