tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67702982378351705122024-03-13T12:10:59.576-07:00The Cyclist's WifeI run. He rides. I cook. We eat.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger321125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-87660525678789284092017-08-22T10:20:00.000-07:002017-08-25T10:01:22.112-07:00The Skinny on Meal Delivery<br />
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Hey Friends, what's new? For the past several months we have been trying out a bunch of the meal delivery services available.....there are a lot to choose from! I thought it would be fun to share our experiences with each one that we've tried - all the deets are below.<br />
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But, before we move on let's chat more. These services are super handy, but in all honesty, if you asked me if I use them all the time, the answer is a big fat nope! At first, I thought this could be a brilliant way to save money on groceries and not have to think about dinner.....and although that is still true, it can also sometimes feel like a chore to prepare and get these made before they spoil (except for Munchery).<br />
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If you are someone who likes to cook, these meals can be fun and a good way to expand your skills and recipe repertoire. That said, home cooks (like me) may find it's easier to cook from what you've got in the fridge. If you are not a cook, these are a great way to learn, but may be cumbersome for a weeknight (especially if you've got a crazy toddler).<br />
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So, after all this, what I've found works best for us is to use the service if we want some change in our regular menu, but not all the time. I also think the meal delivery services are great for when you are returning from vacation - having the food show up when you get home lessens the need to run to the grocery and the thoughts involved in planning meals for the week.<br />
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Keep reading to see what we thought of each service (and look for the giveaway in the Blue Apron section)!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://westhollywoodlifestyle.com/munchery-arrives-in-los-angeles/">Image Source</a></span></td></tr>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Munchery</span></u></b><br />
<b>Prep time</b> - The Fastest. Everything from the Munchery is already cooked, so it only needs to be re-heated in the microwave, oven or toaster. "Eww" you may say, but no my friends, no. Read more about the taste in the flavor section below.<br />
<b>Packaging</b> - Munchery does a good job of using compostable containers with recyclable plastic tops. The meals are fully prepared, so usually just one container, unless there is a sauce or fresh (no heat needed) side.<br />
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<b>Flavor</b> - OK, so YUM. Munchery food is really good. And I should preface this by saying, the thought of microwaving my dinner totally grosses me out. But this stuff does not taste microwaved. At. All. Apparently <a href="http://www.inc.com/magazine/201604/lindsay-blakely/munchery-microwaveable-burger-research-development.html">a lot of science</a> went into how Munchery prepares the food so it actually tastes good coming out of the microwave....and it really, really tastes good.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/Photos/Munchery-Office-Photos-IMG494014.htm">Image Source</a></span></td></tr>
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<b>Price</b> - The meals are about $9-$12 each, so similar to the un-prepared or semi-prepared box version competitors.<br />
<b>Ease of delivery</b> - Really easy. You can order Munchery food same day up to a certain time. Leave a cooler on your porch and they will drop it, plus text you when it's on its way and when it has been delivered.<br />
<b>Additional deets</b> - Munchery is nice because you can order one meal or ten and if you pick one option it doesn't limit you from choosing any of the other options (some of the boxed competitors do limit you, but have recently been changing this). The last minute ordering is great too and they have kids meals! Our toddler was a fan. I believe Munchery's delivery areas are more limited because this is more of a delivery service as opposed to a box being shipped by UPS or FedEx. That said, we live in a suburb of a moderately sized city and we can still get it delivered. <a href="https://munchery.com/users/reviews/">Here is a link</a> to some of the things we ordered from the Munchery and reviewed.<br />
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If you want to try Munchery for $20 off, please use my code: <a href="http://munchery.com/invite/4D4F9B9Z">munchery.com/invite/4D4F9B9Z</a><br />
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">*Disclaimer - if you use my Munchery code, I get $20 too, so thanks!</span></i><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Blue Apron</u></span></b><br />
<b>Prep Time - </b>Like you are making your own dinner. So, a little time is saved because you have everything you need, it's labeled and you can unpack it into your fridge in "meal groups". Plus extra bonus points for time saved not grocery shopping. But, you still have to cut/slice/peel/chop/zest and occasionally mix sauces. Let's be real. This stuff takes time! What I typically do is order my box so it arrives on a Monday. That evening, after the toddler goes to bed, I do all of the prepping I can realistically do at once, then stick it all back in the fridge. For the next three nights all I have to do is assemble and cook each meal; with prep time now eliminated, it is pretty quick.<br />
<b>Packaging - </b>Blue Apron's box and all the internal packaging are recyclable, they also have a handy <a href="https://www.blueapron.com/account#recycle">recycling guide</a> on their website. If your town does not offer a recycling program, Blue Apron has a return program too - you can return 100% of the meal packaging and they will recycle it for you. They also note: <span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-size: 16px;">We've partnered with the USPS to use existing delivery routes, so there's no additional carbon footprint to your return.</span></i></span> Great work Blue Apron!<br />
<b>Flavor - </b>We found Blue Apron to have the tastiest and most interesting dishes. There are always things that surprise me with their meals and we have not been disappointed or even "meh" once. The food is good and so is the quality.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.blueapron.com/pages/groupon"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image Source</span></a></td></tr>
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<b>Price - </b>Depending on the type of plan you choose the meals are $8.74-$9.99 each. You can choose between a two person plan of 3 meals per week for $59.94/week; a four person plan of 2 meals per week for $69.92/week or a 4 person plan of 4 meals per week for $139.84/week. If you use <a href="https://www.ebates.com/r/SARAHL4028?eeid=28187">Ebates</a>* you can get $7.50 off your first order. If you are a Costco shopper, you can buy $100 worth of Blue Apron gift cards for $80, which will give you 20% off. (You load the gift card code onto your Blue Apron account and it gives you a credit.)<br />
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">*Disclaimer - if you click the Ebates link and sign up, I get $25, so thanks! If you are not familiar with Ebates, it is a super easy and awesome service where you get an actual check every month for certain on-line shopping purchases.</span></i><br />
<b>Ease of delivery - </b>Pretty easy once you get it going. Your first order might be a week or two out, but after that you will receive meals weekly unless you skip or cancel.<br />
<b>Additional deets</b> - One thing I really like about Blue Apron is that I find I am learning a lot more about cooking than I already knew. I like to cook a lot and grew up in a cooking house, so learning new stuff is great. Some of my favorites that Blue Apron has taught me are how to make the perfect soft boiled egg (every. single. time!) and pickle onions. The meals also have a good variety, so I feel like we've tried a lot of new stuff as well. I also think their recipe cards are the most clearly written and easy to follow. Once you've used Blue Apron a bit they will send you free meals to share with your friends, it's always nice to send someone dinner! I have a few free meals to share for new customers, if you want one, shoot me an e-mail and I'll send one your way - first come first served basis for what I've currently got, no guarantees. :) That said, while it's nice to get food to give away, it would be cool if Blue Apron had a program where we could earn free meals for ourselves too.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://twitter.com/marleyspoon">Image Source</a></span></td></tr>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Marley Spoon</span></u></b><br />
<b>Prep time - </b>The meals we got from Marley Spoon were simpler recipes than what we got from other services (like Blue Apron or Green Chef) and therefore, took less time to prep and make. I would place Marley Spoon somewhere between Blue Apron (prepping a big majority of ingredients) and Gobble (prepping almost none of the ingredients). In one of my more brilliant mothering moments I had our 7 year old cook one of the Marley Spoon dinners for us (with oversight, of course) and he did great.<br />
<b>Packaging</b> - Overall I thought Marley Spoon did a better job of using less ice packs by keeping the non-refrigerator items (like veggies) on top, then wrapping the perishable items underneath in an extra insulated wrap with the ice. The non-perishable items were in bags with a sticker label indicating which recipe they were for. The perishable items were packed together in a plastic bag but there was no sticker. It was not terrible to figure out. I did feel like the use of extra plastic to group the perishable items was kind of excessive, but I did keep the zipoloc type bag to re-use it.<br />
<b>Flavor - </b>Well....it was OK. Overall the dishes filled our tummies but they weren't super tasty or surprisingly good like some that we have gotten from Blue Apron.<br />
<b>Price</b> - I got a free trial from a friend who uses Marley Spoon, so for me it was free. For a two person box, 3 meals per week it is $61.50, for a family box (2 adults, 2 kids), 3 meals per week, it is $106.80.<br />
<b>Ease of delivery - </b>This is a box service so it is shipped directly to your door in a refrigerated box. Like most of the services, there may be about a 1 week delay from when you place your first order, but after that you will receive the meals weekly (unless you skip or cancel).<br />
<b>Additional deets</b> - Marley Spoon is partnered with Martha Stewart. This is the only meal service that I'm aware of that is partnering with a TV chef. Martha is not my fave so that piece was neither here nor there to me. Like a lot of the other box services, if you change one of your menu choices, it eliminates some others as options. In this case I ultimately went with the three menu items originally offered. I should add to this that I picked the family plan and it seemed like the "family" dishes were more geared towards kids tastes. Two of the three dishes had ground beef, which we don't dislike but also don't eat a lot of, so I staggered the meals so that we weren't getting ground beef 2 days in a row. The first recipe we tried was the <a href="https://marleyspoon.com/archive/8957-beef-cottage-pie-with-carrot-potato-mash">Cottage Meat Pie with Carrot Potato Mash</a>. This put us off to a bit of a bad start because a worry (and pet peeve) of mine is that, imho, these recipes should pretty much look how they are pictured...... <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://marleyspoon.com/archive/8957-beef-cottage-pie-with-carrot-potato-mash">Beef Cottage Pie with Carrot Potato Mash</a></span></td></tr>
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.....note the thick layer of mashers over basically the whole dish. I was provided with 1 regular sized potato and one small potato + 1.5 carrots to pull off this mash (in a 13x9 pan...maybe I was supposed to use an 8x8...idk because the recipe didn't indicate). Needless to say, there was not nearly enough mash to cover my meat. Let's just be real, the mash makes this dish. Who wants to eat a pile of ground beef with peas & carrots? If you are going to make this dish, I suggest doubling the amount of potatoes (I did). That said, the box should give you everything you need to make it look like the picture, so throw in an extra potato Martha.<br />
The other two dishes we got were <a href="https://marleyspoon.com/archive/5090-macaroni-and-cheese-with-crunchy-salad">Macaroni & Cheese with Crunchy Salad</a> and <a href="https://marleyspoon.com/archive/4543-egg-noodles-and-meatballs-with-sour-cherry-jam-and-salad">Egg Noodles and Meatballs with Sour Cherry Jam and Salad</a>.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Green Chef</span></u></b><br />
<b>Prep Time - </b>Like you are making your own dinner. So, you will be chopping, slicing, dicing, zesting, etc. They have color coded labels for each meal which was helpful.<br />
<b>Packaging - </b>Green Chef packaging is also recyclable and reusable. I'm still using a ton of the little jars I received in our package which are great for kiddo's lunches. You can learn more about recycling their packaging <a href="https://greenchef.com/eco-friendly-packaging">here</a>.<br />
<b>Flavor - </b>Good, and the quality is outstanding. The piece of tuna that they sent us was near perfection. The overall flavor though was, in my opinion, not as interesting or tasty as some that we have received from Blue Apron.<br />
<b>Price - </b>Green Chef is a bit pricier because their food is certified organic. You can order 3 meals per week for 2 people or 2 meals per week for 4 people. The price of the meals depends on the plan you choose (vegetarian, omnivor, vegan, carnivore, Gluten-Free, paleo) and range from $10.49-$14.99 per meal. If you want to try Green Chef, please use my code: <a href="http://greenchef.com/invite/5kb9n8">http://greenchef.com/invite/5kb9n8</a><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>*Disclaimer - If you use my Green Chef code I'll get $25 when you place your second order, so thanks!</i></span><br />
<b>Ease of delivery - </b>Again, a box service so it is shipped directly to your door in a refrigerated box. Like most of the services, there may be about a 1 week delay from when you place your first order, but after that you will receive the meals weekly (unless you skip or cancel).<br />
<b>Additional deets - </b> I want to re-iterate the quality of this food. We were seriously amazed at the piece of fish we were sent. We are food snobs and picky about fish quality in particular, so we were impressed. I mentioned the color coding of the labels, which I thought was great too. Green Chef is nice in that it also offers all different meal types, like paleo or gluten-free, which I think is a great service, especially if you are new to cooking with those methods. Also, the meals looked exactly like the picture when they were done and the portions were generous. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://greenchef.com/recipes/gf-lemon-garlic-tuna-with-parsley-gremolata-greek-potato-salad">This is the Lemon Herb Tuna I keep raving about</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sxH0omF_-po/WUB4z-NFmlI/AAAAAAAAQKI/wlNIN8WAzN8w3m8oNDQvL1ZsAP2anOiTgCLcBGAs/s1600/gobble-picture.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="122" data-original-width="250" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sxH0omF_-po/WUB4z-NFmlI/AAAAAAAAQKI/wlNIN8WAzN8w3m8oNDQvL1ZsAP2anOiTgCLcBGAs/s1600/gobble-picture.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.cuppacocoa.com/review-of-bay-area-meal-delivery-services-munchery-gobble-blue-apron-and-door-dash/">Image Source</a></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Gobble</u></span></b><br />
<b>Prep Time</b> - Fast. The Gobble meals come pre-prepped: veggies chopped, cheese grated, even my pizza onions were caramelized. They call it a "10 minute dinner", I would say more like 20, but that's pretty good for prep time.<br />
<b>Packaging</b> - Gobble claims to have the <a href="https://www.gobble.com/recycle">most eco-friendly box</a> in the entire meal-kit industry and it definitely seemed that way. Let's hope so because my dog ate the compostoble ice packs.<br />
<b>Flavor - </b>Pretty good! The meals we tried were good and satisfying and the portions were generous, but I wouldn't call them excellent or great.<br />
<b>Price - </b>I was given a credit from a fellow mom, so our initial order was around $35. Gobble meals are $11.95 each, so a bit more than the standard meal delivery service, I assume the higher prices is because the meals are mostly pre-prepped.<br />
<b>Ease of delivery - </b>Again, a box service so it is shipped directly to your door in a refrigerated box. Like most of the services, there may be about a 1 week delay from when you place your first order, but after that you will receive the meals weekly (unless you skip or cancel).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://homecookingmemories.com/stress-free-dinners/">Image Source</a></td></tr>
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<b>Additional deets - </b> A few things here. The Gobble meals were packed into separate large bags (one bag for each meal) which was helpful. But the individual ingredients inside each bag were (mostly) not labeled. For the most part this is no big deal. However, one of the meals we had was an Indian dish and although I know what Paneer and Haricots Verts are, a lot of people may not. Strangely, the cilantro was labeled and contained in a plastic box wrapped in bubble wrap. (For the record, Paneer is a type of cheese and Haricots Verts are green beans....wouldn't it have been easier to just call them green beans?) There were only a few pictures per recipe card, which also wouldn't necessarily assist in figuring out what was what. A lot of the Gobble food I received was pre-frozen, so, not as fresh as food we have received from other box services where more prep is required. Last, one of our meals was a chicken dish. The chicken came in one package and because it was frozen it looked like one breast when there was supposed to be two. I e-mailed Gobble multiple times and the only response I got was a blank e-mail in return. It turns out after defrosting the package there were two chicken breasts, so, no harm done. I finally received a response from Gobble much later indicating they were having trouble due to the storms in CA. Well, I live in CA and we had a whole bunch of extra rain this year, but nothing that would have caused your computer to stop working so....<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.hellofresh.com/tasty/food-boxes/">Image Source</a></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Hello Fresh</u></span></b><br />
<b>Prep Time - </b>Like Blue Apron and Green Chef - like you are making your own dinner; you will be chopping, slicing, dicing, zesting, etc. Each meal mostly comes in it's own separate box, which is helpful and the boxes fit nicely in a french door fridge.<br />
