A quickie!

Restashing is going well.  I've fallen in love anew with another brand.  I have a great review coming up and-my first sponsored giveaway!

Stay tuned!

A bowl of delicious

I like potatoes. This is evidenced by my generous curves.  I also like to try new recipes.  Plus, cooking from scratch allows me to control what's in the food-which is vital when you have a child with food anaphylaxis.

I picked up some leeks the other day on a whim and the first recipe that came up when I googled was this potato and leek soup. I love potatoe soups in general and I had most of the ingredients so I gave it a whirl.

Dear Baby Jesus,  thank you for Google.

It was AH-MAZING.   It also smelled absolutely divine!

I made a few changes-no white pepper ot white wine, because I had none. I also added garlic because I love it so. I also separated some for Princess before adding the cream. I tried to take step by step pics but after a while I stopped.

I attempted to control portions by serving it in mugs but that just caused my family to forgo spoons and drink it.  It was that good.

(almost) Wordless Wednesday

Fluff.

The Restashing Project, Part 2

Other than my beloved ODCs, I have no allegiance to any brand and I love a good deal. I love fitteds but they can be pricy. I was browsing the Etsy-verse and found Greenchild Creations. Well, dog my cats! Popcorn was fluff poor so I ordered 2 flannel fitteds, 1 bamboo/cotton twill fitted, and one fleece soaker. I added snaps to my diapers, an optional feature. There was also a promotion going (spend $50, get a free flannel fitted) so I paid less than $75 for four diapers , a cover, AND shipping.And now, without further ado, my reviews.

Customer service:The sweet mama who runs the shop was a joy to work with. She shipped quickly and even added snaps to my free dipe for free.

Quality: WAHM dipes never cease to amaze me with their quality and these are no exception. They are lovingly made and the prints are adorable. The pink bamboo velour is already a fave around here. It's deliciously soft and squishy.

What makes 'em special: These fitteds are more of a pocket-fitted amalgamation.  They have three layers of fabric: the outer, the inner, and the "flap." They DO NOT come with a soaker. Instead,  they have an open interior between the outer and inner. I toss a microfiber insert inside, then lay the flap over the top. The result is a reasonably absorbent fitted that is nice and trim.

Final Verdict: I like them. Especially the pink bamboo/cotton twill combo. The lack of a soaker was a bit off putting at first but I found that the trimness and the ability to customize the absorbency made up for it nicely.  They dry super quick and the softness is amazing.  Popcorn is a itty bitty and they fit her perfectly.  (I also put one on Side Salad to test the one sized-ness and was able to snap it on his 40-something pound frame.  He then ran off to show the other kids.)

Winner winner, chicken dinner.

Restashing, Part I

So I've finally begun to rebuild my stash and it's crazy fun.  I just scored an ODC on Spots.  If you've been here long or on my old blog, you know I love my Oranges.  This one Lettuce selected (or, to be fair, he saif the print was nice which I interpretedas permission to buy).

I am too in love to be objective so just enjoy this photo collage.

Goals, resolutions, whatevs

I don't like the word resolutions as it pertains to those of the new year kind.  They reek of failure.  I do have goals, though, and I thought I'd share them.

#1 Financial Goals: I'd like to increase my credit score. This recession took a toll on our finances. My credit score took a hit of about 100 or so points and I'm sick over it.  We have no savings left at all.  It sucks and we really need to buy a house like next year.
-Increase my credit score by 100 points. Duh.  I want my points back.
-Save some dough. I'm doing this gradually. I started saving by putting a dollar in an envelope the first Sunday od the year. The second Sunday I'll put in two dollars. Next Sunday, three dollars. And so on. The last Sunday, I'll put in $52. And I'll have over $1300 saved. Do the math. It's real.
-Get a full time position at my beloved school.  Preferably in the science lab. Or 2nd grade. Or third. Or fourth. Shoot, even fifth.

#2 Health: Other than my obscene cholesterol, I'm good.  Obscene like it has never been below 250. Even when I was a kid.  That's related to genetics, not diet.  But I want to better.
-Eat less red meat and pork.
-Eat more veggies.
-Dust off my work out DVDs and get jiggy with it.

