Labor Day Weekend

 Oh, what a difference a ten-fifteen temperature drop makes, as well as an extra day off. This weekend has seriously been the best. Like, nearing perfection, so obviously I need to commemorate the greatness. 

There have been friends- Sawyer and I met up with a good friend for breakfast and park time in Claremont, which is just the cutest little city. I also got to visit with another friend later that day and made some plans to meet up with people soon. Sometimes I'm envious of people who are content being hermits, but I like to maintain my friendships and be out and about at least most weekends every month.

There has been family time- the three of us walked around the duck pond, went to the park, ran some errands, and have just generally hung out. Sawyer is learning how to play hide-and-go-seek, which is hilarious, and his sticker obsession is still going strong. Scott and I finally finished the last episode of the last season of Mad Men, too. 

There has been so much outside time- Three different parks, the duck pond, two dog walks, three Sawyer walks, and some time in the backyard. This weather makes me so very happy.

There has been food- I am on an acai bowl kick right now and had two just this weekend. They're just so good! I also finally got the bagel I've been craving for days (I can't keep them in the house, or I'll eat one a day...), baked some chocolate-chip caramel bars for us and my sister-in-law's family with Sawyer, and have consumed gallons of coffee. There also might have been a milkshake for dinner Friday night... Plus some chicken parm and these delicious flat-bread sandwiches I've concocted. Oh, and possibly a tiny bit of wine at some point... Do you see why I work out so much now? 

There has been exercise- The walks I mentioned, plus a forty minute treadmill jog/incline walk/sprinting interval workout, and yoga. And my "do planks every day" goal is going strong. The more I work out the happier I am. 

There has been time to myself- Reading during Sawyer's nap, work outs, and even a pedicure. I was able to get through almost two-hundred pages of the Donna Tartt book I'm reading, and started I Am Malala, too, since I need something I can read in smaller bursts when things are hectic. And, the crowning glory of it all, I even went to Target alone. Sawyer is great in stores, but it's good to not have to deal with the car seat sometimes. 

There has been domestic and work productivity- Blah blah blah.

Hope everyone had a fantastic weekend! How many days until the next holiday? 

April, Revisited, Plus May

Sometimes I think my goals for the month should be:

1. Keep everyone alive

2. Don't lose my shit

3. Prevent house from becoming a hazmat area

But, alas, I like to torture myself. 

Last month's goals and progress:

1. Prep my students for testing: Yes At least to the best of my abilities and as much as they were willing to cooperate. Today was day one and they came out with the perfect level of confidence. Too much in either direction can be unsettling. I'm cautiously optimistic. 

2. Plan something for Sawyer's birthday: Yup We had fun at the aquarium, had his favorite dinner, and did the cake and present thing.

3. Book map up: No This shouldn't so hard.

4. Curb 3-7 snacking: Partially "Curb" is definitely not quite the word I'd use to describe it, but I definitely have improved. Some days I still want to eat everything that has excessive amounts of carbs and fat in the house (and, uh, probably do...), but on the days I'm careful and deliberate it's fine. I've noticed my levels of stress and energy are of course a factor. Smoothies have been a success in the sense that I've made them twice and have like a dozen cute little baggies full of frozen fruits and veggies made in the freezer... why am I lazy about the easiest part? 

5. Finish my audiobook and choose a new one: Yup and yup!

May

1. Abs, abs, and more abs- Once upon a time (aka before Sawyer) my core was fairly strong. Well, at least strong enough that I could pop up in a tripod headstand. While that is definitely something I'd like to be able to do again, right now I'd like to get into a routine of a quick ab routine five days a week.

2. Finalize June travel plans- I'm making two trips to places in June (Lake Tahoe for work and back home for... fun... or something like that) and need to deal with logistics.

3. While at home more iced tea than Diet Soda- Heartbreaking. 

4.  Enjoy the rest of the school year- I know this is probably an oxymoron for a lot of teachers, but the next month for me is the last few weeks I'll be spending with my seniors, an opportunity to get my room organized, and a time to reflect on how I want to start next school year. 