<b>Packaging - </b>Pretty much the same as the other services, except with the individual boxing mentioned above. They also have a handy <a href="https://www.hellofresh.com/green/">recycling guide</a> on their website.<br />
<b>Flavor - </b>Pretty good. That said, we personally found the Blue Apron food to be more fresh than Hello Fresh, so because of that Hello Fresh didn't taste quite as good as some of the competitors.<br />
<b>Price - </b>Hello Fresh pricing is $9.99 per serving for the Classic Plan for 2-4 adults. I believe I tested it out with a promo code for my first go-round - these are easy to find on line or even direct from the site...or below. :)<br />
<b>Ease of delivery - </b>Again, a box service so it is shipped directly to your door in a refrigerated box. Like most of the services, there may be about a 1 week delay from when you place your first order, but after that you will receive the meals weekly (unless you skip or cancel).<br />
<b>Additonal deets - </b>Pet peeve here but: the recipe cards are written in a paragraph format (as opposed to a list) and in my opinion that is pain to read when you are cooking (with a toddler, a hungry grade-schooler, a dog and whatever else is in your kitchen). I have heard more than one person say that fish they received from Hello Fresh smelled fishy. We did not have this issue, but it is concerning to me.<br />
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If you want to try HelloFresh for $40 off, please use my code by clicking the following link: <a href="http://www.hellofresh.com/?c=SARAHLUQ&utm_source=raf-share&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=clipboard">SARAHLUQ</a><br />
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">*Disclaimer - if you use my HelloFresh code, I get $20, so thanks!</span></i><br />
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So friends, that is the skinny on meal delivery! Have you tried it? What are your favorites? Tell me more!<br />
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♥ TCW<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-25788168969830272302017-08-18T11:46:00.000-07:002017-08-18T11:46:31.324-07:00POPSUGAR Must Have Box - August 2017<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DS-46GdxKFc/WZczAvCNMAI/AAAAAAAASF0/d7b9sxmA2XcRg1PHHNtYppr1i-19BswyQCLcBGAs/s1600/MH_SUB_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="661" data-original-width="769" height="548" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DS-46GdxKFc/WZczAvCNMAI/AAAAAAAASF0/d7b9sxmA2XcRg1PHHNtYppr1i-19BswyQCLcBGAs/s640/MH_SUB_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://musthave.popsugar.com/t/monthly-subscriptions?utm_campaign=298532188&utm_content=210590111518&utm_medium=SEM&utm_source=Adwords&utm_term=popsugar%20must%20have">Source: POPSUGAR MustHave</a></td></tr>
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Hey! Have you seen POPSUGAR's monthly Must Have Box?<br />
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#MustHaveBox is a monthly box subscription that contains all kinds of surprise goodness. I was fortunate enough to have POPSUGAR send me a complimentary box this month and I'm loving all of the good stuff inside. (Don't tell The Cyclist but I ate all the cookies before he got home!) The August box was curated by POPSUGAR's founder and team of editors to be filled with all of their faves in celebration of POPSUGAR MustHave's 5th birthday!<br />
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Even better, POPSUGAR will be hosting a bunch of giveaways this month! You can qualify to win even if you are already a current subscriber and if you're new! And if you're new.....<br />
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Include the discount code <b>PARTY</b> to get $10 off your first box! (Expires 8/31.)<br />
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If you are already subscribing you can still sign up before the end of the month for a chance to win some sweet prizes from Pehr Designs, First Aid Beauty, Kendra Scott, Tarte cosmetics or Cambridge Satchel Co.<br />
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So yes, this is a sponsored post, but like always, I only share the things I think are great. This box would make an amazing gift for a friend, or for yourself! Who doesn't love a good surprise in the mail? Check out what's been in some of the past boxes below and sign up for your subscription <a href="https://musthave.popsugar.com/t/monthly-subscriptions?utm_campaign=298532188&utm_content=210590111518&utm_medium=SEM&utm_source=Adwords&utm_term=popsugar%20must%20have">here</a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tqvpeNDvYfY/WZc1PONzkcI/AAAAAAAASGA/R-t4k_5BI3oLNqfL_4gIkqwOeANLabU-gCLcBGAs/s1600/MustHave.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tqvpeNDvYfY/WZc1PONzkcI/AAAAAAAASGA/R-t4k_5BI3oLNqfL_4gIkqwOeANLabU-gCLcBGAs/s640/MustHave.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://mhblog.popsugar.com/Past-Boxes">Source: POPSUGAR MustHave Past Boxes</a></td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-24115197905473455082016-11-28T09:42:00.000-08:002016-12-05T09:34:25.181-08:00Photos on Canvas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PoVjCIgZNv0/WD8LZE-MXzI/AAAAAAAAMcc/sUKe48ruvJE_x30s3duj16Wgv4ys1Qn9wCLcB/s1600/PhotoCanvasGiveaway.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PoVjCIgZNv0/WD8LZE-MXzI/AAAAAAAAMcc/sUKe48ruvJE_x30s3duj16Wgv4ys1Qn9wCLcB/s640/PhotoCanvasGiveaway.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hey there, happy to say I have a giveaway for you all today!<br />
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I was recently contacted by the <a href="http://www.canvasfactory.com/">Canvas Factory</a> to host a giveaway here on the blog. They generously sent me a code to order my own canvas free of charge*. I mostly struggled over what photo to choose. I narrowed it down to these three:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FCiAtBUpbAk/WCz0RIJrDRI/AAAAAAAAMVc/m3y3CP8oolQYeAKACh_qLo_VgNKge9NEwCLcB/s1600/Canvas%2Bcollage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FCiAtBUpbAk/WCz0RIJrDRI/AAAAAAAAMVc/m3y3CP8oolQYeAKACh_qLo_VgNKge9NEwCLcB/s640/Canvas%2Bcollage.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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and eventually picked this one....<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOIZ3TMSToE/WCZU2xpaaLI/AAAAAAAAMUw/MFbIqp2oAD0kI1fDV2BnVQXd8WvrQVSWgCLcB/s1600/Feet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOIZ3TMSToE/WCZU2xpaaLI/AAAAAAAAMUw/MFbIqp2oAD0kI1fDV2BnVQXd8WvrQVSWgCLcB/s640/Feet.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">See the note below regarding photo cred**</span></td></tr>
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I don't know about you guys, but I love feet pictures. We ended up with the best wedding photos but I didn't want some giant picture of our faces. I think this one is such a neat reminder of the day without being super portrait-y. It was fun going through these pics too. I love the photo of me kissing Nick's cheek! I hadn't remembered it until I went back to sort through and find a picture for the canvas.<br />
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Anyway. Once I had the photo picked, I went to the website to upload it. I found the whole process easy-peasy and the site very user friendly. About a day after ordering I got an e-mail indicating they had made and adjustment and asked me to approve it. I couldn't tell what they did, so I replied and found out that there was a blank spot on one of the edges they way I had set it up, so they fixed that. The canvas then shipped. This was the only minute downfall, because it took some time to get to me. I believe it came all the way from China (full disclosure because I know some of you prefer to buy items made in the USA). <br />
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When the canvas did arrive it was wrapped to be sufficiently protected, but used as little packaging as possible, which I thought was great. The quality and colors look amazing. The standard canvas size is 16x20 which is what I received.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--PaJ6swKxKA/WC8hpuT7IEI/AAAAAAAAMWc/Vyqu87A6WsgduSav6J3E3oz9Ih6l1ubDwCLcB/s1600/CanvasPackaging.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--PaJ6swKxKA/WC8hpuT7IEI/AAAAAAAAMWc/Vyqu87A6WsgduSav6J3E3oz9Ih6l1ubDwCLcB/s640/CanvasPackaging.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now I just have to find a place to hang it!<br />
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Do you have a photo you would like to see on canvas? Well good, because Canvas Factory has generously offered a giveaway for my readers (that's you!). The giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents only (sorry to all of my friends on other parts of the globe). Enter here:<br />
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<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="3723434c2" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/3723434c2/" id="rcwidget_cunpbdji" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script>
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Thank you for your entries! The winner has been notified.<br />
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*<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>So yes, this is a sponsored post.</i></span><br />
**<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Sadly our wedding photog does not do photos anymore! But, she does sell LLR, so you should check out her shop <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/shoplulastand/">here</a>.</i></span><br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-43413318244650517752016-08-08T15:17:00.001-07:002016-08-16T10:48:15.799-07:00On Cloth Diapering<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Holy poop I'm writing a post! And ironically it's about poop! OK, well not poop, but diapers, cloth diapers. Let's talk about them mmkay?<br />
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So, last time you <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2015/02/our-birth-story.html">really saw Syd</a> she was just a wee-one. Now this big girl is going to school!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kez-ewOZ1WU/V1bsqm7VNKI/AAAAAAAALLE/RrLI7MLMby8gkxnmCG68yyelGSLzRucKQCLcB/s1600/13323621_10209606220782126_5136907690310578445_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kez-ewOZ1WU/V1bsqm7VNKI/AAAAAAAALLE/RrLI7MLMby8gkxnmCG68yyelGSLzRucKQCLcB/s320/13323621_10209606220782126_5136907690310578445_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I know everyone says this but it really is crazy how fast they grow.</div>
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But let's get back to those cloth diapers! So yes, we use cloth diapers. When the idea of using cloth first came up I had a "no way!" gut instinct. I knew cloth diapers had changed greatly overtime, but I also had heard of inserts...the thought of pulling out a poopy insert was not at all appealing to me. And the laundry seemed like it would be crazy. Let's be real, we both work full-time, could we really do this?</div>
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Our good friends had a baby 5 months before us and got on the cloth diaper bandwagon before they delivered. Their friends gave them the low-down and once I learned a little more about it, we basically copied what they did.</div>
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We use <a href="http://www.bumgenius.com/style/bumgenius-freetime/">bumGenius Freetimes</a>. These are an "all-in-one" style diaper, meaning the inserts are sewn in, so you don't have to put any in or take any out. Let's just stop for a minute first though. There is a ton of cloth diaper lingo out there. I don't know it all yet. In fact, I didn't know what an "all-in-one" was until <i>after</i> we bought our clothies. For CD (that's Cloth Diaper, so I guess I do know some stuff) newbies, I highly recommend joining the Facebook group <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/FluffLoveCDScience/">Fluff Love & CD Science</a>. There is a ton of good info and helpful people there with all kinds of CD knowledge. In addition to that, I recommend looking for local CD pages and CD swap pages. If you are in Sacramento, you can join <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/SacCDSwap/">Sacramento Cloth Diaper Swap</a>.</div>
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So back to those diapers. This is a good image of the diapers we use. The "inserts" are sewn in at the edge and work like two overlaying flaps inside the diaper.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ka4zyrLG4WA/V1cEWeUDk-I/AAAAAAAALLg/P2j4teQILfQUbpk-uq3M5QtHltJ_TShsACLcB/s1600/bumgenius-freetime-details-500.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ka4zyrLG4WA/V1cEWeUDk-I/AAAAAAAALLg/P2j4teQILfQUbpk-uq3M5QtHltJ_TShsACLcB/s320/bumgenius-freetime-details-500.gif" width="312" /></a></div>
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Don't quote me on this, but CD's with inserts that can be removed are often called "pocket" diapers. The really great part of BumGenius diapers is that they grow with your baby. For the first three months we used disposables, then made the switch. Admittedly, the diapers are a little bulky at first, but really, who cares? </div>
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Now, let's do some math.</div>
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Typically I'd say most people use about 7-8 diapers per day. This is comes out to roughly 225 diapers per month. Holy crap!</div>
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Let's say you are buying your Diapers on Amazon Prime Subscribe and Save:</div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006HT2T7A/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B006HT2T7A&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=bf148c8018eacbdaf1e77f04635fae6b">Seventh Generation</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B006HT2T7A" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />* diapers = $41.46 for 96 diapers or 0.44 per diaper. This is $99 per month for diapers.</div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BCXF7MU/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00BCXF7MU&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=e5bf92089a23837276185848aef4d566">Huggies</a>*<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B00BCXF7MU" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> diapers = $36.46 for 192 diapers or 0.19 per diaper.</div>
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This is $42.75 per month for diapers.</div>
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Assuming your kiddo will potty train at about 3, you will spend about $3,564 on Seventh Generation diapers and $1,539 on Huggies.</div>
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The bumGenius Freetimes are $19.95 each. "Ouch", you say. Well....not really. We have 21 diapers. Had we gone out and bought them all ourselves it would have cost $418.95. The reality is we probably spent about $150 on the diapers, the rest were gifts (or purchased with gift cards). But let's pretend we did spend $418.95.</div>
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Comparing to Seventh Generation, our CD's paid for themselves in the first 5 months.</div>
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Comparing to Huggies, our CD's paid for themselves in the first 10 months.</div>
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Looking at the period 3 months to 3 years (potty trained) CD's are by far cheaper:</div>
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$418.95 vs. $1,539 or $3,564. </div>
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This does not take into account several other important factors - </div>
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<li>We really only spent about $150 and the rest were gifted</li>
<li>You can use your CD's again for your next baby</li>
<li>You can sell your used CD's on a swap page</li>
<li>You can cut down the up-front cost by buying your CD's used or receiving them as gifts</li>
<li>You can gift your used CD's to a friend or someone in need</li>
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There really is no arguing the cost savings. Not to mention the 10,800 diapers you would be depositing in your local landfill. Seriously. 10,800 diapers.</div>
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So now let's talk about cleaning these things. Syd was a breast fed baby, so poops were really no big thing until she started eating solid food at 6 months. I'll just be real, from there the poops just get progressively worse. But that's good because you get progressively used to them. It is absolutely imperative that you get a sprayer attachment for your toilet. We use the bumGenius sprayer pictured below. (<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014V793E6/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B014V793E6&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=58da0bb3521b4c9a3dd0e4d047d5c04c">Here is a similar sprayer</a>*<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B014V793E6" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> on Amazon.)<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5-Kwm90Mp_Y/V1c8KaoFSwI/AAAAAAAALMQ/qFmJwxPMtYwCJp888oSkirBhQj1Ok8uuACLcB/s1600/41z5hwLR3ML._SY355_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5-Kwm90Mp_Y/V1c8KaoFSwI/AAAAAAAALMQ/qFmJwxPMtYwCJp888oSkirBhQj1Ok8uuACLcB/s320/41z5hwLR3ML._SY355_.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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They are kinda pricey but worth it. I scored mine brand new on a mom's group for around $10. This is really a must have item if you are cloth diapering. I have traveled with our diapers and it is kind of impossible to get sticky poop off without the sprayer. So get the sprayer.</div>
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We also have the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00B4ZA244/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00B4ZA244&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=e3b057adb9abcbaadb49c8c65df4380e">Diaper Dekor</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B00B4ZA244" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />* diaper bin and we use these <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IZULWCC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00IZULWCC&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=977cd1a8cfc9560aa4f36e01105494ab">reusable liners</a>*.<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B00IZULWCC" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> We have two of the liners and that works for us in our laundry rotation.</div>
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Before we talk about laundry, let's talk about something I have never seen addressed in a cloth diaper post (seriously, I've googled it). So your kid poops. You take off the poop diaper and clean up your kid. I'm guessing your changing table and diaper pail are in your kids room. So you take the diaper into the bathroom and spray the poop out (another glamorous part of parenthood, right?). </div>
