Hardware Store Bracelet

by Natasha on September 7, 2011 in tutorials

Pick up a few of these for $5 at Lowe’s…Spend around 15 minutes assembling and…

Love it! And I really love layering it with my gold watch that I’m completely obsessed with…Can’t say that one wasn’t easy!

Here’s a close-up of the “construction”. I folded my string in half so I had a loop on the end, then I threaded a large washer onto the loop & pulled the string back through the washer. Next I strung on a few small washers & nuts, threaded on another large washer & pulled the strings up & through it again just like before. These large washers will work as stops periodically through the bracelet & will keep the little strung ones from all congregating at one end. To tie off the piece I pulled my strings through the first washer I started the bracelet with & tied them in a bow. It’d be really easy to attach an actual jewelry clasp from the craft store but it was the type of day where the thought of leaving my house & running an errand with both girls sounded worse than being a long-tailed cat in a room full of rockers.

Have you ever found any good unexpected finds at the hardware store? I remember once I went with P & was completely bored while he looked at 10 different kinds of light switch dimmers but then I started wandering around & found that roll of neon pink rope, the wheels started cranking that day my friend. I wonder what other goodies they have hidden in those manly shelves…

UPDATE: I stopped by Michael’s and picked up a clasp, I used jump rings to attach each end of the clasp to each end of the bracelet & I kept the bow in there just because I thought it gave it nice feminine touch. Oh, & I used superglue to make sure it stays tied.

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my daddy the castlemaker

by Natasha on September 6, 2011 in Uncategorized

Take two large cardboard boxes, 1 daddy on vacation & two little princess wannabees…

Yes, he always leaves his shoes by the backdoor even though the closet is 2 feet away & yes he will always bring back the wrong item from the grocery store no matter how clearly I write it down, but on days like today, when I see how my little girls just beam with him, I realize how unimportant all those things are in comparison to having a great daddy.

He even built a little door for Sam’s imaginary mouse friend ‘Gus-Gus’.

To me, that’s sexy.

Hope you had a great holiday weekend, only a 4 day week to go!

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my milkshake brings all the janitors to the shoe department

by Natasha on September 2, 2011 in mommy blog

I’m usually perfectly fine with taking both girls to the mall by myself. I have the double stroller, I bribe them with chick-fil-a, I’ve got a plan. But today, today went south quick. I had just gotten to the shoe department at Nordstrom to try and find Sam some back to school shoes (great sale btw, 50% off some nice shoes) & decided I’d let Soph out of the stroller since she had met her restrained time limit. I thought, quite foolishly, that she & Sam would just look at the fish tank or maybe the sparkly shoes & just be good little girls while I shopped. WRONG. Sophie quickly decided it was hilarious to crawl off as quickly as possible while Sam chose to model every single pink glittered shoe in the entire department. Of which there are far more than you’d think.

Between grabbing Sophie out from underneath shopper’s feet (who gave me the death stare of HOW COULD YOU LET YOUR BABY CRAWL ON THIS DIRTY FLOOR & counting to 3 more times than I care to admit to get Samantha to stop taking out all the shoes, I was already putting myself in the middle of the ‘look at that crazy woman, she can’t get control of her kids’ spotlight. Then on top of it all the smell of fresh poop began the weave it’s way into the air. The source, of course, was my kid.

A few minutes before I had splurged & bought myself a chocolate shake from chick-fil-a because whenever I get a sore throat that is my go-to comfort. After I realized that I was going to have to drop everything, pack the kids up & truck off to find a changing room I decided to take one last slurp of my shake. Somehow my thumb went right through the styrofoam cup, the top popped off & the shake exploded EVERYWHERE. All over me, all over Sophie & the best part, all over the shoe display. I was frozen in shock. I mean, SERIOUSLY?! REALLY!?? But you know what the worst part was? The disgusted looks the other two moms gave me. Oh, I’m sorry, you’ve never had a bad day? You’re kids have never tag-teamed in trying to drive YOU crazy?!! I doubt that. The little red-headed one looks pretty darn malicious to me.