5. Organize Sawyer's toys- I am still coming to terms with the fact that I am responsible for another human's crap. My husband and I have always taken care of our own things, and now I have to sort through the clothes and toys Sawyer has outgrown. I have to clean another person's room. It's sort of bullshit, if you think about it.

6. Do book-related things and post about (some of) them- I'm supposed to attend a reading with a friend on the eleventh, go to a book festival with another friend next weekend, and need to just generally organize my books in general.  

I have decided that if I can stick to all five these I can upgrade my Fitbit at the end of the month. I feel guilty about getting a new one, since mine works just fine, but the of the matter is the black plastic band isn't exactly cute and I'm sick of it standing out when I'm attempting to look nice. 

May! Already! It's exciting. 

Weekend Update

I'm not necessarily vowing to make these a regular thing, but it is admittedly kind of a nice way to end the weekend and determine how the hell I actually spent my time. I swear, every Sunday night I'm baffled by how, well, how it's already Sunday night. So, here we are.

Yesterday I was up at 4:55, thanks to a certain little somebody who is trying to make me as miserable as humanly possible, and then the rest of the day was spent at work holding a practice exam, and then keeping Sawyer entertained with the sprinklers and park.

Today was pretty much constant activity, between meeting a friend for four miles this morning, braving Costco/Trader Joe's/Target with the church crowd, and walking the dogs. I did sneak away for an hour by the pool though, which makes me that much more impatient for summer. 

The only thing making Monday tolerable is the 17,000 calorie Costco muffins I bought for the first time ever. And rumor has it that most of the senior class will be calling in sick tomorrow... tis the season. I don't even remember my senior ditch day! If I wasn't so overworked I'd reenact it tomorrow since I'll be down to only two classes. If only.

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

Link up, link back, say hello, accept my apologies for sucking at commenting back on your awesome blogs (but soon! Vacation is coming!)

1. Who want invite me somewhere awesome so I have a reason to buy this predictably overpriced but oh-so-lovely dress from Anthro? This is why I should have signed up to chaperone prom. 

2. Last week I walked just over 102,000 mother-effing steps in five days (that's an average of about ten damn miles a day) in order to win a Fitbit challenge with a coworker new to the game. It was so bad that at eleven at night on Friday after an exhausting week I was on my treadmill reading magazines and texting kind people that were willing to entertain me while I attempted to stay awake. And did I win? NO! He beat me by about 5,000 steps. I pretend to be outraged (fine, I am a little bit), but it was actually super motivating and sort of fun. 

3. I bought a Deep Covered Baker from Pampered Chef a few months ago and have used it just a few times. I haven't used it enough to justify the expense quite yet, but now that I tried making their infamous lava cake in it I just might in the near future. Let me preface this with saying that I completely believe that the whole Lava Cake dessert fad was incredibly gimmicky, on a culinary level, but whatever. I mean, I think peanut butter on a slice of cheese is delicious, so who am I to judge? Anyway, you make the batter from a boxed (the horror!) cake and pour it in the baker. You then plop in spoonfuls of 2/3 container of canned (the horror!) frosting, cover, and bake in the microwave (the horror!) for ten minutes. Boom, you have lava cake. It's sort of magical. 

4. I just renewed my single subject teaching credential and it cost $102.50 (I have a multiple subjects one too, for elementary, but at least that one is good for a few more years). That seems like a lot for a public service job. One one level I get it- people are required to buy uniforms and things like that for their careers, so this is just something we need to make our work possible. But, on the other hand, I am spending my days educating our state's kids and have completed years and years of schooling to do so (and have the student loans to prove it). And I have to pay? To educate? I don't know. A least it's a tax deduction.

5. Why not spend some more money? I'm about to head over to Visual Editions to pre-order their stunning version of Don Quixote. My husband wants in on this one, at least, so joint account it is... We have all their books except the last one, on maps, which I'm still pretty sad about somehow missing.

