Try not to sprain your brain

You can file this post under RANDOM because it has nothing to do with any of the topics I usually write about. But I wanted to share this little exercise with you for the next time you are insanely bored: Try to imagine what the world would be like if one major thing were different.

Here are some of the scenarios I've put some thought into on occasion:

• What if the combustion engine was never invented?
• What if gun powder had never been invented?
• What if humans suddenly ceased to exist? [Interestingly, Global TV aired a program a few months ago that documented exactly what would happen if this ever occurred. It was so amazing to see how long after our disappearance our impact would still be felt. Think of all of the automated systems that would continue to run for some time afterward: airplanes flying on autopilot, nuclear reactors still cooling themselves to prevent meltdowns, lights and sprinklers on timers, etc.]
• What if Gore had won the election in 2000? [Oh, if only!]
• What if interurban electric streetcars were still the norm and not buses?
• What if everyone recycled every possible item they could?

Obviously, you never get to find out whether your imagined scenario is correct, but it's still interesting to imagine nonetheless.

All quiet on the blogging front

You may have noticed a lack of new posts to this here blog lately. I've been busy trying to soak up my last few weeks at home with Abner. Actually, I'm down to my last few days - she starts daycare in a week and I am back to work in three. [gulp] Needless to say, we've been hanging out together as much as possible.

It just seems like she's growing so fast. She's mastered the art of finger walking (much to my back's chagrin) and loves to toddle and crawl around our building's lobby. Yesterday she spent half an hour (!) cruisin' around on the tile floor, licking the windows, playing on the entry mat, and her favorite activity...trying to reach in the slot where everyone recycles their junk mail. I swear, if that slot were any bigger, she'd have fallen right in several times already (just like she's already done in her toy basket).

Having only three weeks left of mat leave has prompted me to get moving on my TO DO WHILE ON MAT LEAVE list. (Better late than never - right?) Today's challenge was getting passport photos done. Abner did just fine and sat there mouth closed, eyes open, staring straight ahead just like she was supposed to, but the photog kept taking so long to take each shot. Seriously...Abner'd be sitting perfectly for 10 seconds at a time, but she'd move just as the photo was being taken every single time. We wound up getting a photo with Abner's mouth open and my arm in the shot. I have my doubts that it will be accepted, but the ladies at London Drugs assured me that since Abner didn't look like she had "terrorist tendencies" it would probably be okay.

I have really grand plans for the days that Abner is at daycare before I go back to work. In addition to getting my hair cut for the first time since mid-December, and shaving my legs for the first time since, well, since I can't remember that far back, I am getting started on the launch of my very own Etsy shop: OneLittleOwl.

I've been thinking of doing this for a long time now, but got a final burst of inspiration last weekend when I joined my friend Miranda at her first craft sale. I just went along so that she'd have someone to watch the booth when she needed to go to the washroom, but wound up signing up for my own Etsy account and sketching crafty ideas until the wee hours of the morning after the sale.

What I will actually sell in the end is still a mystery, but I am relishing the process of putting pencil to paper, surfing the net for ideas and sourcing out supplies. I'm joining some friends for a Crafternoon this weekend, so I hope to have a few samples to post soon...and perhaps a few items ready to send of to my giveaway winners too!

Golly G!

So, the other day I spotted a fun little game on one of the blogs I follow. Smoothpebble had written a list of ten things she loved that start with the letter N. Why the letter N you ask? Because another blogger told her to; that's why. At the bottom of her post, she invited anyone who wanted to participate in the game and write their own list to submit a comment and she'd send them a letter. Well, it sounded like a fun thing to do so I posted my comment and patiently waited to receive my letter.

Would I get a nice and easy letter like T or A or S? Perhaps she would challenge me with the dreaded X or Z? When her message finally arrived, I excitedly clicked it open to see that she gave me the letter G. Hmmmm...not as easy as T, A or S, but not nearly as tricky as X or Z.

Without further ado, and in no particular order, here is my list of ten things I love that start with the letter G.

