I made it first
Let me just be a TOTAL HIPSTER for a second, OK? Just humour me.
You see, SOME OF US have been making Grandma Ople’s Apple Pie recipe (from AllRecipes.com) for, like, at least two years. Well, last Christmas and this Christmas, plus Thanksgiving. And now it’s suddenly all POPULAR on Pinterest.
But we made it FIRST, you know?
Because it became A THING?
(While we’re on the subject of liking things before they were popular, I must mention that I once reviewed Taylor Swift’s debut CD about a zillion years ago when NO ONE ELSE in the entertainment department wanted to review it, and I loved it. I gave it five stars, guys. And I listened to it in my car forever. Then suddenly she started to get popular and I felt all proud, like I had played a part in giving her a big break. And I still love her. So I guess I’m not a hipster?)
And now, clearly, because this apple pie is so freakin’ popular, it’s not as good. Actually, that’s crap, because it’s just as amazing as always. Just like Taylor Swift!
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| Baking away, la la la |
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| Fresh out of the oven! (Do you like my cupcake oven mitts?) |
If you’re not a total hipster, and you are cool with making a recipe that is suddenly SO POPULAR (I feel your hipster pain, I do), then you can head over to AllRecipes.com (a.k.a. My Personal Cookbook Because Googling Is The Best) to get the recipe.
If you ARE a total hipster, then I guess you should go to a used bookstore and find a really obscure vintage cookbook (preferably in another language) and make that your “go-to” apple pie recipe.
Then MAYBE you have a year or so before it’s all over Pinterest, thus rendering it no longer cool in the hipster realm.
Happy baking, you adorable hipsters!
xoxo
Spiffy shelves: My $5 bookshelf makeover
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| Pitiful, isn’t it? |
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| Darling Husband helped me lie both bookcases on their fronts. |
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| I draped the sheet over both bookshelves … |
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| … and used little naisl to anchor it in place |
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| When I had pounded in a ton of nails and felt confident the sheet would hold, I cut down the middle to separate the two bookcases. |
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| Standing up in all their glory! You’ll see that the sheet was really VERY cheaply-made, because it’s almost translucent. But luckily, I don’t have to sleep on it. |
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| Here are the bookcases in my home office, showing off all my books, baskets of office supplies, and a few jars of pens and pencils. |
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| In case you were curious, here’s the view above my art table. Lots of paper/envelope supplies and the printer stay tucked up near the ceiling so I barely have to see them. |
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| Here’s the corner where I sit. It’s where I’m sitting right now! Spooky! |
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| My view from the desk. I LOVE this painting, and this particular print has been with me since high school — from my bedroom at home, to the first apartment I shared with Darling Husband, to our condo, and now to our House of Dreams. |
Have you ever modified a cheap bookcase to make it a little less crappy and a lot more awesome? Tell me about it!
xoxo
Food your toddler will want to eat
- They get a kick out of different containers and dishes. D loves eating out of muffin tins, but he also just likes when I use silicone muffin liners as cups or holders.
- They appreciate having tiny-sized “real” items. We only use plastic “baby” cutlery until the first birthday. Last Christmas, I bought D a set of two tiny bamboo spoons at a Pampered Chef party. I think they were designed to serve dip, but they’re the perfect size for a toddler. He either uses those, or stainless steel forks and spoons (the dessert-sized forks from my cutlery set). I’m going to buy some tiny (but sturdy) glasses soon, too, because he loves drinking from them at his Nannie’s house.
- They like to keep things separated. I get it. I don’t like some of my food touching each other, either. D’s not weird about this, but he does seem to prefer having his ingredients separated out in certain cases. It gives him a chance to review something before he eats it, AND it prevents him from refusing a whole section of food because he doesn’t like one item he spotted inside. For example, when I make nachos for D, I leave them “deconstructed.” He loves eating the meat, cheese, and chips separately, whereas he wouldn’t touch it “all together.”
- They like food to be fun. D loves when I make his pancakes into a snowman (complete with pretzel arms and a chocolate-chip face) or make “banana people” using a little peanut butter and a few raisins. It’s really easy to do, and they go crazy for it.
- They are more likely to try something new if you’re low-key about it. I personally hated a lot of foods growing up, so I’m not a big food enforcer. I serve D child-friendly versions of what we’re having for dinner, and if he’s never tried part of the meal before, I keep it separated so it doesn’t upset him. I’ll make him a plate of mini chicken wraps and put four little strips of green or red pepper on the side. At the end of the meal, there might be three left, or there might just be one bite missing, but I’m going to keep offering it.
- They love to dip. Yes, it’s messier, but toddlers are just messy in general. I serve D little sticks of French toast with a tiny cup (a silicone muffin liner) of syrup for dipping, or taco chips with a tiny cup of salsa. They see US dipping, and it looks pretty fun. I think it’s also a good way to introduce new tastes (like Caesar dressing or sour cream) on their own terms.
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| “Mouse pancakes” are always a big hit |
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| Tacos are a favourite with D. See his little bamboo spoon? |
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| He loves eggs, so I make sure to offer them regularly. I’ve heard too many stories of kids who didn’t like them for years simply because they didn’t eat them when they were little. |
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| Fresh fruit makes the muffin tin extra-pretty! |
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| Peanut butter is messy with a two-year-old, so I always keep it in the centre of the cracker — keeps little hands cleaner! |
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| “Banana people” made with peanut butter and raisins |
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| Sometimes I add sprinkles to his yogurt for a treat — they make it so colourful! |
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| What a festive pancake dish! |
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| Usually D eats regular chicken wraps, but I guess I served deconstructed chicken wraps on this day (better for dipping). Notice the tiny piles of peppers for him to try? |
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| I made this lunch entirely from random leftovers and almost-empty containers in the fridge, but it looks so cute when it’s all put together, doesn’t it? |
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| Deconstructed nachos. I slice up D’s baby carrots if they’re too fat, so he doesn’t choke. Once a worrier, always a worrier! |
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| Tuna salad on melba toast, apple slices, crackers, and tomato strips — see him trying the tomato?! |
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| Slice breaded chicken fingers into little strips, and they look fancier … kinda … |
I’m always looking for new ways to get D to eat — anyone have any tips for me?
xoxo
Resolutions? I guess you could call them that …
I don’t typically make New Year’s resolutions. I’m more of the mind that you have to do things when it makes sense to do them, not when you’re “supposed” to think of things to do.