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Now what? No, really. <i>Now what?</i> You have a drippy, kinda poopy, wet cloth diaper. What's the best method to get it from your bathroom back into the diaper pail? This is what we do...and before I tell you, please to you extra super granola people who may be reading, let me just preface this with a "simmer down": We drop the diaper in a plastic bag, tie it off, walk it back to the diaper pail and drop it in. Yes extra super crunchy granola people. A plastic bag.</div>
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So. Even though we are doing good for the environment by using CD's, we are doing bad by using a plastic bag to transport the dirty CD back to the bin. The solution to this would be to buy more wet bags, which I haven't done. Please accept this post as my admitted suckiness to the environment. For the record, I also should buy these <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CF322OW/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00CF322OW&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=3c1ae3dd338a02ece183d5c7f3020641">reusable trash bags</a>* and then we will have cut a bunch of plastic out of our lives.</div>
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But wait. What are wet bags? Wet bags are these nifty bags that you can put your dirty CD's in. They contain the smell and the wetness which is great. My favorite is <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B010NLV9YG/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B010NLV9YG&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=472745e0aa7726cad883a8bcf6412464">this off-brand one</a>*<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B010NLV9YG" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> I found on Amazon.</div>
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Now let's talk about the nitty-gritty of laundry. I do a diaper load every other day. At one point our diapers were getting a funky smell, so I consulted the Fluff Love & CD Science page and was given a particular washing routine for our particular washer/dryer and diaper type. Also, we were using the environmentally friendly Kirkland detergent from Costco, but we have since switched to Tide. We were on vacation and bought Tide at the grocery and it just worked much better on the diapers. Last, we line dry our CD's as much as possible. The sun is great at bleaching out any spots (that said, we rarely end up with spots after washing) and is of course, more environmentally friendly than using the dryer. </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pDD9RcMiZu4/V6JfFiBTV-I/AAAAAAAALWM/sHF9Fn49f_gi10OBLI4CfYkFUFeYhT1DQCLcB/s1600/Cloth%2BDiaps.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pDD9RcMiZu4/V6JfFiBTV-I/AAAAAAAALWM/sHF9Fn49f_gi10OBLI4CfYkFUFeYhT1DQCLcB/s640/Cloth%2BDiaps.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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While we're at it, let's also talk about diapers and daycare. Our school "accepts" cloth diapers. In our search for a school only 1 told me no so they got crossed off the list. I bring 8 diapers on Monday morning with a wet bag. The school puts dirties into the wet bag (and poops in a plastic bag inside the wet bag) and sends them home each day. I return each morning with the amount of diapers they sent home the prior day. On Friday's I bring them all home. This seems like a lot but it is really no big deal.<br />
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I want to be honest in this post and mention that, in our opinion, cloth diapers are an overall better choice health-wise as well. I do not want to start a debate about what is better for all babies. What is best for your baby is whatever you decide. That said: <a href="https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=chemicals%20in%20disposable%20diapers">There is a lot of different info out there on what chemicals are in disposable diapers.</a> I have not done a bunch of research on this but I will say sentences like these really freak me out:<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 27px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Diaper companies aren't required to list what's in their product on the packaging,</i></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 27px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Sodium polyacrylate is supposed to stay in the core of the diaper. But sometimes it leaks through the lining, leaving small transparent crystals on the baby's skin.</i></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 27px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>To avoid any of these ingredients, look for diapers that are dye-free, perfume-free, chlorine-free, and so on. </i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.babycenter.com/0_whats-in-disposable-diapers-8211-and-are-they-safe-for-your_10335425.bc">Source</a></span><br />
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The chemicals in some disposable diapers definitely helped us in making our decision to use CD's.<br />
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If you are still sticking with me on this very long post, let's talk about CD vs. Disposables in regard to the wet factor. I don't think there is an argument about disposable diapers being more absorbent. They are. They also seem to keep babies much more dry, this is at least in part, because of the chemicals they contain. So, with CD's you are changing your baby more often and your baby is feeling wetness. <br />
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Some people may view this as a negative but to me it is a positive. I've been through 2 kiddo's in diapers, one in the "dye-free, perfume-free, chlorine-free" disposables mentioned above and the other in cloth. We've had a total of 2 diaper rashes between those two kids. So in my very unscientific study, I've found that CD's or natural disposables are better for the rash factor. When we had a rash we used <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P16ZXK/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000P16ZXK&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=17937cee7074d824b9a420f469885a3f">Boudreaux's Butt Paste</a>*^<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B000P16ZXK" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> (the natural version in the green tube is safe for CD's) and it works great.<br />
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Another positive of the wet factor is that CD or natural disposable diapered kids tend to potty train faster. Again, another totally unscientific study on my part. However, because these kids are feeling wet, they are recognizing it and wanting a change. Syd tells us and daycare when her diaper is wet, which is very helpful. So, at 22 months we have started potty training! Though I will be glad to make a big dent in the CD laundry, I'm admittedly a little sad to start saying goodbye to our CD's.<br />
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I hope this post was helpful! If you have any questions, please ask in the comments.<br />
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♥ TCW<br />
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<i style="font-size: small;">NOTE - The Amazon prices listed were current at the time of this post. Amazon prices are constantly changing, so the links may lead you to prices different that what I used. Hopefully when you click the link the prices have dropped.</i><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>*Affiliate link - if you click this link and buy something from Amazon it won't cost you a penny more but it will help support the blog, so thank you!</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>^Bourdreaux's kindly gifted me a couple of tubes of their product for this post. That said, I only post about things I actually use and their product was specifically recommended on the Fluff Love page for CD's. It works great.</i></span><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-10049525562798027602015-11-30T13:43:00.001-08:002015-11-30T13:43:38.101-08:00MINTED Holiday Cards + Family Pics!Hey everyone! Have you purchased your holiday cards yet? I am pumped to be partnering with <a href="http://www.minted.com/">Minted</a> again this year. We have created our cards with Minted for the last three years and I am always so happy with the results.<br />
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The 2013 card is probably my favorite ever. It makes me crack up every time I see it. We had to convince Levi that he needed to have serious face for the picture.<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P2Zzj9be2FM/VlTcCKj-HoI/AAAAAAAAJ1k/mdC3U3CnMPY/s1600/VOx_6pzDqm7xJ3i_YnNjUA%253D%253D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="462" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P2Zzj9be2FM/VlTcCKj-HoI/AAAAAAAAJ1k/mdC3U3CnMPY/s640/VOx_6pzDqm7xJ3i_YnNjUA%253D%253D.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Last year Minted helped me to combine our Christmas card with our birth announcement, which was awesome because being a new Mom at Christmas is #overwhelming.<br />
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And this year we are doubly pumped to share a sneak peak of both our Minted card and a new family photo....<br />
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.....TA-DA! We just had our pictures taken by <a href="http://www.barbarabrooksphotography.com/">Barbara Brooks</a> and she did an amazing job. That tent in the photo, she made it! She was great with the kids and we got a ton of really beautiful photos. If you are in the Sacramento area, I highly recommend her!<br />
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Our Minted cards this year are foil pressed (read: <i>fancy schmancy</i>), I cannot wait to see the hard copy version. Minted has so many unique options for cards and the customer service is outstanding. They will also address your cards for you! Not. Even. Kidding. It's as simple as downloading their address template, filling it out (or in my case, cut/pasting from my own template), then uploading to the site. Making changes is super easy too. So this year all we have to do is stamp these babies and send them out, which is great. Also, Minted sends a proof, so you can review your card before printing. I made a couple of boo-boo's on mine, so I was able to fix these thankfully.<br />
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You are not too late for holiday cards, so go over to <a href="http://www.minted.com/">Minted</a> and get yours now, they are constantly running great deals! And if you are reading this on December 25th, you still aren't too late, Minted has a plenty of fabulous New Years card options as well.<br />
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Welcome to December!!<br />
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♥ TCW<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">**P.S. This is a sponsored post. Minted gave me a credit to use towards our holiday cards this year. That being said, I will continue to order cards from Minted, credit or not, because they are awesome. In fact, I did just that last year.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">P.S.S. It's Cyber Monday and Minted is running deals!</span></i><br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-73253302799010427702015-10-05T13:27:00.000-07:002015-10-05T13:27:28.092-07:00Mesa Falls - Island Park, ID {take a scenic byway}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hey friends. I've got more goods from our Idaho/Montana/Wyoming adventure today. I was wondering, how many times have you passed a <i>Scenic Byway</i> sign and just flown right by it? I think most of us do this honestly, in our haste, we tend to want to get where we're going, thus missing some pretty cool stuff.<br />
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If you're on vacay, I suggest you might spend sometime to investigate one of these signs....you never know what you might find......<br />
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.....like an incredibly beautiful set of waterfalls.<br />
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This is Upper Mesa Falls; farther down the river you will find Lower Mesa Falls. Upper Mesa Falls has a paid entrance (I believe $5 per car) and well maintained paved paths as well as several overlooks. The views are spectacular.<br />
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According to local legend, some kids actually decided it would be a good idea to go over the upper falls in a kayak years ago.....they survived.....and it looks like people still go down the lower falls....<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s_R9iTtCv5A?rel=0" width="420"></iframe>
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The gift shop/museum used to have a news article posted about the kids on the upper falls, but they took it down as to not encourage any other potential Darwin Award winners.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1SF-JcqWZzU/VgMaV_q3z_I/AAAAAAAAI88/oPSDJPOSWAU/s1600/mesa%2Bfalls%2Bscenic%2Bbyway%2Bupper%2Bmesa%2Bfalls%2Bbig%2Bfalls%2Binn.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1SF-JcqWZzU/VgMaV_q3z_I/AAAAAAAAI88/oPSDJPOSWAU/s1600/mesa%2Bfalls%2Bscenic%2Bbyway%2Bupper%2Bmesa%2Bfalls%2Bbig%2Bfalls%2Binn.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="http://www.vwmin.org/wagner-falls-scenic-site-state-park-the-upper.html">Via</a></i></td></tr>
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Speaking of the gift/shop museum, it's worth taking a peek. Especially the back room which has a ton of different animal hides and skeletons that you can actually touch. Be careful though, per the sign, certain things are <i>not</i> to be touched - if you do you will be "shot at dawn". Levi touched one of these untouchable items - after I read him the sign I think he was terrified to get up to early the next morning.<br />
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On our way in we met this guy on the path and he quickly attached himself to Levi's shoe. Those guys are sticky!! We had trouble getting him off.<br />
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So next time you are out and about, don't pass the scenic byway, you are probably missing something good.<br />
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Here is how our adventure went for this mini trip:<br />
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From Island Park heading South on Hwy 20, we actually passed (I know) the Scenic Byway sign and first headed into St. Anthony to grocery shop at <a href="http://broulims.com/st_anthony">Broulim's</a>.* <br />
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We waved to the Teton's...<br />
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....and after grocery shopping and eating the best deli sandwich of our lives, we headed back East on Highway 20 and this time <u>did not</u> pass the Scenic Byway sign.<br />
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Then we turned off on ID-47 N toward Mesa Falls.<br />
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Here is a map of Mesa Falls:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pjaGLdtYR3Q/VgMiP3BO_7I/AAAAAAAAI-Y/rZMNqxRBG7Y/s1600/stelprdb5446451.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pjaGLdtYR3Q/VgMiP3BO_7I/AAAAAAAAI-Y/rZMNqxRBG7Y/s640/stelprdb5446451.jpg" width="420" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/ctnf/specialplaces/?cid=stelprdb5196020">Via</a></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Side nugget of info, if you are going to stay in the area, Broulim's is a great little store - more selection than Dave's in Ashton and cheaper than the stores in West Yellowstone and they made the best deli sandwich of our lives.</span><br />
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So, enjoy your Scenic Byway adventures, you never know what you might find!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0Upper Mesa Falls, Idaho, USA44.187778 -111.3299999999999819.108258000000003 -152.63859399999998 69.267298 -70.021405999999985tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-4868579475578427422015-08-26T14:51:00.000-07:002015-08-26T15:04:38.862-07:00How to Road Trip with Kiddos<br />
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So we recently returned from our summertime Idaho, Montana, Wyoming adventure. Living in Northern California, it is a 14 hour drive for us to reach our destination.<br />
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Back when we were only 2 plus a big dog, we made a bed in the back of our Subaru wagon and one of us slept while the other drove. We drove straight through, leaving at 2 a.m.. Oh the freedom!<br />
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<a href="http://www.thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2014/06/a-walk-in-woods-rendezvous-ski-trails.html">Two years ago</a> when we took our then 4 year old, our Subaru wagon still worked for us, though no bed in the back....and we still managed to do it in a straight shot, leaving at 2 a.m....although this did occur at hour 13...<br />
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This year, with a baby and a now 6 year old some changes had to be made. First off, we bought a new vehicle. I'm obviously not suggesting the way to take a road trip with your kids is to go out and buy a new car, but we knew it was coming....in fact, when we went on our <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2015/07/dads-day-at-nevada-city-classic.html">Father's Day adventure</a> with only 1 small bag each, a small cooler and baby's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IM8G038/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00IM8G038&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=2XLDTWGB6X74LMMT">ultra small travel crib</a>* and no dog, we had zero room left over. Hence, new car, or in our case truck.<br />
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So, <b>Tip #1</b> - <b>Have enough space to be comfortable.</b><br />
This is real folks. It is hard enough being crammed in a car with kids and car seats and dogs and stuff for a long, long time. Comfort is your friend.<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wx3ODtaZmmo/VczH-lejh5I/AAAAAAAAIb8/sBuXzeZ3tqE/s1600/Road%2BTrip.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="211" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wx3ODtaZmmo/VczH-lejh5I/AAAAAAAAIb8/sBuXzeZ3tqE/s640/Road%2BTrip.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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<b>Tip #2</b><b> - Be healthy.</b><b> </b>In our case this means: don't find out your 9 month old is allergic to raspberries the day before you leave so that then you are driving with a 9 month old stuck in a car seat with a head to toe itchy rash. :(<br />
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The only good part about this was the cure was Benadryl, which meant she slept basically the whole time.</div>
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<b>Tip #3 - SNACKS! </b>For real. Snacks are required for any road trip, no? But snacks are especially required with kids. You can avoid multiple stops by having snacks at the ready for when your little one's get hungry - or you do. We had granola bars, apples, bananas yogurt, sandwich food and more. For the babe, we used <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030VJ70K/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0030VJ70K&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=4KWLHO2EGMH3JETR">these</a>*<img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B0030VJ70K" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