1. Grandparents. Sadly, none of my own grandparents are living, but I think very highly of Abner's.


2. Getting things on sale. In preparation for going back to work next month, I bought an entire new wardrobe last week and came in under budget thanks to The Gap/Banana Republic/Old Navy's Friends and Family coupon. Yay me!


3. My homemade granola. I made a batch up a couple of weeks ago and it only lasted three days. [Note to self: do not leave container of granola next to the computer - unable to resist snacking temptation] I really need to sit down and add that recipe on Milkybeer Cooks.
   
   
4. Giggles from Abner. I really must get a recording of her adorable little giggles. Some days she treats us to gales of laughter, and other days all we get is a smile.





5. Good Eats. If you haven't watched Alton Brown's show on the Food Network - you should. I've learned so much and he is damn entertaining.


6. Grandma Rand's overnight bun recipe. I have previously blogged about these delicious (and surprisingly easy to make) buns, so I will refer you back to that post. If you want to take a crack at making your own buns, the recipe is posted over at Milkybeer Cooks.





7. Gnomes. Specifically, the ones found here at my friend Miranda's Etsy shop. Image shamefully stolen from Miranda.





8. Going back to work. Wait! What?!?! How'd that get there? Definitely does not belong on this list. Going back to work. There. That's better.


9. Getting gussied up. I was never particularly fond of getting dressed up before I had Abner; but now I have a new-found appreciation for doing my hair, putting on make up, wearing heels and nice clothes (that didn't come off the floor from two days before).


10. The great outdoors. Not enough of this one happening lately. Stinkin' rain. This shot is from a hike we did with Dan and Kerith near Mt. Slesse back in 2006.





11. A good night's sleep. Not enough of that one happening lately either. Sigh.

If you'd like to play along on your own blog, just leave a comment asking me to send you a letter.

Other possible titles considered for today's post:
"Today's post is brought to you by the letter G"
"Gee whiz"

Why I had to buy baby hair conditioner this week

Can you imagine what her hair would be like if the sides and back hadn't fallen off?

And how's this for some serious static cling?

Oh, the joy that that little girl's hair brings me!

Proud mothering moment

I was sitting pretty high on my horse till now. Satisfied with myself for getting this far into the whole parenting thing without either a) dropping Abner or, b) seeing her fall from an elevated surface. Not that that makes you a bad parent. It can happen so easily to anyone (and has happened to several of my friends - including a pediatrician). Lucky for Abner, her head has remained relatively unscathed - until now...

We had a little *incident* today.

After an epic (and I do mean epic) grocery shop today, I was hastily putting cans away in the pantry. I say "hastily" because the bottom shelf of the pantry houses our board games and Abner has recently discovered the fun of putting Chinese checkers pieces into her mouth. Within moments of opening the cupboard she was underfoot, clamoring to grab the teeny tiny plastic pieces and shove them into any orifice she could find.

So you see...there was reason for my haste. What I didn't bank on was the hidden danger lurking inside the pantry.

I saw the whole event unfolding in slow motion before my eyes. As I added one can to the shelf, it displaced another, which toppled over the edge and landed directly onto Abner's little head, innocently playing below.

Within moments, she was screaming (of course) and a large red bump appeared on her head. Thankfully, she calmed down pretty quickly. I decided not to take her to the hospital after checking with a couple of other friends to see what they would do - consensus being that if she was not behaving abnormally and had stopped crying, she was probably fine.

Now, several hours after the *incident*, she has a crescent-shaped red mark on her head (mostly covered by her hair) where the edge of the can struck her.

In a rather morbid way, it makes me think of those scenes on CSI where you see them discussing possible murder weapons while examining a damaged skull. I can almost hear Dr. Robbins telling Catherine and Grissom now..."I believe the victim's head was bashed with a can - most likely a can of kidney beans."

Birthday fun and winners to boot!