6. Can we just all agree, as a human race, to not put up Christmas decorations outside until after Thanksgiving? 

7. So, the mascot at the high school where I teach is Native American-related and there is an effort right now to change it to something that is more culturally sensitive, as has been done in countless other places. While I'm not going to get into the politics and excessively discuss my personal beliefs right now, since there are spies everywhere, I can certainly say that I am so very disappointed in how disrespectful some people are, on both sides of the debate. I desperately wish that this could be a civilized conversation that was used as a teaching tool, but for the most part it is not. I'm also concerned that people are saying things they shouldn't on social media- if this debate ends up going anywhere and the press gets involved, derogatory comments publicly made could impact people's future college acceptances, careers, and reputations. It's sadly messy. 

8. Also, not to get too political yet again, I am so disappointed by the ignorance people have towards refugees. This broke my heart. 

9. I'm still listening to Do No Harm, a memoir about a neurosurgeon in the UK by Henry Marsh and really love it. It took me a little to get used to the narrator's voice, but I think that's pretty much always how I am. 

10. One of the best things about Sawyer right now is that he's starting to become intentionally affectionate. He'll just walk over to me and hug me out of nowhere or blow me kisses while I'm putting him to sleep (that's probably him learning to be manipulative, who am I kidding?). He's finally starting to give Scott kisses, too, which is pretty adorable. 

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

[do not be fooled; it was 104 earlier and is now a mild 90. Gross]

Link up, link back (please and thank you!), and say hi!

1. There are thunderstorms going through my area of Southern California right now and everyone is going batshit crazy. Traffic is a nightmare, the social media posts are aplenty, and the National Weather Service hit all of my kids' phones during fifth period with flash-flood warnings (precautionary, not likely). The real threat? Fires from lightning strikes.

2. I thought my dream app had finally been invented and emailed to me- something that can run in the background and tell me how much time I spend doing what on my phone. Turns out their privacy agreement gives them carte blanche to basically hack into your phone and take all your info. Thanks, but no thanks.

3. I think someone trying to be sneaky and wheel-and-deal behind the scenes to screw me over an itsy-bitsy tiny bit. I know, oh-so-vague. Two hints: they're not family and they will not win. I hope they're reading and get paranoid. "Is she talking about me? No, she can't be talking about me. How would she know? There's no way!" 

4. I'm obsessed with the Athleta catalog, both because I want to look like the models and because the clothes are super cute.

5. Some of my current seniors that I had back when they were sweet baby sophomores were telling me today how terrified they were of me two years ago. I am of course pleased by this (although it's not really new information), but I don't fully comprehend why. Because I don't hold their hands through assignments? Because I don't put up late work or excuses? Because I've got a pretty mean look I can throw out?

6. I just started TC Boyle's San Miguel and am kicking myself for owning lsome of his other books and letting them sit on the shelf. I've read a few other books by him and have seen him speak twice and am never less than very impressed. Maybe I'll binge read Boyle. Is that a thing? Like how I want to sit my ass on the couch and watch every single episode of Sons but instead reading book after book by an author? Fact: Jax is eighty-seven times more attractive that TC.

7. I tried to subtly hint to my husband last night that I'd like to somehow go see Elton John at Cesar's Palace next month, while he's still alive and performing (Elton, not my husband) and I failed miserably. "You should go with your mom" he replied. Sigh. My mom lives six hours away and has to work. And before you mock my love for Elton, we grew up listening to him, so I'm a big fan of his old stuff. I danced to "Tiny Dancer" with my grandpa at our wedding.

8. I canceled my subscription to The New Yorker. I failed. 

9. This was hilarious, although not advised. Scott and I could have never pulled this off. 

10. The crazy kid and I had a rough (rough --> polite understatement) night last night and I have consumed approximately 1,000 milligrams of caffeine today. I am SO AWAKE and yet SO TIRED. 