and they were a lifesaver! Way easier to feed a munchkin in a car seat with a squeeze pouch than food in a jar....and way easier than breastfeeding said munchkin in a car seat. #truth<br />
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<b>Tip #4</b><b> - Entertainment. </b>We are pretty TV minimal in our house, especially for the kiddos. This year, we broke down though and set our 6 year old up so he could watch Wild Kratt's on the drive. He was in hog heaven. While Levi watched his show, Nick and I listened to Podcasts. Some of our favorites are: RadioLab, This American Life, The Moth, Criminal, Love & Radio and Strangers. (We also loved Serial, but finished it long ago.) I think we all agree the entertainment breaks made the long trip a little better for everyone. <br />
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<b>Tip #5 - Stops. </b>So, when you decide to drive a long way with kiddos, be prepared to make stops. Gone are the days of driving straight through with only potty and gas breaks! We suggest planning a couple of long-ish stops to break it up. With a planned stop you can tell the little ones, "we'll be stopping in 20 minutes to eat lunch and hang out" which seems to settle ants-in-the-pants. Also, depending on how long your trip is, you might want to make overnight stops. Our trip was 14 hours, so we stayed the night in the middle both going and coming home. (I'll share our whole route below.) On the way out, we stopped for lunch at a park in Battle Mountain, NV. I think it was Elquist Park, but I'm not positive.<br />
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Parks make good stopping places because the kids (and dog) can play and they have picnic tables for lunch making and eating....so a free stop is always a good one.<br />
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<b>Tip #6 Enjoy the scenery. </b>It's a big world out there. Find the beauty in your surroundings.<br />
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And apparently you take less pictures on the way home because you're sad to leave vacation. :(<br />
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<b>Tip #6 Know Your Route.</b> To be honest I mostly just stare out the window. The hubs handles the route. Here was ours:<br />
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<b>Sac to Idaho:</b><br />
<u>Day 1</u><br />
Sacramento to Reno via I-80 E<br />
Breakfast at <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/jacks-caf%C3%A9-sparks-2">Jack's Cafe</a> in Sparks<br />
Reno to Battle Mountain - stop at the park (above)<br />
{Change from I-80 E to US-93 N in Wells}<br />
Battle Mountain to Twin Falls<br />
{Change from US-93 N to I-84 E in Twin Falls}<br />
Stay at <a href="http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/US/ID/Twin-Falls-hotels/BEST-WESTERN-PLUS-Twin-Falls-Hotel/Hotel-Overview.do?propertyCode=13059">Best Western Twin Falls</a><br />
Dinner at <a href="http://jakers.com/">Jaker's Bar & Grill</a> (we got it to go and ate in our hotel room)<br />
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<u>Day 2</u><br />
Twin Falls to Pocatello<br />
{I-84 E to I-86 E}<br />
Costco for groceries<br />
Avoid hailstorm by hanging out under Costco gas canopy. Thank you Costco.<br />
Pocatello to Island Park<br />
{I-86 E to I-15 N to Hwy 20 E}<br />
Say hi to the Tetons as you pass by.<br />
Arrive at Cabin.<br />
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<b>Idaho to Sac:</b><br />
<u>Day 1</u><br />
Island Park to Twin Falls via US-20 W<br />
{US-20 W to I-15 S to I-86 W to I-84 W}<br />
Continue to Elko<br />
{I-84 W to US-93 S to I-80 W}<br />
Stay in Elko at <a href="http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/US/NV/Elko-hotels/BEST-WESTERN-Elko-Inn/Hotel-Overview.do?propertyCode=29083">Best Western</a><br />
Eat dinner at <a href="http://www.machissaloon.com/">Machi's Saloon & Grill</a><br />
People watch all the biker's headed to Sturgis from your hotel window.<br />
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<u>Day 2</u><br />
Elko to Lovelock via I-80 W<br />
Stop at the Courthouse in Lovelock to eat lunch<br />
Enjoy the LoveLock/Lovelock art display<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ws_O_iYHQzg/Vd4y3C3qRcI/AAAAAAAAIvM/GfQ8yCwSFLQ/s1600/lovelock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ws_O_iYHQzg/Vd4y3C3qRcI/AAAAAAAAIvM/GfQ8yCwSFLQ/s640/lovelock.jpg" width="448" /></a><br />
Lovelock to Truckee via I-80 W<br />
Stop in Truckee and eat at <a href="http://www.margstacobistro.com/">Marg's Taco Bistro</a><br />
Truckee to Sacramento via I-80 W<br />
Arrive home.<br />
Be sad that vacation is over.<br />
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So those are our tips, we hope you enjoy your next road trip!!<br />
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Oh guess what, some friends of ours just road-tripped with kiddos too, here are <a href="http://thetastyalternative.com/2015/08/road-trips-with-kids-accessories-entertainment-snacks/">Amber's tips</a>!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-81946849600859463322015-07-01T09:31:00.002-07:002015-07-01T09:31:17.418-07:00Dad's Day at Nevada City ClassicHey friends!<br />
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Long time no blog. I've been trying to figure out how to do this whole mom-ing and blogging thing together, but haven't quite determined how to do it yet. I'm working on it. I miss the blog and I miss y'all. But today I've got something for ya, woot!<br />
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How did everyone spend their Dad's Day? This year we went to one of our favorite little towns, Nevada City, CA to watch one of our favorite little crit's the <a href="http://www.nevadacityclassic.com/">Nevada City Classic</a>. (If you forgot what a crit was, <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2011/08/crit-chat.html">click this link and let me teach ya</a>.) It was the 55th year anniversary of this race!<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yohed1LDEsQ/VZQVliSwD9I/AAAAAAAAHvo/1-7gBdmVFdY/s1600/Dad%2527sDay-NVCityClassic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yohed1LDEsQ/VZQVliSwD9I/AAAAAAAAHvo/1-7gBdmVFdY/s640/Dad%2527sDay-NVCityClassic.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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We have actually been going to the Nevada City Classic for the past several years, but last year found a sweet little hotel through our friends that is actually on the course - <a href="http://outsideinn.com/">The Outside Inn</a> - so we booked it last year and this year we stayed over.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mQwTy5wbTbU/VYsmb-uSHhI/AAAAAAAAHtg/fn7BVqeMq6Y/s1600/Outside%2BInn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mQwTy5wbTbU/VYsmb-uSHhI/AAAAAAAAHtg/fn7BVqeMq6Y/s400/Outside%2BInn.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Via <a href="http://outsideinn.com/">Outside Inn</a></td></tr>
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This is such a fun little place. The rooms are all themed and just slightly different from the other. There is a great picnic area in the center with tables, grass and BBQ's + a water feature/koi pond. There is also a pool, which is fun with the kids....if you stay make sure you check out how they light up the pool area at night! The staff is so laid back and friendly too. I would totally recommend staying here if you're planning a trip to Nevada City.<br />
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We hung out in the pool for a bit and then watched the race and visited Dad's. I was lucky to have both of my dad's come and hang out with us and our kiddos.<br />
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Instead of BBQ'ing for dinner we made it easy on ourselves and ordered yummy <a href="http://petes-pizza.com/">Pete's Pizza</a> and enjoyed it picnic style in the grass area of the hotel.<br />
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On Monday morning we had a delicious breakfast - again picnic style - from <a href="http://www.southpinecafe.com/menu/breakfast/">South Pine Cafe</a> (hello ollaliberry pancakes!) then headed out to the south fork of the Yuba River and spent some time in the sun. It was so beautiful!<br />
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We hope all of you had a great Dad's Day too! We can't wait to go back next year!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1Nevada City, CA 95959, USA39.2615606 -121.0160594000000239.212382600000005 -121.09674040000002 39.3107386 -120.93537840000002tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-50568044717313154492015-05-20T09:40:00.000-07:002015-05-22T10:52:56.008-07:00How to Make an Awesome Salad<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iISrIl28MEA/VV9s7EGIOnI/AAAAAAAAG-s/OAGWP7bkZZQ/s1600/AwesomeSalad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iISrIl28MEA/VV9s7EGIOnI/AAAAAAAAG-s/OAGWP7bkZZQ/s400/AwesomeSalad.jpg" width="280" /></a></div>
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Basically anytime we go to a dinner party we are asked to bring a salad. Apparently the word around town is that I make good salads. I completely appreciate these salad based compliments but they always surprise me a bit too. I mean, it's just a salad after all. I tend to say, "<i>I just used what I had in the fridge</i>", which is true but not very descriptive. <br />
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I realized that I only have one <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2013/08/steak-salad-with-horseradish-vinaigrette.html">salad recipe</a> on this blog, which seems a little crazy considering I'm making salad all the time. But I'm thinking the lack of salad recipes here is because I don't really consider it a "recipe" when I'm making a salad. That's why I'm going to give you the steps to make your own awesome salad every time.<br />
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<b><u>1. Lettuce</u></b><br />
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There is a time an place for iceberg and it is in Cobb Salad. Unless you are making a Cobb, I suggest sticking to green leaf, red leaf, butter leaf, spinach, romaine or a mixture of all or some of these.<br />
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Not only are these types of lettuce more nutritious, they taste better and make a much better salad. Also, you can make these lettuces (minus spinach) last one week to 10 days in your fridge if you follow my instructions on <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2015/02/make-lettuce-last.html">How to Make Lettuce Last</a>.<br />
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<b><u>2. Raw Veggies</u></b><br />
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You have to add some veggies to that lettuce! I usually lean to items we typically always have in our fridge - red, yellow or orange bell pepper, carrots, red onion.<br />
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I'm giving these as an example because they are, for the most part, always in my salads and always in my fridge. That said, these are just a starting point, the more veggies in the salad the better! Some other examples are avocados, cucumbers or corn.<br />
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So, about these raw veggies.....<br />
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<li>You may have noticed the purple carrots. We are able to get those here at our local farmer's market and they are delicious, plus add nice color to a salad. I choose them over orange whenever I get the opportunity.</li>
<li>Regarding our friend the red onion, although it adds delicious flavor, I tend to slice it very thin and not add a lot. If you are putting red onion in your salad, I would wait to put in the red onion until shortly before serving, otherwise you might "onion-up" your whole bowl of greens.</li>
<li>How am I getting all of these veggies? Well we live in California's Central Valley, or the produce capital of the world, so the abundance of veggies available here on the regular is amazing and we are LUCKY. If you don't have all of these veggies, that's OK, your salad will still be fab, just add what you can!</li>
<li>In the summer, corn is abundant here so I am typically buying many ears. We love corn on the cob, so I tend to cook extra ears. With the leftovers, I cut the kernels off the cob and save them for salads. If you are short on cobs of corn, you can always throw in half a can of corn (drained obvs), to add some sweetness and color to your salad.</li>
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<b><u>3. Something Crunchy</u></b><br />
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You are probably thinking croutons. If so you are wrong. I pretty much never add croutons to a salad. IMO, store bought croutons aren't good and they're overpriced. You can easily do delicious homemade croutons with stale bread, but if I'm being honest bread never goes stale in our house. Because I eat it. ALL.<br />
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For something crunchy I am talking about nuts and seeds. Sunflower seeds, sliced almonds and/or pecans are all good examples.<br />
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I usually buy these at Trader Joe's, but Costco has a better deal on sliced almonds. I prefer to buy them salted, but that is up to you. I always have the sunflower seeds and sliced almonds on hand for <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2013/02/everyday-granola.html">my granola</a> and usually throw both into any salad. Pecans of course, make a great salad topper as well. </div>
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<b><u>4. Something Sweet</u></b></div>
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I think the something sweet is the key to push a salad from good to great. There are a lot of things to add to give a bit of sweetness including raisins, craisins, apples, pears, mandarins or strawberries.<br />
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My go-to of this bunch is craisins. I love the sweet tartness they add to any salad, they store well and last a long time. However, when you have fresh fruit to add, it is always a win. <br />
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Unlike our other salad components where I suggest adding "some or all", I would hold back a bit on the sweet factor. If you put too much "sweet" (or fruit) your salad will be too fruity. Think about adding just a bit to bring it up a level without overdoing it. In addition to these examples, pretty much any dried fruit is delicious, as are persimmons, which I often add to fall salads, or dates, which are great with just about anything.<br />
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<b><u>5. Cheese</u></b><br />
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Of course my inner Urkel is going to tell you to add cheese.<br />
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Now that we have that out of the way, may I suggest goat, blue or feta for your salad?</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1N45KQAVy8E/VL2K8S92hxI/AAAAAAAAGyA/1oor1W2GPAM/s1600/cheese.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1N45KQAVy8E/VL2K8S92hxI/AAAAAAAAGyA/1oor1W2GPAM/s1600/cheese.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I typically go for the crumbled goat cheese because: 1) goat cheese is mild enough to go with just about anything, and 2) crumbled goat cheese is easy.</div>
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If you crumble your cheese from the block its going to be better and more rich. But we don't always have time for that, do we? Instead just use a pre-crumbled cheese. Other cheeses that go great in salads are roquefort and in Mexican salads - cojita. In a pinch you can also add chunks of cheddar or jack, but soft, crumbly cheeses are better for salad.</div>
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Regarding the cheese, please just pick one. These examples have strong flavors and combining them might make weird flavors in your salad.</div>
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<b>Let's stop here.</b></div>
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If you use components 1-5, congratulations, you have an awesome salad! Some of my favorite combinations are....</div>
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<li>Green leaf, red onion, mandarin, sliced almond, blue cheese</li>
<li>Green leaf, spinach, bell pepper, carrot, sunflower seeds, almonds, craisins, feta</li>
<li>Butter, red onion, sliced strawberry, goat</li>
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But guess what? Your salad can be even more awesome. If you don't want to stop at step 5, keep going!</div>
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<b><u>6. Fancy Lettuce</u></b></div>
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Adding a bit of fancy to your lettuce is always good. Here you can try arugula, kale, beet greens, endive or purple cabbage.</div>
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Arugula will add some spice, kale will add some heartyness, endive - crunch, beet greens - color, purple cabbage - bitterness. Be choosy about your fancy lettuce, but don't be afraid to add one to your already delicious salad.</div>
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<b><u>7. Fresh Herbs</u></b></div>
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Herbs. At our local Farmer's Market we have Herb Ladies (at least that is what I call them). They are there for the majority of the year and sell herbs for cheap. Like 25 cents for a huge bunch, WAY better than grocery store prices. Adding a bit of chopped fresh herbs to your salad can give it a delicious extra punch. Some suggestions are basil, cilantro, dill, parsley, oregano, thyme and sometimes even mint can work great. Again, I wouldn't add them all together, but be picky on which herbs will compliment your other ingredients the most.</div>
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<b><u>8. Hot Stuff</u></b></div>
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Not like "<i>hey hot stuff</i>" but literally, hot stuff. Like rice, quinoa, cous-cous or even cooked veggies can add an extra deliciousness to your salad. It sounds weird I know, but adding hot quinoa makes a cold lunch into a hot lunch, wilts the lettuce just right and changes the whole dynamic of your salad. Just trust me on this one.</div>
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<b><u>9. Meat/Protein</u></b><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bHumqLd7BGk/VVPCX5CPgzI/AAAAAAAAG8o/xvBbTcp8gco/s1600/protien.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bHumqLd7BGk/VVPCX5CPgzI/AAAAAAAAG8o/xvBbTcp8gco/s640/protien.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Grilled chicken, steak or salmon are all wonderful and healthy protein sources for your salad. If you aren't feeling meat-y, try a hard boiled egg. Protein can turn a lunch salad into a dinner. And by the way, no one is going to complain if you decide to throw some bacon on there once in awhile!<br />
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<b><u>10. Dressing</u></b><br />