Today is The Dear Sweet Husband's birthday. Our day started with the presentation of our gifts and cards while still in bed. I got him a book he'd been asking for, but of course Abner had to show me up by saying Da-Da for the first time [show off!] Nothing big planned for the day, but I've already got a flank steak marinating in the fridge for tonight's dinner - yum.

I want to take a moment to thank everyone for entering my giveaway. As of yesterday evening, we got our final entry from new commenter number 5. As I mentioned, my motivation for doing this giveaway was to get new people to comment on my blog and hopefully discover some new friends in the blogosphere.

So who wound up entering in the end? It was a mixed bag of people I already know, but didn't know some of them were reading my blog! There was: a friend I met through other friends, followed by an old friend from my university days [not that you're old B, I've just known you a while!], then came my mom [and it only took two phone calls to technical support (aka - me) to figure out how to leave a comment], next up was one of our many friends from Ontario and finally my former boss from my days in the travel industry. Was hoping to hear from certain family members in Ontario [hint, hint Gramps and Auntie T], alas, they missed the boat this time 'round.

And, yes, my reader from Spain visited once again but didn't leave a comment - boo.

I have a bunch of ideas I'm kicking around for the handmade items but haven't settled on anything yet. Alanna has specifically requested something on the stranger end of things, so I'll have to get to work thinking up something odd for her...perhaps a handmade fondue fork? [inside joke...that is...if Alanna can even remember the fondue night]

I'll keep you all posted on my progress as I create and ship off each giveaway. This is going to be so much fun!

My first giveaway

The first five people to comment on this post will get something hand-made by me.

Before you all rush down and click on the COMMENTS link, this offer does have some restrictions and limitations so please read carefully:

• The offer is only open to commenters I have either 1) never met in person, or 2) who have never commented here before.
• I make no guarantees that you will like what I make.
• What I create will be just for you.
• It'll be done this year (2009).
• You have no clue what it's going to be. Neither do I actually. Could be a paper cutting, sewn item, drawing...who knows!
• I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.

I must confess that I am stealing this idea from a note I saw on Facebook and my motivation is purely to encourage more of you to leave comments. Thanks to Google Analytics, I know people from all around the world read my blog (shout out to my readers in Spain, Brazil, and the US), but I never get to hear from them since they don't leave comments.

This could either fail miserably or be very, very cool.

So step right up...don't be shy...please leave a comment...and win a prize!

Insert witty title here.

Abner called me momma for the first time today. Well, actually it sounded more like "meh-meh" which makes me think she's somewhat ambivalent towards me. Ambivalent or not, I'll take it!

Here's the first documented shot of her teeth -- four so far.

Thought I would share a few videos since it's been a while since I last posted one. If you were having a bad day when you landed on my blog, I can assure you, you'll be smiling after watching these. Enjoy.

It's an ETSY Extravaganza!

If you haven't heard of Etsy yet, you need to check it out. In their own words [and mine]...

Etsy is an online marketplace for buying & selling all things handmade. [and a fabulous one at that!]

Our mission is to enable people to make a living making things, and to reconnect makers with buyers. [you know...like the way things used to be]

Our vision is to build a new economy and present a better choice: Buy, Sell, and Live Handmade. [take that Walmart!]

I often spend hours playing around on Etsy soaking up its creative vibes and occasionally buying things. This powerful little site lets you browse the old fashioned way (that would be by key words), but also by colour, location, novelty, gift worthiness, heck -- even by the vendor's birthday!

I've been planning to do a post about what I would sell if I had an Etsy shop, but that will have to wait for a later day, 'cause the purpose of this Etsy post is to tell you about A Spring Fling with Etsy.

Some local (as in Vancouver or thereabouts) Etsians have banded together to put on a craft fair and the most exciting part is one of my friends will be there! Regular readers of my blog are probably familiar with my friend Miranda ('cause let's face it, I know several of you read both of our blogs), but you may not know that she recently launched her very own, very cool Etsy shop called Hudsonny. If you're not the online shopping type, you can check her, and her fellow Etsians out at:

A Spring Fling with Etsy
Saturday, March 21st
11-5pm
Cambrian Welsch Hall
215 East 17th Avenue (just off Main Street)
Vancouver

I'm planning to be there too -- to live vicariously through Miranda and help staff her table. Stop by and see us.