Weekend Update

[they said this was the tallest ferris wheel in the state; LIE]

If every weekend were three days my quality of life would go up exponentially. It's a fact. Our Labor Day weekend wasn't anything terribly impressive, but it was downright enjoyable. Here's what we/I did:

Played

We went to the Norco Fair to check out all the animals (Sawyer belly laughed at a goat that jumped up to bleat in his face. This went on for several minutes. If I could relive that moment, somehow, I'd pay some solid cash to do so). We built with LEGOs, played with his new Little People Pirate Ship, and tormented the dogs. I even tried to watch Twenty-Two Jump Street with Scott but fell asleep an hour in. Oops. 

Walked and Walked

Saturday we went to a shopping center nearby that has a large man-made lake that is perfect for early-morning walks. There are lots of ducks and a cool bamboo bridge that we spent a lot of time on. We also spent some time cruising the neighborhood Sunday morning and did some laps up and down the street on Monday. Sawyer is walking more and more now, which is both a sigh of relief and a nightmare.

[what you don't see: lots of ugly stores and restaurants]

[save your correspondence for later, Sawyer]

Did Boring Adult Things

I cleaned a lot and did about ten loads of laundry. I got really, really angry while trying to order birth and marriage certificates online for a stupid insurance audit they gave us little warning for. We shopped for, and bought, a refrigerator. 

[sorry for all the Sawyer fingerprints on your stainless steel, Best Buy]

Spent Time Alone.. and Away

I met up with a friend her her baby for coffee on Saturday morning (I even got to feed him, which was weird, since he just laid there quietly and sucked on his bottle, as opposed to what I have now). I finished Zeitoun by Dave Eggers, read a bit of Macbeth for work, and started San Miguel by TC Boyle Saturday night while my husband was out late at his draft. I floated around the pool by myself on Monday. I went to Starbucks and Target solo.

[No, I did not go to Starbucks three days in a row. Never.]

[view from the pool]

Shopped

I spent way too much time online deciding what kind of Top Siders and tennis shoes to buy (why do I want Top Siders? Why? I don't own a boat). I rediscovered some great things at Trader Joe's like those stupid hollow apple sticks, and their garlic olive oil and Pasadena Salad. I replaced a fake pearl necklace that Sawyer broke at Charming Charlie's (there's too much stuff in that store to wade through, I've decided). I also picked up Star Wars stuff for the whole family.  Target got me again. 

Baked

If you call Rice Krispy Treats with peanut butter and chocolate chips baking. Pretty easy stuff.

Worried About Uncontrollable Things

Just keeping it real. I've always had an issue with this and this weekend required some serious self-monitoring so I didn't lose it. Unfortunately, my lack of sleep exacerbates the situation, and the fact that I haven't gotten more than 6.5 hours of (broken) sleep in weeks isn't helping. Sawer just will not stop teething. One day at a time!

This week should be quick... right?

Sunday Confessions

[See number 9]

Sometimes I think it would be nice to go to confession- maybe it's the Catholic in me (my Catholicism started and ended with being baptized as an infant, though, so I'm not exactly brunching with the Pope). I guess in my agnostic-mind it seems like such an easy thing to do- you do less-than-desirable things, go to church, confess your sins, do a few Hail Marys or whatever, and then BOOM! you're a good person again. 

So, in honor of this line of thought, I have some things to confess. Obviously this isn't the really bad stuff, since, you know, my students and possibly some family members read this, but nonetheless, here are some minor offenses I'm feeling a little guilty for today:

1. Sometimes I exclude people from my Facebook statuses whose comments I can't deal with, or those that might not get what I'm trying to say. I know it's like so 2012 to give a shit about Facebook, but still. I'm old. 

2. Speaking of old, last night I couldn't help being a tiiiiiiiny bit happy that my husband had passed out while I was in the shower at nine-o-clock. This meant that I could read for a little bit and then haul my geriatric ass up to bed by ten. On a Saturday night. This first week back to work has killed me.

3. Honestly, I've complained more about being tired this week that I have in months. It's surpassed that point where you're just kind of sleepy and want a nap, but instead that kind of tired that settles into your bones and makes you want to DIE.