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Last, but definitely not least. We can't have salad without dressing people! Typically I make my own dressing. It's too easy not to (really). But in a pinch my favorite off the shelf varieties are Brianna's Vinaigrette or Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette. Don't let the strawberry on the Brianna's bottle fool you, it's not strawberry dressing! This dressing is great on basically everything. Like salad, I don't use a recipe to make my own dressing's either (I know). It looks like I'll have to do some tinkering and come up with specific measurements for you! Until then - here is the easy version:<br />
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2 parts olive oil<br />
1 part balsalmic vinegar<br />
honey and/or brown sugar to taste<br />
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or<br />
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2 parts olive oil<br />
1 part lemon juice<br />
fancy salt (like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00017028M/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00017028M&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=X6UWY6436CGNG5RE">Maldon</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00017028M" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />) to taste<br />
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So my friends, that is how you make an Awesome Salad! I hope to see you at the Farmer's Market this weekend buying your ingredients!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-70847516443455279352015-04-22T16:30:00.000-07:002015-04-22T16:32:33.339-07:00On buying a houseLet's just start this post by saying that the house buying process has taken us through feelings of frustration, irritation, hope, excitement and disappointment.<br />
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The good thing is, I don't think we are alone. I think everyone must have these feelings to some degree when going through the process.<br />
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That said, can we catch a break already? <br />
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It started with this house...<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_F4kxMBUyg/VQxmUUHCIuI/AAAAAAAAG4U/2eWYPsGPJVY/s1600/14032619_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_F4kxMBUyg/VQxmUUHCIuI/AAAAAAAAG4U/2eWYPsGPJVY/s1600/14032619_2.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iATppXgpNCU/VQxmWIgpU0I/AAAAAAAAG4c/TnAmdA3n3JU/s1600/14032619_15_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iATppXgpNCU/VQxmWIgpU0I/AAAAAAAAG4c/TnAmdA3n3JU/s1600/14032619_15_2.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
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Looks pretty good right? Well, these pictures are a year old. The pool now looks like an alligator swamp. The inside is pretty OK, but there was a lot of work done by someone who built things solid but wasn't a very good finisher (think large gaps between the sheetrock and ceiling, among other things). The house is a short sale and we were hoping to 203k it. If you aren't familiar with a 203k, it is essentially a construction loan, wherein you purchase a home and add into the amount of your loan a budget to rehab it.<br />
Anyway, the bid to do everything we wanted to this house was $127k. It sounds huge, but we could have made it work because the asking price of the house was low. That said, it was going to be a TON of work and ultimately we decided the area just wasn't quite right for us.<br />
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Around the same time was this place.....<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X0tUCNxkVhM/VQx_OFzdmfI/AAAAAAAAG4s/oLihupbx3EM/s1600/15008378_2_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X0tUCNxkVhM/VQx_OFzdmfI/AAAAAAAAG4s/oLihupbx3EM/s1600/15008378_2_1.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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Awesome yard, funky house. Like funky, smelled like dogs funky. This would have again been a 203k. I liked the private lane it was on and the yard that backed up to a little creek area with horses. But alas, husband didn't like that the yard was so sloped and the first house I showed you seemed to have more potential.<br />
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Then there was this place....<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bCLQB2w2qY0/VQyCze6xWsI/AAAAAAAAG5Q/akMwzDuEiJ4/s1600/14076359_2_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bCLQB2w2qY0/VQyCze6xWsI/AAAAAAAAG5Q/akMwzDuEiJ4/s1600/14076359_2_1.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w66Q2veZPfE/VQyCzclzmsI/AAAAAAAAG5M/VleAOmumsTk/s1600/14076359_22_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w66Q2veZPfE/VQyCzclzmsI/AAAAAAAAG5M/VleAOmumsTk/s1600/14076359_22_1.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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An awesome old ranch with a great layout that was on the bluff above the river and bike trail. That view! It also had a beautiful pool. We had looked at it before we were serious and then it went pending....and then it fell out of escrow. So we tried to make an offer and they already had two above list. We didn't think it was worth that so we walked.<br />
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So then we looked at this place.....<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cgBcI8Y1wss/VQx_8Qti41I/AAAAAAAAG40/ihYcf75MtQg/s1600/15010890_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cgBcI8Y1wss/VQx_8Qti41I/AAAAAAAAG40/ihYcf75MtQg/s1600/15010890_0.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is a 1200 sqft 2/1. What, you might be wondering, is a family of 4 even considering this for? Well, the area is our ideal spot. It's nearly impossible to get into this neighborhood with our budget but we could have done it in this house and made it into a 1800-2000 sqft 3/2. So we were excited. But, we got outbid. We were in position of first back-up but the house sold for $16k over list.<br />
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Then there was this place....<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NTmryUakYyc/VQyAkPRuB7I/AAAAAAAAG5A/WWLd2mfEFBQ/s1600/14060836_1_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NTmryUakYyc/VQyAkPRuB7I/AAAAAAAAG5A/WWLd2mfEFBQ/s1600/14060836_1_2.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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It was a short sale in the same neighborhood as the one above that had been contingent for months and months. And then it became active again. And we tried to jump at it even though it was at the top of our budget. And, of course, they already had multiple above list offers. And now, it is contingent again.<br />
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There was also a shack, seriously a 447 sqft shack in an area of town that we LOVE. We planned to slap an <a href="http://www.ideabox.us/models/confluence/">awesome pre-fab home</a> on it. It went so quickly we didn't even get a chance to bid on it. Then it came back on the market and again we tried, but we found out the reason it fell out of escrow was because the county was requiring the new builder to put in a paved road big enough for a fire truck to drive down and <u>turn around on</u>. For real. This would have eaten up the whole piece of property. So that was out and now its off market. Go figure.<br />
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So then there was this place....<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D6xUl7C088w/VQyDvTe5eYI/AAAAAAAAG5c/7GNO8LxvJWg/s1600/15013677_3_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D6xUl7C088w/VQyDvTe5eYI/AAAAAAAAG5c/7GNO8LxvJWg/s1600/15013677_3_1.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zFMbmqnAVQg/VQyDvQm102I/AAAAAAAAG5g/b-ZPnZDFww4/s1600/15013677_4_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zFMbmqnAVQg/VQyDvQm102I/AAAAAAAAG5g/b-ZPnZDFww4/s1600/15013677_4_1.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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Yes. It was on the river. Like the river was your freaking backyard! And that part of the levy is private. The layout was great. The house was totally 70's but who cared, we didn't. But of course, multiple offers over list.<br />
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And then there was this place....<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M9-hc6U3Duo/VQyE74WJ-iI/AAAAAAAAG54/HxmGYd2GJCk/s1600/15015908_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M9-hc6U3Duo/VQyE74WJ-iI/AAAAAAAAG54/HxmGYd2GJCk/s1600/15015908_0.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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All I should really say here is this: BONKERS Listing Agent.<br />
It is in a great neighborhood, it has all hardwood floors, a pool, a big backyard, an electric charging station (we drive a Leaf!) and our best friends live literally down the street. This came up and we jumped. Like for real jumped. We made a sight unseen offer on this place. Our cover letter was kick-ass. <br />
They told us they got the offer, we were in first! <br />
They told us they were going to send a counter, "great!" we said, send it over! <br />
We waited. <br />
They told us there was another strong offer. <br />
"Great" we said "send us a counter". <br />
We waited. <br />
And then the house popped up pending. <br />
Not. Even. Kidding.<br />
And this is where I get pissed. I mean really? <br />
Was it so hard to say, "hey, we are taking another offer"? <br />
Apparently it was. <br />
That said, how did the agent know we wouldn't have bid much more? The fact is, she didn't. <br />
But then this thing fell out of escrow and the agent came back and said "make your best offer" and we said, we made an offer, make us a counter. And again, we never heard back. <br />
And then she re-listed the house for UNDER our original sight unseen offer amount? Um what? So we made another offer at the new list price. And then she sent us an inspection from 2012 and told us it would be an as-is sale. Huh? #wethinksnot. Then she wanted us to remove standard stuff from the contract (like we the buyer are paying for the pest inspection). We said no, then we folded, then it went into escrow with someone else. I feel sorry for the owners on this one....if only you knew.<br />
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Then there was this house.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OuTBhm3Wu1U/VTGC6igieDI/AAAAAAAAG7E/YpzyBS9geUs/s1600/15016880_1_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OuTBhm3Wu1U/VTGC6igieDI/AAAAAAAAG7E/YpzyBS9geUs/s1600/15016880_1_2.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VgTFWVnYhUQ/VTGC6lwpX4I/AAAAAAAAG7A/n0vd93WBOJ8/s1600/15016880_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VgTFWVnYhUQ/VTGC6lwpX4I/AAAAAAAAG7A/n0vd93WBOJ8/s1600/15016880_2.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
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We'll call it the Streng with the awsome kitchen. You can learn more about Streng homes <a href="http://www.strengbroshomes.com/">here</a> and see more <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=streng+homes&espv=2&biw=1745&bih=923&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=JYMxVcbbPIXjoASVoYDQBA&ved=0CCQQsAQ&dpr=1.1">here</a>. They are a personal mid-century modern favorite of mine and there are many in the Sacramento area. The kitchen was sweet (it actually looks better in this photo than in person, but still). I was more in love with this house than hubby....that being said, it had a lot of great features, like a neighborhood pool/cabana club literally across the street and it was in a great neighborhood. We made an offer, we asked for a counter and once again, they picked another offer (which they told us was "similar") and didn't counter us back. (Seriously, somebody needs to teach some of these real estate agents how to negotiate the best price for their sellers!). Alas, this home was not meant for us either apparently. <br />
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And then there was this house.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W28PPbYIKCY/VS2JpNburtI/AAAAAAAAG6g/vKxrGeNAwcA/s1600/15018603_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W28PPbYIKCY/VS2JpNburtI/AAAAAAAAG6g/vKxrGeNAwcA/s1600/15018603_0.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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I sent this to hubby kind of as a joke. This place is a flat with a unit underneath. I told him we could buy it and rent out the bottom. Then he suggested my grammy live under us, which would be awesome. It opened up a whole new idea of living and we loved the idea of a multi-generational household. When we showed up for the open there were about 20 people waiting on the sidewalk. Seriously. But we made our bid, and crossed our fingers, and we didn't get it. We were sad. So was grammy.<br />
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And now there is this house.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IWr3Z1aXdKk/VS2Kvfiti_I/AAAAAAAAG6o/V25StBnY53U/s1600/15021039_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IWr3Z1aXdKk/VS2Kvfiti_I/AAAAAAAAG6o/V25StBnY53U/s1600/15021039_0.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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Hi house! We currently have an accepted offer on this house! Yay! Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly. If so I can talk to you about fun things like moving, building a pool, building a tiny house for grandma, etc., etc., etc. <br />
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My message to you is this: If you too are looking for a house, don't be discouraged. The right thing for you and yours is bound to happen. <br />
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The houses I'm showing you here are only a drop in the barrel of homes we've looked at and ruled out. Even though the process is grueling and stressful and sad. Even though every time you find one you like you imagine your kitchen and kids rooms and your stuff in that house....and you imagine it as yours and how your family will look inside. Even though all of these things, it just means you haven't found THE ONE. You are not alone!<br />
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<i>All photos in this post are from <a href="http://www.redfin.com/">Redfin</a>. I purposely did not include direct links as they include exact addresses.</i><br />
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<i><br /></i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-38309265449620720492015-02-27T14:29:00.000-08:002015-02-27T14:29:06.068-08:00Cool Thing Friday #18<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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TGIF!<br />
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<a href="http://www.wired.com/2015/02/science-one-agrees-color-dress/">What color is this damn dress?</a><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0k0Oy8JA7Yg/VPCnjU54_vI/AAAAAAAAG20/7SgXE6DBfxE/s1600/Untitled-12-660x334.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0k0Oy8JA7Yg/VPCnjU54_vI/AAAAAAAAG20/7SgXE6DBfxE/s1600/Untitled-12-660x334.jpg" height="161" width="320" /></a></div>
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It's blue and black.<br />
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Have you heard of <a href="http://www.thredup.com/">ThredUp</a>? Kind of cool, I haven't tried it yet.<br />
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Just genius.<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/98808131" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe> </brclear><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/98808131">Penny In Yo' Pants</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user13884103">Penny in Yo' Pants</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/04/celso-santebanes-human-ken_n_5648053.html?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000592">In news of the weird.</a><br />
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I've found myself obsessed with <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=makeup%20dupes">makeup dupes</a> lately. I'll let you know what I find. <br />
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Happy Friday!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-42087104012608275842015-02-20T13:47:00.003-08:002015-02-20T13:47:42.419-08:00Cool Thing Friday #17<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xJ-zvHtfDhQ/VOerGLUpeBI/AAAAAAAAG2I/WCEu6X8R6F0/s1600/coolthingfriday2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xJ-zvHtfDhQ/VOerGLUpeBI/AAAAAAAAG2I/WCEu6X8R6F0/s1600/coolthingfriday2.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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Hey friends, how goes it?<br />
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<a href="http://www.people.com/article/new-jersey-men-arrested-creating-black-ice-dwi">Well this was certainly a creative solution to a stupid mistake.</a> Or not.<br />
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<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/need-some-peace?bffb&utm_term=4ldqpgp#.mjARnqyxG">For all the Virgo's in the world.</a><br />
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Truth.: <a href="http://www.thekitchn.com/10-things-you-should-know-before-getting-in-a-relationship-with-someone-who-loves-food-love-in-the-kitchen-215855?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=f52">"2. Saying "I don't care" when it comes to dinner plans is unacceptable."</a><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7gKwrpvrEuU/VOYklcKajsI/AAAAAAAAG10/MMXRD_cou-4/s1600/05thebrownsisters_ss-slide-25AE-blog225.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7gKwrpvrEuU/VOYklcKajsI/AAAAAAAAG10/MMXRD_cou-4/s1600/05thebrownsisters_ss-slide-25AE-blog225.jpg" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/03/magazine/01-brown-sisters-forty-years.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&bicmp=AD&bicmlukp=WT.mc_id&bicmst=1409232722000&bicmet=1419773522000&abt=0002&abg=0">Family portraits for 40 years.</a><br />
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This guy made this awesome invention and I want to be his friend.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XMX5qeny544?rel=0" width="560"></iframe>
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<a href="http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/lets-bike-it-creative-car-protest-latvia"> A creative way to get drivers to recognize cyclist's.</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.vox.com/2014/9/23/6829399/23-maps-and-charts-that-will-surprise-you">These maps & charts are super interesting.</a><br />
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Happy Friday everyone!!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-82314759917701434522015-02-11T14:09:00.000-08:002015-02-11T14:09:32.405-08:00Make Lettuce Last<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UqsG_0oVy3g/VNgU_Pqr8TI/AAAAAAAAG0k/O0gF-CRU5XQ/s1600/makelettucelast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UqsG_0oVy3g/VNgU_Pqr8TI/AAAAAAAAG0k/O0gF-CRU5XQ/s1600/makelettucelast.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></div>
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Let us talk about lettuce. I really hate buying lettuce and sticking it in my fridge only to pull it out a few days later and find not lettuce, but a bag of green slime.</div>