10 months old already!

Yesterday was Abner's 10 month birthday. To celebrate the occasion, I bring you...

Abner's Top Ten things to do at Ten Months Old List

10. Music. Sadly, music class came to an end last week, so now she's stuck listening to mommy and daddy butcher her favorite tunes. Her favorite is still One Little Owl. It's actually a rather depressing song sung in a minor key. There's only one verse, but we've made up about a dozen more on our own. TDSH and I actually call it the magic song because no matter how upset Abner is, as soon as she hears it she stops crying

9. Playing with our plastic whisk. She's tested out a number of other kitchen utensils, but always comes back to her favorite plastic whisk. This seems so much safer than the metal cheese grater my parents gave me to play with (don't try to deny it Mom and Dad...there are pictures to prove it).

8. Pulling on cords. Abner spends a good chunk of her day going after computer, electrical, cable and curtain cords...or rather, TDSH and I spend a good chunk of our day trying to stop her from going after computer, electrical, cable and curtain cords.

7. Spitting food. Always a good way to end every meal. The carpet appreciates it, I'm sure.

6. Having "conversations" with mommy and daddy.

Abner: "Ahh."
Mommy: "Ahh?"
Abner: "Ahh!"
Mommy: "Ahhh."
Abner: "Duh-duh."
Mommy: "Duh-duh."
Abner: "Buh."
Mommy: "Buh."

and on, and on, and on...

5. Pulling hair. This is a fun little trick Abner picked up a while ago. There's nothing like waking up each morning to a few yanks on the hair. She has enough hair that I am tempted to (gently) pull hers back, but that would just be sinking to her level.

4. Walk, crawl, and roll. I think Abner's made it her personal mission to cover more ground each day than the day before. I am tempted to put a pedometer on her to see just how far she actually goes in a day.

3. Getting wrapped up in the duvet. We call this game Abner In A Blanket. It is so cute. Imagine a big bundle of quilt wrapped around little Abner with just her face poking out and giggling with glee. My hear melts.

2. Peek-a-boo. Abner is up for a game of peek-a-boo anytime -- anywhere -- with anyone. Early games of peek-a-boo always included a blanket to hide behind, but now hands, pillows, or even closed eyes work just fine. The funniest part is that she gets too excited closing her eyes, so she tries to open them just a bit to have a peek before we say, "Where's Abner?"

1. Swings! Abner just went on the swings for the first time yesterday - to say she loved it might be a bit of an understatement. I would have put her on sooner, but wanted TDSH to be there too, so I patiently waited for schedules and weather to come together for the perfect swinging opportunity. I had been planning to do the same thing with the slide, but TDSH decided to take her down her first slide without me a few weeks ago. Boo TDSH.

Oops, I did it again.

I started another blog...'cause it's not like I have anything better to do.

Actually, this new one is pretty low maintenance. It dawned on me a few weeks ago that a blog is the perfect format for housing favorite recipes.

So, that's exactly what I did...I sat down with my various sources of recipes - old hand-written paper copies, photocopies from my mom, an electronic copy of a cookbook I did years ago as a Christmas gift, and links to recipes I've used from the web - and assembled Milkybeer Cooks.

Please don't feel compelled to visit (though you can if you want to). I just started it because it's the best way to keep track of recipes. I used the "labels" feature to index and cross reference all the recipes and will use the comment field to post follow up notes about substitutions that have worked well (or not so well).

In case you're interested...my favorite recipe at the moment is Curried Chicken Salad Sandwiches. Seriously -- could eat them every day for the rest of my life.

Down the road I plan to add images for each of the recipes just to give it a snazzier, more professional look.

It's been a lot of fun working on Milkybeer Cooks. I really encourage you to give it a try with your own recipes.