What I want to know is why do moms judge eachother so harshly? You’d think if anyone was going to be sympathetic it’d be another mother but in reality they’re the worst critics of them all.

I’m quite certain that if I’m honest with myself I’ve rolled my eyes at a kid who was acting like a nutjob or maybe a mom who was dropping things everyhwere because she had one kid tucked under her arm football style & was dragging another behind her. Is it because we don’t want to face that what we’re actually witnessing is a reflection of us on our bad days? Perhaps denial at it’s finest? Or maybe it’s the grade school antic of making others feel bad so you can feel better about yourself. Whatever the case, if we as women who have been through the same journey of motherhood can’t take care of eachother then who the heck will?

After I realized everyone was staring at me & I was dripping in chocolate shake I looked at my surroundings & thought, what the hell. If they’re already going to condemn me then why not give them something good to judge. So I took out my cell phone & began photographing the whole thing.

If nothing else might as well get a blog post out of it, right? I was going to put up a DIY for making a super cute neon bracelet out of hardware supplies but instead I’m going to try & forget my morning by wasting my brain cells away on Pinterest.

So we know misery loves company, when was the last time your kids embarrassed you?

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Pink french manis & nail art pens

by Natasha on August 31, 2011 in mom fashion, Uncategorized

Love the clean look of a french manicure but hate how those bright white tips leave you feeling like you just walked out of a strip mall in the mid-90’s? InStyle had a great tip in this month’s issue…light pink tips, a new chic update on a old classic. I knew exactly how to do them too, Sally Hansen Nail Art Pens. (nope, they’re so not paying me for this, all though boxes of free polish would be a lovely thank you Ms. Hansen)One thing to note, be sure you’re buying the ‘nail art pen’ not the ‘nail polish stick pens’, those have a regular brush tip so you’ll have no easier time drawing on your tips. For mine I used the pen in ‘light pink’ & Sally Hansen’s ‘Shell We Dance’ from their complete salon manicure line for the top coat. (Both of which I found at CVS)If that weren’t enough to make you fall in love with these art pens just wait until you get a hold of any little piggies in your house…
Sam loved the look so much that she now has me booked in her daytimer for regular Sunday night pedicures.

Tough life kid, tough life.

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Chicken Tacos with Avocado Creme

by Natasha on August 30, 2011 in dinner 101

Can someone tell me the difference between a sauce being called “cream” and “creme”? Creme sounded fancier & these are some dolled up avocados so I went for it.

It’s not a very complicated meal but the sweetness of the mayo gives such a nice compliment to the spice of the taco meat & tang of the lime juice that this dish tastes a heck of a lot classier than plain ol’ taco tuesday.

The taco meat is ground chicken that I added to a pan of sauteed onions & then mixed with taco seasoning & a little bit of water. (chicken doesn’t render the same fat that beef does so you’ll need the moisture to mix the sauce) I toasted the corn tortillas in a dry, very hot skillet for about 30 seconds each side. The tacos have shredded lettuce, cheddar cheese & the avocado creme below. I would’ve thrown some halved grape tomatoes in there too but Sophie ran out of patience.

Avocaodo Creme:

2 avocados peeled, pitted & cubed

1/4cu cilantro, chopped

1 garlic clove, peeled & grated (I rub mine on a small holed cheese grater)

3 tbs light mayo

1/4 tsp salt

juice of 1 lime (2 if they aren’t very juicy)

Combine all ingredients & blend well with a hand mixer until smooth. Taste & add salt if needed. Spoon mixture into a ziploc baggie, cut off the bottom tip of the baggie & squeeze along assembled tacos. Receive massive amount of praise from eaters & try to remain humble.

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{Sunday Love} Sophie Quinn

by Natasha on August 29, 2011 in mommy blog

Can you believe she’s 1?!I know I’ve said this before but it bears repeating. I am NOT a baker. But I figured how particular could a 1 yr old’s palate be? To make it rainbow I just divided the cake batter (white cake in a box) into 4 bowls & added food coloring to each, then I layered the batter into a jumbo muffin tin, throw on some strawberry frosting & wah-lah! Rainbow smashcake. Amazing, I know.

