Only Me

God has a strange sense of humor.  So I started looking for a job...because I feel at some point I should use my degree doing the things in college they said I could do....things like PR and Hospitality, and file random documents and answer phones.  So I found an add on craigslist for a receptionist position at a Chiropractic office.  I sent my resume and hoped for the best.  So yesterday I get a call from the Chiropractor's wife who saw my resume and wanted to know if I would be interested in teaching at one of her Montessori schools.  I would be able to work 4, 10-hour shifts and have Fridays off.  I could do parent tours...or I could possibly work at the chiropractor's office in the morning and then help at the Montessori school in the afternoons. So I agree to meet with her on Thursday morning.

Right after I hang up the phone with Ann (the Montessori owner) I realize "Oh crap, my car is still in the shop and my husband is in the Boundary Waters communing with trees and trying to catch fish and will therefore be unable to drive me to said appointment.  No sooner do I have this realization and go into a state of semi-panic than Jimmy the Friendly Mechanic calls.  He was able to get to my car way earlier than expected and I can pick it up this afternoon.

So in this weird world I feel a sense of inevitability.   It seems strange to me that every time I reach out to do something thats not childcare I am steered right back to it.  Am I somehow meant to work with children forever?

The house is falling down.

Ok maybe its not falling down but it certainly is coming apart at the seams a bit.  I was washing dishes the old-fashioned way.  Our house is much too small for a mechanical dishwasher.  All of a sudden I hear a rushing sound...kind of like a tiny waterfall.  I turn off the water, but still hear the sound of water gushing.  I glance underneath the kitchen sink and the pipe is clearly leaking.  Well not leaking really.  Lets say its more of a torrential downpour.  The pipe isn't completely connected to the sink and looks as though it has rusted through.  So when my dear dear husband comes home I slam him with, "Honey...I think there is something wrong with the sink".  Two trips to the hardware store, a couple hours and a few curses later and the sink is functional and is sporting some sparkly white pvc pipe.  Crisis averted and all is well.

Until that is I do some laundry.  It is T-minus 4 hours until we leave for our 4 day camping adventure.  I am trying to get all our towels and some miscellaneous camping clothes clean before we leave.  I open up the dryer to find some incredibly hot but not nearly dry towels.  Ok I start the dryer and listen.  It sounds a bit odd.  I open the door to the dryer and the towels haven't moved one inch.  Great now the dryer is down!  Not only is it down but I also have a full load of clothes in the wash.  So now I have to find places to hang all this stuff.  Did I mention that our house is small?  I have clothes hanging from closet doors and window jams, chairs, door knobs, plant hooks, and closet doors.  Luckily it was a nice day and with the help of some open windows and our ceiling fans everything got mostly dry before we left on our trip.  So when we got back from 4 days of camping bliss (with the exception of me burning my foot with bacon grease), Jason went in search of dryer parts.  3 hours, 4 stores, and much frustration later, Jason fixed the dryer with a new belt and the help of DIY on you tube.  Please Lord save us from any more fix it projects!

Baking when bored

Dangerous things happen when I get bored.  Things like the insane urge to bake.  I will go silently crazy from cleaning, and working, and organizing.  Then, out of the blue, I gravitate to yummy websites like foodnetwork.com and allrecipes.com or the ever dangerous blog smittenkitchen.com.  There I will wander the internet aisles filled with delicious yummy treats.  These aisles are filled with delightful tasty recipes that I  MUST try.  So this past week has been very bakeful.  Here are the following homemade recipes I have tried :


1.  Chewy chocolate chip cookies. http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/03/crispy-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies/


Oh are these cookies ever delightful.  They have almost a caramely richness to them.  They turn out kinda crispy on the outside.  But underneath that crisp exterior lies a dense but soft inside.  These are chewy tasty goodness and must be enjoyed.  I ran out of milk after I made a batch.


2.  Chewy Lemon Cookies.  I got this summery confection recipe from patentandthe pantry.wordpress.com.  http://patentandthepantry.wordpress.com/2010/12/05/chewy-lemon-cookies/


These are so summery I just couldn't resist them.  The only thing I changed about this recipe is I used two smaller lemons and zested them both.  I got about 5 tablespoons of juice for a nice lemony flavor.  I heart lemon flavor so I tend to add a bit extra when I try to make anything that needs it.


3.  Banana Bread.  There are a ton of banana bread recipes.  I couldn't find my mom's tried and true recipe so instead I used this one from simplyrecipes.com  http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/banana_bread/


I did change this recipe slightly as well.  I used a quarter cup white sugar and a half a cup brown sugar instead of the 1 cup white sugar that the recipe intended.  While I didn't do it this time, I will often add a quarter to a half cup chopped pecans as well.  Its a nice switch up from the typical walnuts most people use.


4.  Blueberry Pancakes.  I made these for Sunday Breakfast because Sunday is mine and my husband's fancy breakfast day.  It is just nice to have one relaxing day a week to wake up, make breakfast, read the paper, go to church, and then find something fun to do. http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/07/blueberry-pancakes-pancake-101/  Again I slightly modified the recipe. I used half milk and half kefir (kefir is a liquidy plain yogurt) instead of buttermilk.  It gave the pancakes a really tasty tang.  These pancakes turned out a bit thinner from the last time I made them but oh so tasty.  I also recommend the trick of adding the berries after you have poured the pancake on the griddle.  If you like thicker blueberry pancakes I would try this recipe. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/todds-famous-blueberry-pancakes/detail.aspx


5.  Blueberry Crumb Bars.  Oh so tasty.  This is your basic crumb bar.  Its perfect for a hot summer day, warmed up, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  Its also a perfect potluck bar because you can cut them into tiny squares and everyone will be happy just to have a taste with all that potluck food. http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/07/blueberry-crumb-bars/


Ok so I think I must now weigh about 15 more pounds after reading my post.  But never fear I have a deep freeze so luckily I don't have to eat all of these in one sitting.  They will just lurk in my freezer until I have some company and then I will pull them out at my leisure...if I can resist them.

The Female Pope?

I just read a fabulous book Pope Joan by Donna Wolfolk Cross.  This is a historical fiction book about a young woman, Joan,  who was educated in the classics in the Dark Ages. Joan disguises herself as a man and joins the priesthood.  Joan gives herself the name of John Anglicus and travels to Rome and rises to the position of Pope.  Joan reigns as Pope for roughly two years before dying giving birth while traveling to St. Peter's on the Via Sacra.

While the legend of a female Pope is debated and often said to be false in modern religious circles, the story is unique enough to make for an entertaining read and there are enough historical details to keep me interested. I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in the Dark Ages, religious history, or who enjoy books such as Ken Follet's Pillars of the Earth.

The First Chapter

Let me introduce you to Lady White. I am a 32 year old woman with a penchant for reading, randomly starting crafts, and camping.  I recently got married to a wonderful man.  I currently have a new (to me) house that it is a bachelor pad filled with antlers and guy stuff, 2 cats who tolerate my presence, never-ending housework (mostly due to dishes and laundry), and a crazy urge to bake, sew, and garden.  I am in serious danger of becoming a crazy Stepford wife...something which I have never really envisioned for myself. So this blog is going to be a combination of exploring various aspects of domesticity from keeping house, to working, to venting rant of daily life, to my current favorite books and shows.  Hopefully you lovely readers will find this blog worth your time and I will luckily benefit from any advice or comments you throw my way.