#3 Personal: Continuing the theme of the best me,
-READ THE BIBLE MORE.
-Spend more one on one time with each kid. Now that popcorn is getting big, that should ve easier.
-Spend more time with the hubby.
-journal consistently.

Do you have any life goals for the new year?

It Matters

This year we moved from a very diverse, urban/suburban-ish school district to a much less diverse one in more affluent area.  I have mixed feelings about this as a teacher and as a parent.  My kids attend much newer schools (brand spankin' new!)with much more technology. Astronaut has an iPad.  Squirrel has them in her class.  Princess checks out Nooks from the library.  The students as a whole are more focused and there are far fewer behavioral issues.

But there are major drawbacks.  My kids stick out like grains of pepper in a bowl of rice.  It's a new experience for them, though not necessarily a bad one.  They've made new friends, really nice ones, especially the Astronaut.  But there are definitely some drawbacks. For one, their idea of a open door policy differs greatly from what we've been used to.  They don't like parents to come into the children's classrooms. I'm used to sitting in, helping teachers.  Also Princess and her teacher had some issues.  And today I noticed that ina school with over 750 students, there are zero black teachers. What are the odds of that? They also failed to put my boy-who is state identified as gifted-in the proper courses.

Before Princess made her entrance, there was only one black girl. I guess she was The Black Girl.  Now there are two. She and P have had "friendship problems" because she feels like P is "taking her friends."  We'll call said girl, Frog (this is not in any way related to her looks.  She's a pretty child.).  Princess is slender, slightly above average height, has smooth chocolatety skin, big brown eyes with lashes so long they look like butterfly wings, long hair (down past her shoulders, though she rarely wears it out). I've only seen her twice but Frog is light skinned with very long hair-about mid back length-the same texture as Princess' but a little lighter in color.   These details will be relevant very soon.

Today, Princess told me that Frog is not black.  Now I've seen Frog and it is very clear that she is, in fact, black.  It's not that she's ambiguous, like the singer Miguel. She's a light skinned black girl.  So I ask "Well what is she then? "  I expect her to say Guyanese or Dominican or something like that-something with enough melanin to fool the eye at first glance.  Princess tells me that Frog says she is white. 

Apparently, Frog is mixed.  I had no idea.  And since her mom is white, she's decided she's white, too.  Now that she can't be TBG, I guess.  Let me say, this child is not black, per se.  She is biracial.  I am not suggesting she should deny her whiteness. 

You wonder why I care, don't you. It's because I care about kids and their wellbeing, even when they are mean to my kids. I'm a teacher.  Kids are my life.  My students, I love them like I birthed them.

I care because this is a little black girl and I'm a mama of little black girls.  It is a cold world for little black girls.  The world goes out of its way to tear them down.  Traditional ideals of beauty are very eurocentric.   Additionally, the assumption is that intelligence and class have an inverse relationship with complexion.

I care because this child is being set up to be ridiculed and embarrassed. No one will treat her like a white child.  Yes, this is America. Yes, it is 2013.  Yes, black people are STILL treated differently than others. It's just the truth.  Furthermore, no one is going to trear her black, then find out she is "white" and treat her differently.  I understand that her mother is white-she is not.  It's like hair color. If your mom is a blonde and you've hot auburn tresses,  you're not blonde. She will be looked at a bit funny by everyone for calling herself white.

I care because this could impact her school performance. Yep, black pride is good for black kids, says Harvard. It gives the the tools they need to survive and thrive.  By denying what is clearly true-that she is biracial, her mother is implying that there is something wrong with being black. She's attaching shame to it. And self shame can morph into self hate, a dangerous thing in girls. Self hate leads to self destructive behaviors such as eating disorders,  promiscuity, drinking, cutting, etc.

My heart breaks for this precious child and the utter confusion she must be feeling.  I'm scared of how real things will get for her.

Or perhaps I'm just reading too much into it.