You know what I'm talking about.<br />
It's really annoying and really gross. But, there is hope. There is a way around having your lettuce turn to slime before you make it into a salad.<br />
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Before we get started, a disclaimer. This works with: red leaf, green leaf, butter leaf, arugula and all types of kale. It does NOT work with spinach.<br />
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Here is what you do.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T4-7WsGyDxg/VNgW4VPcvVI/AAAAAAAAG0w/ibs2ZD2nAxU/s1600/rinselettuce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T4-7WsGyDxg/VNgW4VPcvVI/AAAAAAAAG0w/ibs2ZD2nAxU/s1600/rinselettuce.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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First, fill up your sink with cold water. While it's filling, tear the core out or off and toss it. Then roughly tear up the lettuce leaves and add them to the cold water. Swirl them around with your hand. Let them sit in the water if you have other stuff to do. <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sM2XG-FM5w8/VNgW4h2o6iI/AAAAAAAAG04/n18zpw7N3c0/s1600/saladspinner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sM2XG-FM5w8/VNgW4h2o6iI/AAAAAAAAG04/n18zpw7N3c0/s1600/saladspinner.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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Next, get out your trusty salad spinner. As you can see, mine is the Ikea version that cost something like $1. I've had it for years and although it is small, it has never failed me. Spin your lettuce dry.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Pt8pDtjB6B4/VNgW4v-FmfI/AAAAAAAAG00/98Pemj0ovTM/s1600/savesaladtools.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Pt8pDtjB6B4/VNgW4v-FmfI/AAAAAAAAG00/98Pemj0ovTM/s1600/savesaladtools.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></div>
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You will need a container. I often re-use the plastic containers that I buy pre-torn lettuce in. You can also use a Ziploc bag. And, you're going to need some paper towels.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gs-djDQnZbg/VNgYykFMH7I/AAAAAAAAG1M/liSFbCJr6_M/s1600/layerlettuce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gs-djDQnZbg/VNgYykFMH7I/AAAAAAAAG1M/liSFbCJr6_M/s1600/layerlettuce.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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Last. Layer the lettuce between dry paper towels and stick it in your fridge. The paper towels will absorb the excess water, thus keeping out the green slime. Your lettuce will last in your fridge this way for 10 days or more. It helps to replace damp paper towels. If your lettuce starts to get limp, you can put it back into a cold water bath and repeat the process.<br />
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Happy fresh salad eating!!<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kdpt1WOo-BQ/VNgaORTohhI/AAAAAAAAG1Y/m7sTJZa25OQ/s1600/lettucecollage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kdpt1WOo-BQ/VNgaORTohhI/AAAAAAAAG1Y/m7sTJZa25OQ/s1600/lettucecollage.jpg" height="640" width="268" /></a><br />
♥TCW<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-70225348297301839032015-02-06T13:33:00.002-08:002015-02-06T13:33:58.430-08:00Cool Thing Friday #16<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k1YR1C7uEbU/VNUy_CmpwTI/AAAAAAAAGzw/pRLxfGm8I2Y/s1600/Coot%2BThin%2BFriday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k1YR1C7uEbU/VNUy_CmpwTI/AAAAAAAAGzw/pRLxfGm8I2Y/s1600/Coot%2BThin%2BFriday.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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I've never made <a href="http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com/2013/12/how-to-make-tiramisu.html">tiramisu</a>, have you?<br />
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This video of my home town is pretty cool....<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/90509954" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe><br />
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Do any of these remind you of your <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/katienotopoulos/25-husbands-that-must-be-stopped#.mn12q5jM6">husband</a>?<br />
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<a href="http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/outposts/post/little-girl-survives-11-days-siberian-forest/">Good Dog.</a><br />
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<a href="http://sfglobe.com/?id=3335&src=share_fb_new_3335">An example of how I hope our kids will be.</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.salon.com/2014/08/08/how_one_man_destroyed_the_food_network_guy_fieri_has_made_culinary_tv_into_a_viewers_hell/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialflow%20via%20http://joythebaker.com/2014/08/let-it-be-sunday-10/">I wholeheartedly agree</a>. I mean. Seriously.<br />
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<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-brune/idaho-at-its-best_b_5615374.html">Let's get this done!</a><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jyBcyoMmnLo/VNUKHKpQA0I/AAAAAAAAGzg/NvYZwfLKUBU/s1600/2014-07-23-RoadtoFourthofJulyLake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jyBcyoMmnLo/VNUKHKpQA0I/AAAAAAAAGzg/NvYZwfLKUBU/s1600/2014-07-23-RoadtoFourthofJulyLake.jpg" height="292" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-brune/idaho-at-its-best_b_5615374.html">Via</a></td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.lifebuzz.com/massive-mistakes/">Massive Mistake List. Yeah, #2 is killing me.</a>
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Hope you have a fabulous weekend!!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-44305316079956011002015-02-02T10:39:00.000-08:002015-02-02T10:55:45.474-08:00Our Birth StoryWell, I gave you a preview pic of our babe when we talked about <a href="http://www.thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2014/12/chocolate-cranberry-quick-bread.html">Chocolate Cranberry Quick Bread</a> and finally told you about <a href="http://www.thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2014/12/the-third-trimester.html">the third trimester</a>, so its time to share our birth story. It's long and you can bet I'm going to photobomb this post with a million baby pictures. I hope you enjoy reading our story.<br />
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If you've been reading this blog and especially my trimester posts, you already know that we were gearing up and preparing for a natural birth. Our care was at Sutter Davis and we hoped for a tub room and a doula from the volunteer doula program. We were excited and a bit nervous, but felt well prepared for an amazing natural birth experience.<br />
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I stopped working on September 15th and proceeded to get a lot of rest (woah, was I more tired than I realized!) and clean the house like a mad lady. I had a list of things to do when I headed in for my 39 week check up, including head over to Ikea after my appointment to buy some frames and shelves for the nursery.<br />
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Around 36 weeks I was examined and the midwife was confident baby was head down; I was given the option of a vaginal exam but I declined. I figured there was no reason for the increased risk of infection from an exam if I didn't need to have one done and my midwife agreed. At the point of my 39 week check up I had been examined 4 times by 3 midwives and 1 M.D. and everyone gave the same verdict, baby was head down and in place for the big day. That is until the 39 week exam. While feeling my belly near my upper right rib cage the midwife said "that doesn't feel like a butt". (Insert record scratch). We went over to do a ultrasound to be sure and there was our baby, in the Frank Breech position. Blerg!<br />
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So our baby was sitting in what looks like a divers pike position but facing the side (not straight out like the picture above). The midwife told me I would be checked in to the hospital to see if the doctor could flip our baby. This process is called an External Cephalic Version (Version). I called my husband and told him to come and he arrived shortly thereafter. At this point I was a little nervous but holding onto my confidence that things would go smoothly. I think in the back of my mind I knew that a C-Section was now a stronger possibility, but I wasn't focusing on that. I walked over to the birthing center and was checked in to a room and waited for my hubs and the doctor. </div>
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Let's talk about the Version. Version's are more successful before 36 weeks and on the 2nd pregnancy. Since I was 39 weeks and on my first pregnancy, the chances of the Version being successful weren't very good. So essentially, the doctor manipulates your big pregnant belly to try and get the baby to flip. I was given a drug that relaxed my uterus, but it makes the rest of you feel like you've drunk about 5 cups of coffee. That said, it is difficult, at best, to maintain deep breathing when you feel so amped up. The "manipulation" of my belly....well it really hurt. I kept my eyes closed and tried to breathe. At one moment I peeked and my big pregnant belly was pushed all the way down....like all the way. I could tell it looked gnarly just by the look on my husband's face when it was done - he is solid, but he looked worried. The doctor warned us our daughter might dive back away from his hands, and that she did. The Version didn't work and although I was hopeful that it would, I wasn't surprised when it didn't.</div>
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Because we were delivering at Sutter Davis, there was the possibility of attempting a vaginal breech delivery. In order to determine if that option was available to me, I was sent to have an MRI of my pelvis so that the doctor's could see if my pelvis was wide enough to make the attempt. They made me take a wheelchair to the MRI machine; this was the first time all day I got really irritated. <i>Hello, I'm pregnant, not sick!</i> Anyway, MRI was completed and baby's weight was guessed at 7lb 2oz. We drove home and for the first time I started to worry that our ideal option of a natural birth may not happen. Once home we went to eat and talk about what we knew. Phones were out in deep research, but everything we were finding showed that even if we attempted a vaginal delivery, we would probably end up in a C-Section anyway. We received a call from Sutter Davis giving us the go ahead to attempt a natural birth if we desired. We didn't know what to do, but felt like we still had a bit of time to decide.</div>
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We have a very good friend who also happens to be an OBGYN, so after eating, we headed straight to her house to get the skinny. This friend believes in natural birth and delivered her own baby naturally not long ago. We felt we could trust her for an honest and informed opinion as our friend and a doctor. She was against us trying the natural breech delivery, for many reasons but mainly because it is not standard of care. She also made the point that if you absolutely had to have a C-Section, this would be the situation to do it, where it wasn't an emergency situation but necessary to get the baby out. I was so bummed and although I completely trusted her opinion, I still wasn't ready to give up a natural birth for a C-Section. </div>
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That night I just kept going over everything in my head. I was up late reading on my phone trying to find things I could do to try and get my babe to flip. I prayed that she would just flip. I finally was researched out and starting to wind down when "plop" my water broke. So much for the time we thought we had. My husband called the hospital to let them know we would be coming in and advised we were leaning towards a C-Section.....I was still on the fence; my heart wanted one thing and my head wanted another.</div>
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Before we left we ate a huge breakfast (at 3 a.m.) and I took a nice long shower. We finished packing our bags, grabbed all of the necessary items and headed out. I felt calm. I wasn't sure if we would be coming home with a baby or not at that point; I knew if we opted for a natural birth Davis would send us home until I was truly laboring. At the hospital I was hooked to monitors, we could see some contractions but they were very mild. Honestly I probably wouldn't have realized it was a contraction without seeing it on the screen.</div>
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We wanted to talk to the surgeon on deck before making our final decision, so we waited awhile and continued to research our situation. The doctor came to see us and we asked a lot of questions. Her demeanor was not what I would have liked. In my opinion she was pushing the vaginal birth and not answering our direct questions about the risks. In the end we relied on our research, the advice from our friend and our guts. We decided to opt for the C-Section.</div>
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I can tell you that I was (and still am) very sad to miss the experience of a natural birth. That said, everything we read was clear - attempting a vaginal birth delivery posed more risk to our baby and was more likely to result in an emergency C-Section, which of course carries its own set of risks. I know that some of you might be reading this and question our choice, that is understandable. I would ask that you withhold judgement or discussion of your opinions regarding this issue from the comments of this post. This was a personal decision and for us it was absolutely the right one.</div>
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So, they got me ready for surgery while my husband suited up in scrubs. The anesthesiologist that I had was wonderful. She explained everything that was going to happen and sat with me through the entire procedure explaining every detail. I was given a spinal block. I was nervous, but the numbing shot hurt me more than the actual block. I tried to stay calm. My husband was brought into the room just as the procedure started. After only a few minutes and what felt like a few tugs, our daughter was born.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XmZPWF0u3Bw/VM0N9NA93MI/AAAAAAAAGzE/CKjCPvqbgB8/s1600/10153642_10203782657958362_4288599823440395213_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XmZPWF0u3Bw/VM0N9NA93MI/AAAAAAAAGzE/CKjCPvqbgB8/s1600/10153642_10203782657958362_4288599823440395213_n.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></div>
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I was truly, without words. I felt so overwhelmed with emotion, I had so many words, but I was mute. She came out and immediately cried and the nurses brought her to the incubator to do the APGAR tests (she scored 9!). Nicholas (husband) went over and talked to her and as soon as she heard his voice she was quiet. Then they brought her to me for skin to skin contact. It was amazing. Here was this little person who was spending all her time inside me and now I could touch her and hold her and hear her. Nicholas went with the baby and the nurses back to the recovery room while the doctor sewed me up and I was wheeled in. After meeting Daddy and Mommy, baby met her Grammy...</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oZpn-_VRIy4/VM0OC-REzCI/AAAAAAAAGzM/iaJh2y4GOB0/s1600/1425636_10204006974289117_2588286878032669178_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oZpn-_VRIy4/VM0OC-REzCI/AAAAAAAAGzM/iaJh2y4GOB0/s1600/1425636_10204006974289117_2588286878032669178_n.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Shortly thereafter I arrived in the recovery room for more skin to skin and immediate nursing. It's crazy how it all comes together so fast! Meanwhile I was literally sweating my arse off and had been through the C-Section. I thought it was because I was nervous. Nick was wiping my face with a towel and he said I would immediately bead up with sweat again. In the blur of enjoying my beautiful baby I began to realize there was something else going on. My nurse kept piling blankets on me and finally put this blanket that actually blows hot air. She was having trouble getting my temperature back up. I kept saying I was hot and that I was fine, <i>look I'm totally sweating, I'm hot!</i> The baby was literally sliding around on my chest. Finally the nurse grabbed my hand and said, "feel your leg!". My skin was freezing, it was so weird. Apparently I was having a reaction to the ativan (lorazepam) that was included in my spinal block. <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16143507">(You can read a blip about this reaction here)</a>. I think I remember the nurse saying my temp was 96°, but I'm not totally sure about that. Anyway, they thankfully fixed it. Apparently this is a very rare reaction and they'd only seen it once before. This just goes to show that you can never bet on anything in pregnancy. Everything leading up to that 39 week check up was ideal and totally normal. Then WHAM! We are in two tiny percentage groups with a breech baby and hypothermia after C-Section.</div>
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After several hours that seemed like only an hour or so we finally made it to our postpartum room. The rooms at Sutter Davis are all private, fairly large and homey. Pretty good digs for a hospital. The days spent here are a blur to me. The C-Section drugs made me tired but mostly I was (and still am) so enamored with our daughter that time just melted away. We didn't have any real problems breast feeding. The lactation nurse visited one day and gave me some tips, but overall we have been doing very well in the breastfeeding arena. I can't tell you happy this makes me; before she was born I was more concerned about breast feeding than laboring. </div>
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After being there for one or two days we decided we should probably give our girl a name. We were down to two names and we both agreed on which one we would give her - Sydney. Her middle name, Davis, is a family name. </div>
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We had many visitors and the nursing staff was amazing. As far as my C-Section recovery....it was hard. All I can say is it got better everyday. My husband was vigilant at getting me to walk around, which made a huge difference in getting better. It felt and still feels very un-natural to me. I am still numb above my scar and sometimes the area feels a little pulled. But honestly none of it matters because our daughter is here and she's healthy and beautiful. We stayed in the hospital for 3 days (I think?...seriously a blur) before heading home with our little bundle. </div>
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Before I end our birth story I have to mention how amazing and wonderful my husband was and is in this process. He is a supportive partner and great Dad and I am a very lucky woman. Thank you honeypie.</div>
