I love my Kindle

As I've mentioned, I love to read. I love to read books, magazines, websites, blogs. You name it, I'll read it. I grew up reading Anne of Green Gables, Little House on the Prairie, Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley Twins, The Babysitter Club books. And too many more to mention. I would go to the little library in our tiny little town, and pick out 4-5 books per week, and just devour them. And yes, I was an English major in college. I have $20,000 worth of student loans to show for it. (I actually ended up with a pretty decent career, too, so don't knock English Lit as a major!).

I love cracking open a new book, touching the page, seeing the font. It is a very physical act, isn't it, reading? Holding something in your hands for hours as you get lost in a story. So, when the Kindle arrived under my tree for Christmas from Tim, I was excited, but apprehensive. Would I enjoy reading a book on a machine? Would I have the same excitement when I sat down to read a new book? Would it hurt my eyes? Would the actual experience of reading be different? Well, the answers, for me, are Yes, Yes, No, and Yes, but not in a bad way.

I love my Kindle! I love that it is super light, probably even lighter than a book! I love that any book I want, I can instantly download and start reading. Instantly! I love that I can prop it up on a pillow, and I don't have to even barely move to turn a page - I just tap a little button. Tap tap tap. I have read 10 books on my Kindle in the 10 weeks I have had it. That's a book a week! And I have a full time job, and a 2 year old, so I am very proud about that!

I still like real books, and I still love reading a good old magazine in the bath, which won't cost $200 to replace if I drop it in the water. But, if you LOVE reading, all forms of reading, you will love the Kindle, or the Nook, or any of the other e-books on the market today.

An Age to Remember

I am a magazine junkie, and it's an expensive habit. But, I will never give it up. I love cracking open a new magazine and reading it cover to cover in one sitting. I read everything, I don't skip over anything. Insane, I know. I love words!

One of my favorite magazines is Real Simple. It is layed out very simply (imagine that) and it has great recipes and good articles from contributing writers.

In the latest issue is an article about An Age to Remember. Six authors wrote about a certain age that they really loved, and why.

I really liked the one about the woman enjoying the age 38 because her one and only child was three and still loved her mommy without questioning. Read it here and smile!

When it rains, it pours...but then you eat steak.

The Meyer household had a tough week last week. Besides the -20 degree temps that makes life so enjoyable, we experienced
1) A flat tire (ended up being two flat tires) as Zoe and I were headed off to work and school, resulting in a wonderful bill from the car repair place;
2) Zoe caught pinkeye, an ear infection, and a cold, resulting in Tim staying home with her Thursday, and me staying home with her Friday, not to mention the two lovely visits to the doctor (if you want details on why there were TWO appointments, you'll have to ask Tim);
3) While I was home with Zoe on Friday morning, I realized that the house felt cold. Really cold. I checked the temp. 65 degrees. That is not normal. I pumped up the heat, and all I got was a blast of cold air in the face. Called the repair guy, long story short, $500 and a very cold 6 hours later, we had heat again.

Anyway. Why dwell? We ended up having a nice weekend, and capped it off with this delicious dinner, eaten at 8:00 p.m. after the two-year old was in bed, as most people with young children know is the only time to eat dinner in peace:

• New York strip steak marinated in red wine and garlic
• Crispy delicious brussel sprouts roasted in olive oil
• Sweet potatoes with a homemade sricha mayo (if you have not tried sweet potatoes with a spicier sauce, you must)
• bread pudding with blueberries.

Long story short - bad things happen every day, but if you just power through, things get better. And you can eat steak.

Happy Valentine's Day

Mommy-Daughter dates!

Tim started his master's program in January, and he is taking the weekend course. Which means that he has class on Friday nights and Saturday all day, a few times per month. What this also means is that I get a lot of quality solo-time with my Zoe! Now, while my favorite things to do are with Zoe AND Tim, there is something to be said for having one-on-one time with a toddler. You don't have two adults trying to steer the boat, not to mention the child, who thinks she is Steven Spielberg (seriously, she has been bossing us around and directing us since she was born). I can set our schedule, and we go at her pace.

This past Saturday, we started out at Kohl's, because Tim bought me a Packers shirt that was about as wide as my right arm. Not going to work. So I returned the shirt, bought a much roomier sweatshirt, and just as Zoe started to squirm in the cart and was shouting "walk" "walk" "WALK" (meaning, she wanted to get out of the cart and run free and never come back) I whisked her back into the car. Now where to? Cranky Al's! For those of you that don't know, Cranky Al's is a Wauwatosa institution. They serve pizza at night, and they serve doughnuts and other baked goods in the morning. And they do both very very well.

Your kids can run pretty free at Cranky Al's, and no one gives you a dirty look, because everyone who goes there brings their kids. I ordered my latte, a cup of milk, and a huge pumpkin muffin. Zoe eats really well all week long, not too many sweets or juice, since she doesn't get that at school, so I let her have treats on the weekend. The child ate the ENTIRE muffin in about 5 seconds. Most of you have seen Zoe eat, and it's quite something to behold. Then she proceeded to say "Hi Daddy" to every male who is about Tim's age that passed our way. "No, Zoe, that's not Daddy, silly, Daddy is at school", I said about 10 times as I laughed ha ha, my child is so cute, NO, you aren't her dad. Slightly embarassing, but funny at the same time.

After about 30 minutes of this, we were off to Mayfair to get her haircut. I knew I only had about 30 good minutes left in her until a meltdown was about to happen, so I had to act fast. The child's hair is long and thick and she gets yogurt stuck in her bangs a lot. Last time I trimmed them myself, and it was a pretty hacked-up job. So this time, I needed a professional. I was not quite sure how Zoe was going to react to a stranger coming at her with a pair of scissors.

Well, she loved it (after she destroyed a pretty display of shampoo bottles, which took me a while to put back together). She sat in my lap, and she flirted with all of the stylists who were telling her what a good, big girl she was. $5.00 for a bang trim, and we were back in the car, headed home, for lunch and naptime, while Zoe talked about her "petty haircut".

I cherish these moments with Zoe, and while I do love staying in the house with her and just playing and snuggling on these cold, winter days (some people ask me why we don't ever just sit in the house and relax!), what I really love is being out in the world with her - seeing how she reacts to places and people is so much fun! Seeing her become the person she is becoming is my favorite part of motherhood.

Blogging? Really?

I read a lot of blogs, from cooking and parenting blogs, to fashion and to blogs about things going on where I live. I love blogs, but sometimes feel saturated with information and with other people's musings on their lives, which, let's be honest, are MOST interesting to the person writing it. Alas, I have always loved writing and feel that this is a time in my life where cool things are happening, so why not put it out there, right?! My family members and friends can peek into my life when they need a break from their own, and I can post cute pics of the fam. So, enjoy!