4. When I checked out at Target today my receipt told my I've nearly saved $200 by using my Red Card this year. After some quick math I realized that it's only August and I've spent just about $4,000 at Target this year alone. Whoa, there, Big Spender. But, in my defense, I buy a lot of our basic food there, plus diapers, clothes for Sawyer, and all of our prescriptions. That means $500 a month, which isn't  quite as nauseating. 

5. Whenever a career-blogger complains about it being Monday, I want to punch them in the face. I know they have meetings and emails to respond to and whatever, but MY GOD most of them are posting at like nine in the morning pictures of their runs, amazing breakfasts, and coffees with little hearts made out of foam. No. You can start complaining when you have to drag your perfect butts (from all the running and Crossfit, duh) our of bed at five, get ready in actual clothes (not Lululemon), and then go to a place that requires coherent interactions with others. Yes, I'm jealous. Obviously. 

6. Sometimes I have a hard time liking other people's kids, especially when they're not acting cute.

7. I'm fantasizing about paying my mom to come down and stay with Sawyer for one night so my husband and I can escape to Vegas. I want to get dressed up and pay a ridiculous amount of money for a meal and then go sleep for ten hours in a hotel room that someone else will clean up. Unfortunately, I won't inflict my child's inconsistent sleeping schedule on anyone else right now (some nights he does a solid ten hours... some nights he's up two or three times).

8. I'm currently bribing myself to work out, since it's hot (it's going to be 106 today) and I'm so tired and whiney. Seriously. For every time I lose a pound, hit 12,000 steps, or do a PiYo workout I make a note so I can justify buying myself something unnecessary later. 

9. I had a gigantic Slurpee yesterday. I could have just poured sugar water into my mouth at home, but still, it was delicious. 

10. Sometimes I wish Sawyer would watch TV for more than five minutes so I could plop in front of [insert name of kid's show that I don't know exists] for thirty minutes in the afternoon so I can just collect myself after work. Ultimately I'm so, so, so, glad he's not into burning off his brain cells, but still. Just thirty minutes a few times a week. 

11. I judge people who support Donald Trump. 

Your turn. 

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

Link up, link back, think happy thoughts for my sanity.

1. We officially started school on Monday and have had three non-student days, until the kids come back tomorrow. I'm trying to remind myself that scheduling snafus, copy machine lines, and people who almost make you cry by taking your bathroom keys away from you against your will are all par for the course. This shall pass. The kids will be here tomorrow and will be an excellent distraction from all the other non-teaching things that come with the teaching job.

2. I just finished Anthony Doer's book All the Light We Cannot See and found it to be an excellent example of a really good book that I didn't really care for. I'm not a WWII buff and have a hard time enjoying most historical fiction. I did like the characters and structure, though, and thought Doer is a great writer. So I didn't love the book but I really, really appreciated it.

3. LA County dumped million of plastic, reflective balls into a reservoir to help reduce water-loss to evaporation, discourage animals from doing their thing in the water, and algae from growing. While it's not an answer to the drought, I love the problem-solving that's happening and being supported.

4. We had an all-district meeting yesterday that I was dreading, but it actually turned out okay. They hired an awesome pianist named Alpin Hong to play, work with kids that performed, and give an inspirational (yet not corny) address. For like twenty solid seconds I considered downloading his music, but then I remembered there aren't words and I might fall asleep while driving. But still, even though I'm not blasting it on iTunes, he was fabulous and it was nice to see our district mix it up.

5. Sawyer has started walking with just holding on to one of our hands, standing up without us holding on to him, and has taken two unassisted steps. I think we're getting close to walking. FINALLY.

6. When someone tells me not to worry I immediately hate them for at least one second.

7. This Target thing is driving me bonkers. They're decision to take the words "boys" and "girls" and stop labeling things pink and blue is not because people are transgendered. It's because these sort of ridiculous gender stereotypes are archaic and damaging to kids. Sorry, Billy, you are a BOY and BOYS like BLUE things that you can BUILD with, not PINK things that wear DRESSES. Give me a goddamn break. This is about raising kids that aren't reliant on stupid gender stereotypes. I'm glad they're doing it. Over the weekend I wanted to buy Sawyer a play broom. I looked and looked and looked and finally found a pink one covered in flowers in the little girl's section. I was so pissed with the fact that they were indicating that only little girls can play house so I just bought a generic household brush from the cleaning section. 