Oh Sophie Quinn, what can I say…this year of having you in my life, having you become a part of our family has been surreal. Almost daily people tell me they’ve never met a baby that’s so happy. Even after you bonk your head for the 3rd time you still will laugh if I sing ‘six little ducks’. You’re my sunshine in a box.

And the crazy…goodness gracious, you’re a little nutcase! Or as your older, wiser, sister would say, “That’s one craaaaazy baby.”

I love that you’re such a daredevil. Love that you race up the stairs the second the gate comes down & you never look back. Except to give me a devilish smile…

How can someone have such a zest for life already?

Maybe that’s why you repeatedely keep pooping in the tub. You just can’t miss a moment! Or warm water relaxes you. Or you love to drive your straight & narrow sister batty. I’m pretty sure you get your kicks out of each of those.

We joke that you run on jet fuel. With you it’s go-go-go until you suddenly run out of gas & crash. It’s those moments I savor. I just can’t resist rocking you until those heavy eyelids close & I can get all the Sophie cuddles I want. You might be my last little baby so even though I’m sure you’ll want to do everything before the height requirement allows you’ll always be my little chum-chum.

Love you Soph. Happy birthday baby.

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Get Yourself a ‘Go Bag’.

by Natasha on August 26, 2011 in mommy blog

On Tuesday we had a 5.9 earthquake.

This weekend a category 2 hurricane is expected.

Oh yeah, & I live in Washington D.C. These things are not supposed to happen here! Much less in the SAME WEEK!!

I took this as a nice little warning to get my butt in gear & finally put together that ‘go bag’ P & I have been talking about doing for ages.

What you ask is a ‘go bag’? Well dearest, for an entire family it’s actually more likely to be a ‘go bin’ & it’s a container that has everything you need in a ‘oh sh@t!’ situation, all packed & ready to go. You grab it, throw it in the back of your car & hit the road. It’s also a good contained place that you know all of your ‘in case of emergency’ supplies will be while you’re still at home.
Here’s mine…

First Aid Supplies: Red Cross First Aid Kit, thermometer, infant, children & adult Tylenol, hydrocortisone cream, antibiotic cream, aspirin, children & adult Benedryl, prescription meds (an epi pen for Sam & imitrex for my migraines) CHECK MEDS FOR EXPIRATION DATES, they lose their strength when they expire!
Food for 3 days: you’re supposed to get non-perishable, low sodium, cooked items. I found that I could save room with vacuum sealed bagged items like rice, tuna & beans & also opted for the individual plastic tubs of cooked pastas since they’re lighter than doing just all cans. Although I did end up with a bunch of canned veggies & soups. Pouch baby food is also easier to pack than jars.
Can opener
Weather Radio (ours takes batteries & also has a crank for after they die)
Utility Knife Multitool- several lists I read recomended a pocket knife in addition to a screwdriver, pliers & a wrench. (for turning off gas) With this tool it’s all in one
Large Knife- I bought a large, pointed tip, chef knife that came in it’s own plastic case at Target for $13. Let’s just say I didn’t buy it for chopping tomatoes
Blanket- my red cross kit also had the small foil emergency blankets in it
ponchos
flashlights/batteries
water-proof matches (camping section at Target, or you could put regular ones in a ziploc baggie)
write out all your emergency phone numbers & put the list in a ziploc baggie
coloring books/crayons/stickers
glo sticks (I bought the ones with string necklaces on them so I could hang one on each kid if need be)
cash in small increments in a baggie
spare clothes for each family member
local map
permanent marker/paper/duct tape
copy of important paperwork like id’s, insurance info, house deed, birth certificates all in a baggie
spare house key
tupperware container for leftover food
string
Make sure if your first aid kit doesn’t have CPR instructions in it you print some out
toiletries (toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, contact solution, lady supplies, TP)
Pets- pet food, water for pet, leashes, make sure ID tags are on collars & if you can put an additional ph number for an out of town relative that has a different area code on the ID. Chances are phone service in your area might be out.

