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In preparation for Will beginning kindergarten in the fall, we’ve been paying close attention to his development. I’m happy to say that he is on par or advanced in all areas the school will be assessing, but I’m a little nervous that one of the areas is the child’s ability to tell real from imaginary. My son is pretty down to earth, but he has an active imagination that we encourage by making up stories about his super hero grandparents or furthering his desires to “sometime can we fly on a magic carpet?” I’m not entirely sure he gets that these are just stories, and I’d actually prefer that he didn’t. 5 just seems a little young to be constrained by reality.

(For the curious – I’ve never seen it, but I’ve heard Grandma Texas can jump super high, like as high as a skyscraper. She also has mad crochet and knitting skillz. It is rumored she has whipped up nets to catch bad guys ….)

Anyway, off to catch us some leprechauns so that we can retire early. Work is for realists.

I love it when the non-toxic garden solution works better than the nasty commercial options, so I’m going to share my four favorite non-toxic household miracles:

For stopped/slow drains:
– 1/2c Baking Soda and 1/2c Vinegar poured down the drain, covered/sealed for 15 minutes with a damp cloth
– Chase the mixture with 1 quart boiling water
(This counts as 2 because you could just use boiling water)

For burns (even from peppers!):
Slather with freshly cut Aloe Vera from your garden. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve used the palm of my hand as an oven mitt and been saved from scarring and incredible pain by a dollop of magic aloe vera. Try it.
It also works quite quickly to stop the pain of hot pepper on your nose, eye, lip, etc. (We eat a lot of habaneros. For some reason, my nose only itches when I’m mid habanero chop. You’d think I’d have learned by now…)

Finally, my new favorite non-toxic solution is not from the pantry or the garden, but did I mention it is non-toxic? Seventh Generation Tub & Tile Cleaner. We live in a really old house with a bathtub that needs to be re-porcelained. The bathtub’s pourous surface means that abrasives like baking soda or Comet leave an unsightly residue, so I’m always on the lookout for an alternative to toxic soap scum and mold removers. I tried this product yesterday and it left my tile clean and shiny and my bathtub scum free.

You can tell which kids at the zoo learned their animals watching Pixar movies. They are the ones who yell, “Move it! Move it!” at the sight of hippos, lions, meer cats, …

I’m not yet feeling the pinch of the failing economy, but watching so many businesses around me falter definitely keeps me on the lookout for ways to save a dime here and there. Today, I stumbled across an article about hidden millionaires – a handful of people from modest means who were able to squirrel away millions of dollars. I expected it to be like “the millionaire next door” – people who over a lifetime were able to amass $1 million running a junkyard or doing other such things I just can’t imagine. Rest assured, these people are more inspiring.

Rita reminds me of someone…

Yay! We’ve launched out beta version of Mamapedia, today.

We have a lot more advice to catalog and unearth, tons of polishing, and some useful features to make it easy for you guys to browse. Not to mention a brand new UI. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, I’d love to get your feedback.

that I’m a working mom, no time to dust…

I know when I wake up with my own version of a BeeGees song stuck in my head that my mind is spent. Been burning the midnight oil lately on a secret project at work, which will no longer be secret this afternoon.

But, in my 20 minutes of surfing after turning in my final draft of the site skeleton, I learned that coparenting – the dynamics of the relationship between the mom and dad in a household – has a measurable impact on the kiddos of that household. Coparenting relationships that are collaborative and supportive seem to decrease the occurrence of aggression or out of control behavior in at risk 4 and 5 year olds according to a study from Ohio State.

Sylvie, my nanny, and I are all ill, today. So, home alone with Sylvie, I decided we might attempt potty training. She’s been using the potty since ~15 months because she hates to be dirty, but since I’m not a fan of accidents, we’ve avoided encouraging anything more than Sylvie directed potty experiments. Figured we could always test the waters.

I tried just putting her in panties. The dolls used the potty. I used the potty. Sylvie used the potty. Success!

Every 15 minutes or so I’d inquire.

After a few hours, enthusiasm begining to wane, I broke out a timer and set it for 20 minutes – not quite long enough to really need to go, but not long enough to have an accident, either. When the bell rang, it was potty time. Woo hoo! After 3 rings of the bell, Sylvie stopped performing. Fail.

Her enthusiasm was refreshed when Will arrived home from school. The two of them went immediately to the bathroom, then ran around the house with their bottom halves exposed. At some point while I was making dinner, I heard a strange gulping coming from the bathroom as Will ran to me yelling, “The toilet is clogged! The toilet is clogged!” … Turns out the gulping was little Sylvie – part baby, part wild animal – standing bare bottomed, balanced with a foot on either side of the toilet seat crazily thrusting the plunger in and out of the water. Words just don’t do this scene justice. Thankfully, nothing was actually clogged, and no 2 year-olds were harmed hoisting the 3 foot long old-fashioned wooden and rubber plunger into the toilet.

A few weeks ago I stumbled across mention of Clara, the 93 year old, who has her own youtube depression cooking series. At the time, I didn’t click, but flagged it for later review. I stumbled across it again, today, with time to watch and ended up spending an hour making my way through her episodes. She is charming and makes me weepy eyed for my grandmothers.

If, like everyone, you are tightening your belt for the long recession ahead, her recipes are worth entertaining. Regardless of your financial situation, she is a charming woman, and quite worth inviting into your home by clicking play.

I’ve got a friend who likes a menu, so I am sharing with anyone who cares.
Monday – Salmon Cakes and steamed broccoli
– 1lb salmon per person, cooked
– ~1/4 c breadcrumbs per lb salmon
– 1 minced garlic clove
– 4 sweet peppers (I use little bell peppers, any will do), to taste
– 2tbs minced parsely, fresh
– 1 egg, beaten
– 2 tbs olive oil
Mix all ingredients but oil together. Heat oil in a frying pan. Form 2 inch diameter balls, then flatten them into patties. Place in hot oil and cook until brown on each side. (~2 mins/side)

Tuesday – Camarones con Mango

Wednesday – tortilla soup with shrimp
If you’ve followed this blog for some time, you are familiar with the recipe – 1 can black beans, 1 can pinto, 1 can rotel tomatoes, 1 can corn – all heated; top steaming bowls with: minced garlic, 1/2 minced habanero, 1 handful minced cilantro, grated cheese, sliced avocado. Top with chips or “tortillas”. To this week’s recipe, I’m adding shrimp that I’ll saute in the pan before adding the beans.

Thursday – calzones
We’ve been cheating lately using whole wheat dough from trader joes, but if you have an hour and a bread machine, there are a million recipes online for fresh dough. To make, I heat the oven to 450 degrees. Roll 4 balls of dough into flat circles. Fill one half of each with several tablespoons of ricotta, garlic roasted in the microwave for 1 min, parmesean, and then whatever we have in the fridge or the garden -mushrooms, spinach, arugula, parsely, olives, feta, etc. Salt and pepper to taste. Once you’ve piled on the ingredients, seal the calzones shut by flipping the unsealed lip over the yummy center. Press to close. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until browned on top.

Friday – taco salad
This is really like cleaning out the pantry – tomatoes, cheese, avocados, lettuce, olives, black beans, fake meat, etc. AND a dressing made of 2 tbs red wine vinegar, 4 tbs olive oil, 1 tsp garlic powder OR 1 clove minced garlic, 1 tsp cumin, salt and pepper to taste.