8. One indication of how busy I am this week? I'm in a FitBit challenge competition with nine other people and I'm only in third. 

9. I absolutely loathe popcorn, but I can't get enough of Trader Joe's Kettle Corn right now.  Every time I'm there buying some I consider getting an extra couple bags, just in case they discontinue it.  

10. Later tonight my summer review post will go up. I'm excited! I read a lot of great things over the past two and a half months. 

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

Link up, link back, say hello!

1. I just spent way, way too long trying to formulate a concise Facebook status pledging my allegiance to Planned Parenthood. Very few things enrage me, but the idea of taking help away from the 2.7 million people who used them last year is beyond me. 

2. Last Thursday I took Sawyer to the Orange County Fair and we had a ton of fun. He went on his first ride (the carousel), saw tons of animals, and ate ice cream. He shrieked from happiness for almost two hours straight and "meowed" at the goats and rabbits. It wasn't too crowded, but it was hot and a little expensive (as to be expected). I know some people are a little surprised that I just take him alone, but Scott works a ton and the weekends at a lot of places in Southern California are crazy. Plus, I like to just go with him sometimes, as opposed to friends or family! We can do our own thing, at our own pace, and I can focus my attention on explaining things to him and having fun.

3. When we got home from the fair I, stupidly, almost chopped the tip of my thumb off while cutting parsley. I didn't want to deal with stitches, so I bandaged it up with gauze and surgical tape and hoped for the best (I was alone with the baby, so it was just super inconvenient). The verdict? It hurts really bad still but it closed up, so I think I'll survive. Maybe I should have glued it shut. 

4. I just started reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr for book club. I don't really have an opinion yet, but I can say that I'm liking the short chapters. 

5. I just finished Judy Blume's adult novel, In the Unlikely Event, and while it wasn't my favorite, I was shocked to know that the three plane crashes in the story happened in real life in New Jersey in the fifties. Augh! 

6. I have raved about Piyo in the past, but I totally fell off the wagon this summer. I decided that for every time I do it from now on I'll pay myself $1 towards a massage or pedicure or something unnecessary and self-indulgent. I think the lack routine during the summer has actually hindered my working out, actually. I walk outside and on an incline on the treadmill every day, but that's not enough. 

[I need to do this]

7. Speaking of exercise, I got back on my bike (it's set up on a trainer in the house) and it felt good! I haven't done it for a long time; I think I rushed back after pregnancy and the extra weight just felt strange. Sawyer thought it was great to watch, too, so hopefully that lasts for awhile.

8. Does anyone have solar? I have so many questions. Buy? Lease? What does it do to your roof long-term? What if something breaks? Do you have to clean them (hello, I just read The Martian!)? What if you lease and the company goes out of business? 

9. Our re-fi was approved! I know this is not a big deal and people do it all the time, but I did the whole thing on my own so I'm proud of myself for getting it done before rates went up.

10. Last Friday night I went out with two of my friends that I haven't seen for awhile and it was so fun. I see a lot of my friends during the day, for lunches and such, but it's been awhile since I actually go to go out, without my kid, when the sun is down. 

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

Link up and link back!

1. So, last week my kid smacked his head pretty hard on the floor, and this week he managed to pop his elbow out of the socket and need it popped back in, along with precautionary x-rays. We have no clue how he did it, although I guess it's a common injury (the laymen's term is "Nursemaid's Elbow" and it can be reoccurring... great). Maybe when he figured out how to open doors and fell? When I was helping him walk up the stairs? When he was trying to sweep? We have no clue. All I know that is you haven't lived until you've had to hold down a hysterical toddler for arm X-rays. Luckily it seems like he's good-to-go today (thank goodness; he wasn't mending as quickly as the doctor wanted and he mentioned sending him to neuro... boo).