Another thing I did today is I bought a few landline phones. After the earthquake on Tuesday cell service was out for a good 30 minutes which was pretty scary. We only have one landline phone that I was able to call out on & it’s a cordless so after that battery died I would’ve been out of luck. I’m plugging in one corded phone on each level of the house.

So with all that I say bring it Hurricane Irene. Ok, not really, I’m just showing off. Please don’t take my power away. Pleeeeassse!

By the way, in case you missed my classy earthquake story on twitter…

I was on the pot.

Yep. I had just sat down & had Sophie with me (of course, because peeing alone would be silly) when I heard this weird rumble. I actually thought it was a large military plane flying overhead but it just kept growing, & then the glass shower walls started to shake. That’s when instinct kicked in. I grabbed Soph & ran to Sam’s room, scooped her out of bed (she was napping) & crouched in Sam’s doorway with both girls until it was over. All of this sans pants. Lovely. When it seemed to be over I quickly threw on some nearby pajama pants and may or may not have decided to postpone wiping until I was sure we were out of immediate danger. These are the instincts that keep mankind going people. Survival of the fittest, not cleanest. You don’t need to know any more details of what exactly happened, just know that I’m quite sanitary most of the time, just not necessarily during life or death moments. Oh, & be sure to throw some TP in your go bag.

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Craftbuster: Pinterest DIY Glo Jars

by Natasha on August 24, 2011 in craftbusters, tutorials

Have you seen this image floating around Pinterest? I know I immediately fell in love with the idea…

via Pinterest

Although there was no tutorial linked several people speculated that it was simply glow-in-the-dark paint splattered on the inside of the jars. Simple enough, right?

I picked up a some ball jars at the grocery store & a few bottles of glow craft paint, Sam & I went right to it…

I tried several different brushes & just couldn’t get the splattering down. I think if I had bought the half-size jars it might have been easier but with these big ones you can’t really get your hand in there with the brush to splatter the paint. So Sam & I just painted some & drizzled paint in the others. We set them outside to “charge” & later I hung them from our patio umbrella with some twine. Cute, right? And in theory should be pretty awesome when it gets dark out.

But not so much.

Minimal glow.

P overheard me complaining about how dim the glow was on my jars compared to the Pinterest picture & chimed in with a “They used a blacklight babe. We have one downstairs.” We do? I don’t even want to know why my husband has a secret blacklight. But regardless we turned it on & sure enough…

GLOW!!!

So I feel very confident that there is NO WAY that pic was taken with just a some sprinkles of glow-in-the-dark paint making the cool glowing light, it’s just a neat picture that was taken with a blacklight. On another note though I think I’m going to line our driveway with the jars on Halloween & use my new confiscated blacklight to make a neat entryway…

Do me a favor, keep your eyes out for crafts that you think might ~~be a phony~~ not quite be what they seem & send them to me, maybe we’ll keep “craftbusters” around…

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{Sunday Love} See Girl Run.

by Natasha on August 22, 2011 in Sunday Love

I realize it might be a tad self indulgent to use my own blog as a ‘sunday love’ post but hear me out…

I was SO pleasantly surprised to get such an awesome reaction for the ‘Couch to 5k‘ post, I had no idea that a.) so many of you have done it & b.) so many of you would be willing to try it with me! I found myself wanting to have a little running chat with each of you who left a comment! And then different running related things have happened since then like my attempt at running with Parker (good for nothing dog) or how my pretty pink shoes might be trying to kill me, & I’ve wanted to blog about these things but if I’m realistic even though almost 100 of you left some sort of running comment there’s still about 5,000 who didn’t. And for all I know 4,999 of those may despise anything running-related. So my point is (I swear I’m getting to it) that I know you come here for DIY’s, recipes & the occasional mommy lifestyle post but not necessarily for my weekly running updates which is why I started up a little side blog called “See Girl Run” for those of you who do want to talk more about it, I thought maybe we could be internet running buddies…

Nothing fancy. Don’t expect my usual pretty edited photos, or any crazy in depth posts, it’s more of a nice casual way that maybe we can support each other & actually get through ‘Couch to 5k’ together. Who knows, maybe next April instead of doing a tutu drive we’ll be wearing tutus to the Disney Princess Marathon??