If I decide I want to tackle a major project (or 10) or make a lifestyle change, it’s going to be an immediate thing. Probably an obessive thing, too, because that’s how I roll.
Darling Husband and I made a HUGE lifestyle change in June of 2012 when we joined Weight Watchers and began eating healthier. To date, he’s lost about 25 lbs., and I’m a few pounds away from a 60-lb. loss (including baby weight and the actual baby, so probably a 30-lb. loss if you consider what I weighed pre-preg.)
2012 was also the year we welcomed our beautiful daughter, C, so much of the year was consumed with learning how to manage two very small children.
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| In 2013, I want to soak up every minute with my two little loves. |
So what’s on the agenda for 2013?
- Continuing on our healthy-eating path, and losing a bit more weight. I don’t have a set “end” in mind, but I think I’m close. I also realllllly need to start incorporating some exercise. I have worked out a total of five times, I think, since having C in April. Not nearly enough!
- Finally designing and decorating our finished basement. It’s a playroom/TV room, and it’s literally just a big beige box with a zillion toys in it. Our new TV is schedule to arrive today (woohoo!) so Darling Husband is itching to transform one corner of it into a media room-slash-man cave.
- Being in the moment with my kids. They are growing up at light speed, and I want to soak up every minute. Yes, sometimes D wants to play games that I find really, really boring (like lining up toy cars for “a race” and not being allowed to actually race them). But I’ve been trying lately to really get into their play, and interest them in things that we can all enjoy. He’s been getting into pretend play, which I love!
- Maintaining my freelance career. I don’t have huge desires to ton of new clients. I just want to keep doing work I enjoy, working with people I respect, and generally feeling proud of the work I’m providing for my clients.
- Building up the blog. Yes, you made the list, dear readers! I really hate the guilty feeling I get when I’m not blogging often. I’m really, really, REALLY going to try to post more often, and give you content you want to read. Who knows? Maybe 2013 will be the year I “make it” as a blogger and get to attend bloggy conferences and stuff?
- Making time for myself. Our lives are busy (but whose aren’t?), and I have trouble carving out time for myself. I feel guilty if I’m not DOING something, and seem to have a problem putting things off to another day. But I really need chunks of time alone — not washing dishes, not cooking, not doing laundry — and I know Darling Husband supports this, so I have to make more of an effort to step back, let him handle things, and disappear for 30 minutes.
Bring it on, 2013! We’re ready for you!
Back to normal
Welcome to January!
As much as I love Christmas, I have mixed feelings about the temporary suspension from reality.
In a way, I like that it’s a break from your everyday routine, especially when it involves presents and special treats and visiting. But I also LIKE having an everyday routine — and more importantly, so do my children — so Jan. 2 is kind of when I breathe a sigh of relief that the whole holiday thing is over.
Here’s a brief re-cap of our Christmas-y adventures, before we dive into 2013 for realz:
- We spent three nights at my mom’s house
- Baby C decided NOT TO SLEEP for the first night (Seriously. Little Sis and I got three hours’ sleep that night. Total.)
- I ate poutine twice (we don’t buy frozen french fries anymore because we’re all healthy and stuff or something)
- I ate my body weight in potato chips on Christmas Eve (BEFORE turkey dinner … not a wise decision, really)
- Darling Husband had to work ALL over Christmas (Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, you name it) but I was grateful to have my mom and Little Sis to hang out with (and the kiddos, of course)
- D’s favourite gifts (not including his play kitchen, which he got before we left for my mom’s) are his tow truck, his firetruck, and a set of awesome blocks
- C’s favourite gifts are all of D’s gifts … She’s really into whatever he’s playing with, and seems to like them all more than her own gifts!
- My favourite gift is a gorgeous Kitchenaid stand mixer (which you may have seen me gushing about on Instagram) that is pretty much going to change my life
- Darling Husband’s favourite gift was the 46″ television we ordered when the Boxing Day sales started on Christmas Eve (technically it’s for all of us, but of course he will enjoy it the most)
- I got to hang out with family and friends that I don’t get to see very often
- We had a decent amoumt of snow, and I had fun playing in it with D (including building a snowman and teaching him how to make snow angels)
- I gained three-and-a-half pounds over the two-week period, but am not really worried about it because IT’S CHRISTMAS HOW CAN YOU NOT HAVE POUTINE?
- Darling Husband had to work on New Year’s Eve, but I spent a very fun evening with my friend, J. We ate homemade caramel corn and bruschetta, and sang/danced our asses off to Miley Cyrus songs in my Disney Sing It game. I awesomely changed the lyrics of “See You Again” to “my best friend D— said ‘Oh, she’s just being Mommy!'” because I’m cool like that.
I hope you all had an amazing holiday break, and are feeling ready to get back to “normal” along with me! I’m determined to find more time for blogging in 2013 — I’ve heard they’re going to start making each day 26 hours long, which is really helpful — so I look forward to hanging out with all my virtual friends as much as I can.
xoxo
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Heather's Handmade Life 