2. People rave about Liane Moriarty, but she seems like chic-lit to me. So, I've decided I'd be fair and give her a chance, since some people I respect dig her. I'm going to listen to one of her audiobooks, though, since I have an available credit on Audible. Recommendations?

3. I downloaded Mariah Carey's recent greatest hits album and it's pretty magnificent. Yes, I agree that she seems like a huge bitch, but man, "Dreamlover" just takes me baaaaaaaack. 

4. Do you remember the reading logs that teachers would ask of you back in elementary and junior high school? Don't get me started on how stupid they are (I never used them when I taught the younger kids- between the students and parents I'm pretty sure most were fabricated), but I've decided to keep one for myself for a week. I only have a few days left and then I'll share my super-interesting, scientific findings. No, my mom isn't going to sign off and apparently no one is going to let me pick something from the treasure chest if it's completed on time.

5. I'm slightly addicted to planks. It's my goal to be able to hold one for two minutes straight by the end of the summer and I'm currently up to a minute and twenty seconds. I have no clue what most people can do, but I've never been one to care much about upper body strength, so I'm pretty proud. I love that you can just bust one out pretty much anywhere, any time. 

[source]

6. Our July weather is Southern California has been crazy- I rarely have used the air conditioner and last weekend we got somewhere around two inches of rain, which is a lot for us. Obviously this is great because of the drought, but it's a little concerning because flooding in our county showed that we are not equipped for storms and meteorologists have been predicting a severe El Nino this fall. 

7. We went to the super tacky, overpriced, Rainforest Cafe last weekend at Downtown Disney (the area surrounding Disneyland, which is free) because we knew that Sawyer would love it and I've been trying to think of things we can do as a family that involve getting out of the damn house. It was pretty much the pinnacle of eating out for him- he saw moving animals, was allowed to color with crayons, and got his own order of food for once.

8. I'm getting my hair done Saturday and, without fail, I'm on Pinterest trying to find somehow to spice things up. I want to keep the length, so I feel limited (bangs are 100% not an option). And in terms of color, I want something different... but I don't. I just don't know.

9. There are two great things about surrendering the Tupperware cupboards to the kid: it keeps him busy FOREVER and I don't have to feel guilty about not attempting to keep them organized. There is absolutely no point.

10. I'm reading Still Alice and it's scaring the crap out of me. I'll write more later, but Alzheimer's/dementia is a current issue in our family and I'd really prefer not to lose my memory later in life, thanks. 

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

Link up, link back. Also, how the hell is it already Wednesday, again? Why is summer break flying by? Why does it feel like I'm getting nothing accomplished? 

1. I got my phone upgraded last week and now have four times the space, so I had no excuse for not re-downloading the app I use for counting calories. I'd like to lose 5-10 lbs and counting calories has been the only way I've ever been able to successfully lose weight, unless you count pushing a human out of me (and we're not going there). I've mentioned before that I'm driven by numbers, so between my Fitbit and this, I really am disturbingly happy punching in stats into my phone periodically throughout the day. On the other hand, it's sort of sad wake-up call.

2. Last Friday my husband had the day off for the holiday weekend, so we dropped the kid off at daycare for a few hours and went to a movie and lunch. We saw Inside Out, the newest Pixar movie, and it was really good. I imagine it would be a really great opportunity to talk to your kids about some pretty deep, emotional stuff. And now I have a new way of rationalizing my crazy side.

3. I made these and they're delicious (I multiplied the dough part by 1.5 to get a thicker cookie base, though, and added a lot more of the topping):

4. I just started a review copy I received of Celeste Ng's Everything I Never Told You and while it's very good, it's a serious downer. Now that I am a parent I read things about losing children, no matter how old they are, differently. Prior to having Sawyer I was still sympathetic, but now when I read about parents dealing with horrible things happening to their kids I have to really work hard to not let my mind go to dark places, which is something I have trouble with sometimes anyway. Nonetheless, I'm thirty pages in and I can see why people were so complimentary.