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So, that is our story. Now I will blast you with photos.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3Sutter Davis Hospital, 2000 Sutter Place, Davis, CA 95616, USA38.5629206 -121.77107113.4834006 -163.079665 63.6424406 -80.462477tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-64716247355286433612014-12-29T10:10:00.002-08:002014-12-29T10:14:15.067-08:00The Third Trimester(Read about the first trimester <a href="http://www.thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-first-trimester.html">here</a> and the second trimester <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-second-trimester.html">here</a>).<br />
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So, in discussing <a href="http://www.thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2014/12/chocolate-cranberry-quick-bread.html">Chocolate Cranberry Quick Bread</a>, I slipped that we had our baby, but I still haven't told you about my third trimester! Before I give up the goods on our little doll face and flood this blog with baby pictures, lets talk about the last chunk of pregnancy.<br />
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In the last trimester I continued to grow and grow. My feet seemed to be permanently swollen and my right ribcage perpetually bumped. That said, these were small things and I felt good. I continued with prenatal yoga and although some moves became more difficult, and others impossible, it still felt good to stretch my body and get centered in preparation for birth.<br />
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The hubs and I also did the <a href="http://herselfmoms.com/sacramento-roseville-classes-for-moms-and-mothers-to-be.html#must_have_tools_for_labor">Must Have Tools for Labor class at Herself Moms.</a> What a great class! We wanted a class that focused on natural birth and we were hoping for something that we could knock out in 1 or 2 days as opposed to a week(s) or month long class.....this is the way to go if that is what you are also looking for. The class mostly focused on how the partner can help mom through labor and gave so much great information. I really can't say enough about it.<br />
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Also in the third trimester, two beautiful baby showers were thrown for me, I feel so lucky to have such a gigantic family.<br />
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The final thing for me to do in the third trimester was to figure out when to go out of work. I really agonized over this! If you are trying to figure out maternity leave in CA, this is the long and short of it:</div>
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4 weeks before birth</div>
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6-8 weeks after birth (6 weeks for a natural birth & 8 weeks for a C-section)</div>
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6 weeks Paid Family Leave (baby bonding time paid by the state...eligible if you pay into state disability)</div>
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So, that 4 weeks before. I didn't think I needed 4 weeks before and I also didn't want to time it wrong where it cut into my time on the back end. For example, if you are due 10/1, like I was, and you stop working 9/1 and then your baby is born 10/5, the time between the 1st of October and the 5th of October comes out of your 6-8 weeks post baby leave. I was scheduled to have 9/17 be my last day of work. I was convinced my baby would come late so I thought I would have a little over 2 weeks off before she arrived. I ended up going out on the 15th instead. I was tired and it was time. My baby came on the 25th, so I only had 10 days before she was born. My advice to new moms is take the whole 4 weeks, time it as best you can and don't stress out over it. You will be more tired and get less done when your baby arrives, so just give yourself the time!</div>
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Overall the third trimester was another great section of pregnancy for me. I was very blessed to have a really wonderful pregnancy, but that's not to say there weren't some big surprises at the end......but, I'm going to wait to share these when I tell you our birth story! Stay tuned!</div>
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In the meantime watch me grow in superfast time....</div>
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<a href="http://makeagif.com/1lxuir" title="1lxuir on Make A Gif, Animated Gifs"><img alt="1lxuir on Make A Gif, Animated Gifs" src="http://cdn.makeagif.com/media/12-29-2014/1lxuir.gif" height="400" width="238" /></a><br />
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make <a href="http://makeagif.com/" title="make a gif">animated gifs</a> like this at MakeAGif<br />
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That is all for now friends. Happy Monday!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-34750595373375816512014-12-23T09:16:00.000-08:002014-12-23T09:24:28.373-08:00Chocolate Cranberry Quick Bread<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--UkcruRxeGo/VJme3XMPxnI/AAAAAAAAGvQ/UvNGnniwm5U/s1600/photo%2B1-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--UkcruRxeGo/VJme3XMPxnI/AAAAAAAAGvQ/UvNGnniwm5U/s1600/photo%2B1-1.jpg" height="640" width="423" /></a></div>
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Hey friends! If you hadn't noticed I've been on a bit of a hiatus. We had a baby!<br />
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Miss Sydney was born September 25th. Words cannot express our love for this sweet little one. I can't wait to share all of the details about her birth and our last few months together at home, but first I'm going to tell you about Chocolate Cranberry Quick Bread!<br />
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This is a super easy sweet breakfast addition or dessert for the Holidays. The rich chocolate paired with tart cranberry is super delish!<br />
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If you are looking for something quick to make this is your dish. Hope you enjoy it!<br />
I'll be back soon to tell you all about that babe!<br />
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Ingredients:<br />
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1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips or chunks<br />
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened<br />
2/3 cup brown sugar, packed<br />
2 eggs<br />
1 1/2 cups applesauce (sweetened or unsweetened)<br />
2 teaspoons quality vanilla extract<br />
2 1/2 cups AP flour<br />
1 teaspoon baking powder<br />
1 teaspoon baking soda<br />
1 teaspoon salt<br />
1 cup fresh cranberries<br />
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How to:<br />
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Preheat oven to 350<br />
Melt 1 cup chocolate chips/chunks in microwave safe bowl or on your stovetop if you don't have a microwave (like us!). Set aside.<br />
Using your stand mixer or in a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. <br />
Once chocolate is cool, add chocolate and eggs, mix well. <br />
Then add applesauce and vanilla, mix well.<br />
In a separate bowl mix your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt).<br />
Add dry mixture to wet mixture and mix well.<br />
Stir in remaining chocolate chips/chunks and fresh cranberries.<br />
Pour batter into 2 (9x5) greased loaf pans (I use coconut oil spray to grease my pans).<br />
Bake in 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick or knife inserted in center comes out clean.<br />
Eat and enjoy!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-71337188496801506372014-09-19T15:12:00.001-07:002014-09-19T15:12:57.805-07:00Cool Thing Friday #15<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iyH5CcvPWiU/VBuppzYUV3I/AAAAAAAAGqw/SscN2uN4Nx0/s1600/cool%2Bthing%2Bfriday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iyH5CcvPWiU/VBuppzYUV3I/AAAAAAAAGqw/SscN2uN4Nx0/s1600/cool%2Bthing%2Bfriday.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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Yay for Friday!<br />
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Would you kiss a stranger...on film? {<a href="http://theexceptionalman.com/first-kiss-strangers/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheExceptionalMan+%28The+Exceptional+Man%2C+Chicago%29">via</a>}<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/88671403" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe><br />
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Here are some nifty <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/jessicaprobus/life-changing-baking-hacks-everyone-needs-to-know#hc831h">baking hacks</a>. #27 is pretty genius, as is #39.<br />
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Can I just say I'm impressed by <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/11/jessica-simpson-black-swimsuit_n_5669522.html?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000592">ripped Jessica Simpson</a> lately? Those legs! Gives this mama to be some inspiration for post pregnancy work outs and results.<br />
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Apparently this kid is just plain awesome, apparently.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/rz5TGN7eUcM?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br />
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Apparently <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrIrbeoDkT0">Ellen</a> thought so too.<br />
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<a href="http://news.yahoo.com/bike-thief-note-viral-145032911.html">I'll bet the bike was returned.</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lauren-coles/one-minute-meditation-cha_b_5686633.html">I think I want to try this.</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.yahoo.com/food/every-state-in-the-usa-ranked-by-its-beer-95770823031.html">Beer. A good reason to live in CA.</a><br />
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Loving these <a href="http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com/2014/08/honest-slogans.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FbboSV+%28A+CUP+OF+JO%29">honest slogans</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MZD5IY_Wg9E/VBulL3riCvI/AAAAAAAAGqo/2T0aXmBJNuc/s1600/honest-slogans-netflix.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MZD5IY_Wg9E/VBulL3riCvI/AAAAAAAAGqo/2T0aXmBJNuc/s1600/honest-slogans-netflix.jpg" height="268" width="400" /></a></div>
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That is all. Have a marvelous weekend<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-86009218875110782252014-09-16T10:12:00.000-07:002014-09-16T10:35:58.713-07:00Books of Late #5I'm still devouring books over here and these are the latest....<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0425247449/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0425247449&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=K45W2VIT4U3P224S"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0425247449&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0425247449" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0425247449/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0425247449&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=TYYL5HSO7EE7UYBK%22%3EWhat%20Alice%20Forgot%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0425247449%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">What Alice Forgot</a> - Reading this book can feel frustrating, but ultimately that's what makes it such a good read. This is the story of Alice and how she hit her head during spin class and forgot the last 10 years of her life. As the reader, we regain Alice's memories essentially at the same time she does - this is what's frustrating...you will want to know what Alice is forgetting as much as she does. I couldn't put this book down because I. Just. Wanted. To. Know! This should be filed in the chick lit category, it's a good, fun, summer read.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0143125842/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0143125842&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=24I64FI42KCTRGTG"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0143125842&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0143125842" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0143125842/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0143125842&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=4XKILRG3XYYVIS3X%22%3EThe%20Signature%20of%20All%20Things:%20A%20Novel%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0143125842%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">The Signature of All Things</a> - I loved the beginning of this book, with the adventure, travel and history as we the reader(s) learn about Henry Whittaker and his rise from boy thief to successful businessman. Then we meet Alma Whittaker, Henry's daughter and our true main character. Alma is interesting herself, but her story dragged for me throughout the middle. Once Alma becomes married some mystery arrives and the adventure, travel and history return. This is a good book but was totally unexpected for me to have come from Elizabeth Gilbert.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1451661541/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1451661541&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=GIKA433TLZNBD6VE"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=1451661541&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1451661541" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1451661541/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1451661541&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=IPKCEOATAYAQG5FQ%22%3EThe%20Silver%20Star:%20A%20Novel%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1451661541%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">The Silver Star</a> - Jeanette Wall's The Glass Castle is one of my favorite books, so maybe my expectations for Silver Star started out too high. The narrator of this book is 12 year old bean. The story is good, but it definitely feels like reading a pre-teen/teen book. Although I wasn't terribly disappointed in this quick read, I guess I expected more.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316204269/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0316204269&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=GX6ZZG3NVZ6XOTOD"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0316204269&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0316204269" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316204269/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0316204269&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=B6MF4FQCVI5HL4RJ%22%3EWhere%27d%20You%20Go,%20Bernadette:%20A%20Novel%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0316204269%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E">Where'd You Go Bernadette?</a> - This book hit me from out of nowhere, it was so far from what I expected I was instantly hooked. A compilation of e-mail messages, newsletters and other "media" writing combined with some narration from one of the main characters, a girl named Bee, this book was written in a way I have only seen one other time (in a book I can't remember the title of). Part gossip, party mystery, part happy, part sad....I really liked this book because it caught me off guard. I finished it in about 2 days I was so hooked. Makes for great poolside enjoyment.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-40991375008218351342014-09-08T06:50:00.000-07:002014-09-09T09:01:33.179-07:00#thisiswholesomeMy husband, step-son and nephew recently headed out for an all boys camping trip. On the top of the grocery list were S'More fixins, including Honey Maid Graham crackers.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EyUf7-9e6ko/U_uOY-ClYoI/AAAAAAAAGjQ/5BVZeHrK2xE/s1600/Sardine%2BLakes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EyUf7-9e6ko/U_uOY-ClYoI/AAAAAAAAGjQ/5BVZeHrK2xE/s1600/Sardine%2BLakes.jpg" height="400" width="640" /></a></div>
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Honey Maid Grahams are a staple in our house, the perfect cure for a sweet tooth or just a simple snack, we all eat them, all of the time. So when the opportunity arose to collaborate with Honey Maid and PopSugar I was game just based on the product alone. It was later that I was introduced to Honey Maid's #thisiswholesome campaign and related commercial. Are you familiar with it? If not, please watch.<br />
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I was honestly thrilled when I saw this ad. I think this is such a brave and beautiful message for a large brand like Honey Maid to share. Beyond my fondness for their Graham Crackers, I am proud to be supporting Honey Maid and the #thisiswholesome campaign as it demonstrates such a positive image of people we love and care about and our little family as well.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://tinanortonphotography.com/"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Tina Norton Photography</span></a></td></tr>
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I think of our family as wholesome, but it saddens me to know that there are plenty of people in the world who would look at us and see things differently.</div>
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As a mixed-race couple I am happy to say we have not had any negative experiences, at least that we are aware of. But the reality is, even in 2014, there are places that as a family we may think twice about visiting, there are people in the world who will view us negatively because of the color of our skin and we do worry about our children and experiences they may encounter in their lives.</div>
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Beyond the differences in our skin are the other differences in our family unit. The cute boy in that photo is my step-son and we co-parent with his mom. The little girl in my tummy will be his half-sister. </div>
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Our backgrounds are also different. My husband calls himself "brown"; he grew up with a black father and a white mother who were married until his Dad passed away 12 years ago. My parents divorced when I was three and re-married when I was five. He grew up in a house with 2 parents, I grew up in 2 houses with 4 parents. He has a "whole" sibling and 6 half siblings. I have zero "whole" siblings, 1 half sibling and 2 step-siblings. He grew up LDS, I grew up not attending church. He didn't know any gay people until he was in high school. I have 3 gay family members and was a flower girl in my gay uncle's wedding when I was 11. My family is liberal and granola. His is conservative and traditional. </div>
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My point is this: our beauty as humans is made up of our differences. <i>Wholesome</i> is not defined by a picture that fits in a box, but defined by individuals, our beautiful differences and how we choose to share good with the world. Honey Maid understands this and their message can be an inspiration for all of us. #thisiswholesome. May something as simple as a graham cracker be your reminder.</div>
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<i style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Honey Maid through their partnership with POPSUGAR. While I was compensated by POPSUGAR to write a post about Honey Maid, all opinions are my own.</span></i></div>