(img via Chip&Co)

Or Maybe not.

-ps- I’m sure a few of you are thinking about how I started the ‘unsolicited guide mommy blog’ a few months back too, & now that has disappeared. It actually isn’t gone, for the last few weeks I’ve been doing some contracted writing for a women’s lifestyle site & I’m going to roll that into it…I’ll tell you more as soon as things get going, promise (:

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Couch to 5k: Run with me!

by Natasha on August 18, 2011 in mom hobby

I’ve tried running probably three or four times in my life. Each time I quit after about 4 minutes. On a treadmill once I think I made it to 8.

I even was a member of my high school’s cross country team, but it was only because they needed one more girl on the team to qualify. I never finished a race. SAD painful memories those are…

It’s always just plain hurt to run. My knees hurt, my side cramps, I’m panting & hurting & panting & miserable. But for a reason I do not know I still want to be a runner. I think I’m curious as to why some people love it soo much, they talk about this runner’s high you get & being ‘one with the road’…there’s got to be something to it.

My girlfriend Brooke was telling me about this new marathon she’s doing & I was like, “geez, that’s so awesome! I wish I could run, really I do, but I can’t” She suggested I try ‘Couch to 5k‘. So I took a look, & it actually made a lot of sense.

“Too many people have been turned off of running simply by trying to start off too fast. Their bodies rebel, and they wind up miserable, wondering why anyone would possibly want to do this to themselves.

You should ease into your running program gradually. In fact, the beginners’ program we outline here is less of a running regimen than a walking and jogging program. The idea is to transform you from couch potato to runner, getting you running three miles (or 5K) on a regular basis in just two months.”

-from Couch to 5K

I swear that guy somehow wrote that just for me. And it sounds totally doable right? And guess what, today was Day 1 of the program & I. DID. IT. Woohoo! And I didn’t hate it! Woohoo woohoo! For week 1 you’re doing 5 minutes of walking warm-up, & then intervals of 60 sec running, 90 seconds walking for 20 minutes. Then a 5 min cool-down. I’m not gonna lie to you, my brain started trying to sabotage my run at around the 14min mark but I put on a good song & pushed through it, it was rough for maybe 2 minutes. Which brings me to my next point, if you’re still with me, there are 3 things today that made me feel like I could really embrace Couch to 5k…

1) Cute new shoes. Ridiculous sounding, I know, but hear me out. My old sneakers were 9 years old which is ridiculous in itself & speaks to my lack of cardio activity. That in itself is enough reason to buy some new ones but also they make these new feather-weight tennis shoes that were SO much easier to run in than my old, clunky, beasts of a sneaker. And yes, they’re very very pretty. And this matters to me. It motivates me, & I’m ok with that.

Adidas AdiZero Feather Running Shoe

2) The C25K app. I was wondering long & hard about how to keep track of my intervals, count in my head? No. Buy a cute new running watch? Tempting! And then I got a tweet from Angela telling me about this app that times it for you & lets you know when to switch AND you can listen to your itunes AT THE SAME TIME. $1.99 Perfection.

3) A good playlist. I’ve got to work on this one because today I just had it on general shuffle & I went from P. Diddy to Baby Genius ‘Alphabet Song’. I did find a few good ones though…

Warm-up Gorillaz: Clint Eastwood

La Rissa: I do both Jay & Jane

Diddy: Come to Me

Jerimih: Birthday Sex (remix)

Britney Spears: I Wanna Go

Cool Down Jars of Clay: Love Song for a Savior

(And yes, I’m quite aware I just put Jars of Clay & Birthday Sex in the same playlist)

So to conclude this marathon of a post (haha, see, 1 run & I’m already cleverer) I want to know 2 things from you…

Are you gonna do it with me & what’s your best workout song??

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