5. I ate prosciutto the other night, which was kind of a big deal for me because I typically don't eat pork. But I wanted to make these cute little skewers and decided to just roll with it. After a bite or two I was over it and I've totally met my pork intake for the next year. I'm a sucker for appetizers for dinner: 

6. This came in the mail for me last week....

7. We have been racking up miles and miles this summer on walks. We go every single morning and sometimes I go again with the dogs after Sawyer is in bed. It's hard to stay inside when we're having such amazing weather... for now. Any day now our 80 degree highs are going to be swapped out with 105. 

8. I think I finished my little hallway gallery wall... or did I? When I started this a looooong time ago I envisioned shelves overflowing with black framed prints in a variety of sizes and colors. Maybe I'll take another year, or three, to decide. 

9. It's the little things: balsamic glaze at Trader Joes. I typically make my own reduction, which is fine, but if you aren't careful it can be easy to burn. Problem solved.

10. I've said this before, and I'll say it again: obligation ruins things for me. If you want to make me rebel or drag my feet just simply that I "have to" do something, or imply the same thing. Even if it's not a big deal, it's just how I am. 

Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts

Link up, link back!

1. The Passion Pit has a new album coming out soon! Excellent news for my music rut.

2. Sawyer's birthday party is robot-themed, so I've been collecting "random shit" to make a few robots out of. We're not having a big party, but I still want a few cool things to make it special. I have this vision that I'm just going to duct tape everything together, spray it all silver and then glue some brightly colored odds and ends to things. Does spray paint work on plastic? I foresee a mess.

3. Coming from California's Central Valley, the drought is literally hitting home. I try not to think about it too much, but enough so that I'm cognizent of our household's water use. I think so often our solution, as a "people," involves throwing money at things- you can't pay the clouds to rain and snow! That being said, substantial funds do need to go towards working on desalinization plants (or getting them back on line) and more efficient ways of working agriculture. Strictly cutting off farmers, as some are quickly to suggest, is a terrible idea in terms of our nation's economy, the livelihood of many, and also our global food supply. 

4. Over spring break our friends, who are expecting their first baby in a few months, came over for dinner and it was funny to attempt to offer them advice. Ha! Please. But honestly, I think the bottom line for anyone is that they'll be fine. There have been plenty of stupid, inept people that have gone through labor and have survived infants, so if you have a few brains and, a heart, you can totally do it.

5. I cashed in a gift card and got three new books: TC Boyle's The Harder They Come, The New York Times' By the Book, and the Lonely Planet's An Innocent Abroad. Because I don't have enough to read.

6. Sawyer also got some new books for Easter from my in-laws, one of which being the hysterical Peanut Butter and Cupcake. It's ridiculous. If you have little ones you have to buy it.

7. Over half of my FitBit friends suck are innactive. Do you want to be my friend? Leave your email in the comments or PM on Twitter. Motivation, guys!

8. Speaking of motivation, I ate a bazillion rice krispy treats (my special recipe: make a batch, sprinkle cut up Reese's Peanut Butter Cups on top, then cover with another batch) today, so I just did a quick PiYo arms work out (thanks to Amazon for their super empty, super interesting box that kept my kid busy) and am about to go outside to attempt so easy interval running with the jogging stroller. God help me. Why I waited to try this until now, when my kid is 21 pounds, is beyond me. If I die, it's been swell.

9. I was with a friend the other day and we were talking about someone that bothers me and she brought up an EXCELLENT point- we all have "that" person that can "do  nothing right." This is so, so true. My mom has someone like this and one time I said, "Mom, you'd pick on the way she breaths if you could. You'd probably call me and go "You won't believe it. So-and-so took way too many breaths in the last ten minutes and is using up so much air."" Why do we do this? Where does this passive aggressive need to harp on some unaware person come from? My unknowing person is totally not innocent, but harboring this animosity is completely unhealthy and I need to stop even though it's borderline fun sometimes.

10.  I just finished listening to John Ratey's Go Wild, which as really motivating. Basically, we're supposed to exercise in nature, stop eating refined sugar, and stay away from grains. I know I don't have it in my to devote my life to that lifestyle, but it was a good wake up call to clean up shop. Or at least I will once the Easter candy is gone...