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<img border="0" height="0" src="?" width="0" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-6762679081160991842014-09-05T15:57:00.002-07:002014-09-05T15:57:24.976-07:00Cool Thing Friday #14I miss ya'll. I'm doing my best to get posts up but I am overwhelmed by what I've got in the queue and what I've got in my belly (it is t-minus time folks).<br />
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Here is some cool stuff for this week!<br />
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<a href="http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/school-ditches-rules-and-loses-bullies-5807957">Imagine that. Look what happens when we just let them play!</a><br />
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These crack me up. <a href="http://defamer.gawker.com/watch-matt-damon-and-friends-read-mean-tweets-about-th-1518231448">{via}</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/we-cant-have-nice-things?bffb#1k66nk9">Proof that education in America is suffering.</a> <a href="http://www.shutterbean.com/2014/i-love-lists-friday-114/">{via}</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/lukelewis/16-doctors-on-the-dumbest-patients-they-have-ever-treated#1k66nk9">More proof.</a><br />
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Thankfully there are smart people in the world. Check out what this 3D printer can do. Admittedly, it took me awhile to understand the 3D printer! <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/21/3d-printer-house-mars-slums_n_4639046.html">{via}</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/tech/innovation/man-3-d-prints-backyard-castle-plans-two-story-house-n190316">Or you could just 3D print yourself a castle.</a><br />
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<a href="http://news.yahoo.com/hello-kitty-not-cat-never-company-203943339.html">What do you mean Hello Kitty is not a cat? Why is she called Hello Kitty? </a><br />
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<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/jenlewis/things-you-didnt-know-about-bill-murray#1k66nk9">Did you know Bill Murray is pretty awesome?</a> Number 13 is my favorite.<br />
<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/30/bill-murray-takes-tickets-baseball-game_n_5741026.html">Oh, he did this too.</a><br />
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<a href="http://mashable.com/2014/09/03/al-ferguson-baby-photo/">Baby photo gone wrong. </a> (Warning: poop!)<br />
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It's so funny how baby is smiling in pic #2.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Love <a href="http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/spring-pictures-in-montana/?sf4049805=1#/centennial-valley-lakeview-montana_79682_990x742.jpg">this slideshow</a> from National Geographic, especially this picture as it is <a href="http://thecyclistswife.blogspot.com/2012/06/our-weddingone-year-later.html">where we were married</a> just over 3 years ago.</span><br />
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Well friends, Happy Friday!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-7950133739004438732014-08-22T13:12:00.003-07:002014-08-31T16:12:41.022-07:00Cool Thing Friday #13<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ohhhh #13, should we be scurred? Nah.<br />
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<a href="http://sobadsogood.com/2013/11/23/15-breathtaking-images-of-cities-viewed-from-high-above/">Although these cities from high above do make my bum tingle a bit</a> #afraidofheights<br />
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This video is amazing.<br />
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Having a bad day? Bet it's not as bad as <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/havin-a-rough-time">this</a>.<br />
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I have a mild obsession with these <a href="http://www.boredpanda.org/vanishing-tribes-before-they-pass-away-jimmy-nelson/">vanishing tribes</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.boredpanda.org/vanishing-tribes-before-they-pass-away-jimmy-nelson/">Via</a></td></tr>
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Some fish stories are real, like <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2014/07/see-the-near-500-pound-halibut-caught-in-alaska/">this one</a> and <a href="http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/excursions/post/rare-opah-catch-might-world-record/">this one</a> and <a href="http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/outposts/post/eagle-scout-catches-huge-halibut-leads-derby/">this one</a>.<br />
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Usually I would never say no to ice cream but....yeah NO!<br />
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<a href="https://www.yahoo.com/food/the-hundred-foot-journey-s-c1407353656267.html">I want to see this movie and eat this food.</a><br />
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<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/lifestyle/2014/08/hand-surgery-for-better-engagement-ring-selfies-before-and-after-shots/">Really ladies? Really?</a><br />
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Best infographic ever.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.foodista.com/blog/2011/10/03/fast-food-is-not-cheaper-than-real-food">Via</a></td></tr>
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Happy Friday!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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</brclear></brclear>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-18159290663197880512014-08-14T13:38:00.003-07:002014-09-10T10:35:13.972-07:00Cool Thing Friday #12 - Before & After, Side by SideThis Cool Thing Friday I have the day off! So I'm sharing Friday's cool stuff today - Before & After's and Side by Sides.<br />
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Someday Nicholas and I will hike the PCT. <a href="http://laughingsquid.com/hiker-documents-his-159-day-pacific-crest-trail-trek-in-self-portrait-photos/">This guy did it</a> and you can watch his 1700 mile, 159 day journey and 90lb transformation in just 3 minutes. The end is the best part.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-32ct-EhFPzk/U-pn8glLKYI/AAAAAAAAGhI/RVw-QiZUCPQ/s1600/PicMonkey%2BCollage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-32ct-EhFPzk/U-pn8glLKYI/AAAAAAAAGhI/RVw-QiZUCPQ/s1600/PicMonkey%2BCollage.jpg" height="320" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.countryliving.com/homes/house-tours/historic-home-mississippi-renovation-before-and-after#slide-1">This is a crazy transformation in Mississippi.</a><br />
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Since we have to wait until January for Downton to start again, we can bide our time looking at our <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/10/downton-abbey-costumes_n_4747517.html">favorite characters in and out of costume</a>. Mrs. Hughes!<br />
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And if you binge watched Orange Is the New Black like me...and now its over, we can bide our time looking at our <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2013/08/photos-orange-is-the-new-black-actors-out-of-costume-in-real-life.html">favorite characters in and out of costume</a>. Crazy Eyes!<br />
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<a href="http://hellogiggles.com/journalist-photoshops-meet-every-countrys-beauty-standard">This photojournalist</a> had 40 Photoshop experts around the world retouch her photo to match their idea of beauty. <a href="http://www.estherhonig.com/#!before--after-/cvkn">{Full slideshow here}</a>. Why am I not surprised that the US looks the most creepy?<br />
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<a href="http://theilovedogssite.com/12-before-after-photos-of-puppies-becoming-adults/">Dogs.</a> <br />
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And our own personal boy and dog.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qIRckBbYdEM/U-pskMKf-gI/AAAAAAAAGhU/HXfa42oh0_o/s1600/PicMonkey%2BCollage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qIRckBbYdEM/U-pskMKf-gI/AAAAAAAAGhU/HXfa42oh0_o/s1600/PicMonkey%2BCollage.jpg" height="320" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.designsponge.com/2014/08/before-after-a-thrift-shop-chair-gets-a-thrift-shop-makeover.html">A chair, with creative use of fabric.</a></div>
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Most of these are like woah! But I'm not going for Leo or Zach Ganlifianakis. <a href="https://screen.yahoo.com/buzzfeed/11-celebrities-might-immortal-200101630.html?vp=1">{via}</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/07/celebrity-doppelgangers-lookalike-reddit_n_5659402.html">Love a celebrity look alike?</a> Check out faux Emma Watson.</div>
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Alrighty friends, happy Friday to all and to all a good weekend, especially those with a 3 day weekend.</div>
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♥TCW</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-88303222410234042122014-08-08T12:39:00.000-07:002014-08-08T12:43:01.952-07:00Cool Thing Friday #11 - Babies and Boobies<a href="http://www.mnn.com/family/babies-pregnancy/blogs/4-breastfeeding-myths-debunked">So, it's National Breastfeeding month.</a><br />
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Considering that, maybe we should start the month off by awarding this <a href="http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/1042277/mom-breastfeeds-at-starbucks-employee-stands-up-for-her">teen barista at Starbucks</a>.<br />
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Here is a breastfeeding chart with some interesting facts...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nreFKWDvKOM/U-UmL57BaWI/AAAAAAAAGgs/_4UJDQ16Co0/s1600/BreastfeedingNumbers.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nreFKWDvKOM/U-UmL57BaWI/AAAAAAAAGgs/_4UJDQ16Co0/s1600/BreastfeedingNumbers.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/07/breastfeeding-infographic_n_5656263.html">Via</a></td></tr>
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Way to go CA, OR & ID!<br />
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I don't really understand why breastfeeding has seemed to be such a big deal in the news lately. I saw something that said we should stop calling it breastfeeding and start calling it baby-feeding....we aren't feeding our breasts anyway, right? Would people really be less freaked out if we said "I'm baby feeding" instead of "I'm breastfeeding"? <a href="http://www.mothermag.com/celebrities-breastfeeding/">Breastfeeding is a beautiful thing people.</a> <a href="http://www.glamour.com/fashion/2014/08/olivia-wilde-glamour-september-2014-cover-photos/4">Really</a>. Let's not make it sexual just because boobs are involved, OK? It is about feeding and nourishing a baby in the best and most healthy way available. That is all.<br />
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How about this Dad and his baby?<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3cKtC33N6mg/U-EZhmBbvhI/AAAAAAAAGew/qXntO9oeXEw/s1600/14155363948_ce28a39c15_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3cKtC33N6mg/U-EZhmBbvhI/AAAAAAAAGew/qXntO9oeXEw/s1600/14155363948_ce28a39c15_c.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://blog.flickr.net/en/2014/06/06/worlds-best-father-photo-series/">Via</a></td></tr>
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You can check out his awesome photo series <a href="http://blog.flickr.net/en/2014/06/06/worlds-best-father-photo-series/">here</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/dad-films-wife-labor-while-speeding-hospital-95-213036869--abc-news-topstories.html">Dang girl. And Dad.</a> I don't know how keen I'd be on my husband if he filmed my labor on a GoPro! In a parking lot no less!<br />
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A Cup of Jo is doing her <a href="http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com/search/label/motherhood%20around%20the%20world">Motherhood Around the World</a> series again, it's so intriguing, I'm loving it!<br />
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Is it just me or does this seem like a <a href="http://www.celebuzz.com/2014-07-16/snooki-surprises-jwoww-with-a-mariachi-band-for-baby-meilanis-homecoming/">terrible idea</a> for welcoming a new baby home? I suppose I should consider the source. Just sayin'.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NA7seqMLMFI/U-Edtc9n_HI/AAAAAAAAGe8/DRgqfgYqD5I/s1600/slide_357680_3957088_free.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NA7seqMLMFI/U-Edtc9n_HI/AAAAAAAAGe8/DRgqfgYqD5I/s1600/slide_357680_3957088_free.jpg" height="425" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/15/blended-photo-series-captures-love-of-an-adoption-family_n_5585023.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063">Via</a></td></tr>
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Loving <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/15/blended-photo-series-captures-love-of-an-adoption-family_n_5585023.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063">these photos</a>, this blended family and this adorable baby.<br />
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Sorry, but <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2707863/Our-babies-helped-Mick-comfort-L-Wren-Scott-New-mothers-Jade-Jagger-daughter-Assisi-open-latest-additions-Jagger-clan.html">this weirds me out</a>. What a family dynamic!<br />
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Last but not least, we had some amazing family pictures (and maternity photos) taken a few weeks ago!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3mQq5_fAsLM/U-EePxPhyKI/AAAAAAAAGfE/4qBcoJcl3cE/s1600/US3A9767.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3mQq5_fAsLM/U-EePxPhyKI/AAAAAAAAGfE/4qBcoJcl3cE/s1600/US3A9767.jpg" height="400" width="317" /></a></div>
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If you are in the Sacramento area and looking for a photographer, please call <a href="http://tinanortonphotography.com/">Tina Norton</a> and tell her I sent you!<br />
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Cheers to babies & boobies on this Friday!<br />
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6770298237835170512.post-13372880569437038352014-08-07T13:12:00.000-07:002014-08-07T13:29:54.695-07:00Books of Late #4Hi Friends,<br />
I've been on a reading tip of late, consuming books as the summer flies by.<br />
Let's check out a few......<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316154709/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0316154709&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=47SVGHVH2YD23OPW"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0316154709&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0316154709" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316154709/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0316154709&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=V7RNKTJNGA4RHVBI">Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0316154709" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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Ahhh David Sedaris. Funny man and frequent contributor to This American Life. My favorite David Sedaris book is <i>Me Talk Pretty One Day</i>, but <i>Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls</i> did not disappoint. A collection of essays, this book is easy to read and good for a giggle. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pb75QrQNcFM/U9kTZ_IZteI/AAAAAAAAGbk/nAv4OygSwEA/s1600/1810566900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pb75QrQNcFM/U9kTZ_IZteI/AAAAAAAAGbk/nAv4OygSwEA/s1600/1810566900.jpg" height="141" width="200" /></a></div>
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As a side note, in the book David talks about his disgust for the amount of litter in the area he lives in, so he begins collecting trash on his own time. I just saw <a href="http://www.wscountytimes.co.uk/news/local/south-downs-litter-picker-has-truck-named-after-him-1-6204429">this article</a>, it looks like his work is paying off!<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0140293248/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0140293248&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=2ABPOAYBKRSX6T4V"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0140293248&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0140293248" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0140293248/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0140293248&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=ZTGBPZEK25I2KNLF">The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0140293248" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
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This was a re-read. This is another collection of short stories, but pay attention, they overlap meeting certain characters at different points and taking sub-characters from one story and making them main characters in another story. It is a short glimpse into others lives and I like that kind of book.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062102230/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0062102230&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=54IGORPDQOFPJBQX"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0062102230&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0062102230" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062102230/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0062102230&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=7GIU34LTYQJ32L7I">Everything Is Perfect When You're a Liar</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0062102230" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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I did not finish this book. This is saying a lot considering I will read junk just to get to the end or learn the whole story no matter how bad it is. Case in point: my Dad bought me the book by <strike>Pulitzer Prize Winning author</strike> Dog the Bounty Hunter as a joke; I read the whole thing just so I could go through and red pen all the grammatical errors. Considering I couldn't even finish <i>Everything is Perfect when You're a Liar</i> I guess we can say I was not a fan. I read that Kelly Oxford is popular on Twitter (?). I was not aware of her until I heard about this book on another blog. Based on the Amazon reviews it seems people like her better on Twitter than as an author/autobiographer. I'm just going to tell you I (really) didn't like her book.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307278263/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0307278263&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=RUMAUXRAF4BZ2XFH"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0307278263&Format=_SL250_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thecycswif-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0307278263" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307278263/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0307278263&linkCode=as2&tag=thecycswif-20&linkId=2H6ABD43UZ4LOYGS">The Lowland</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thecycswif-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0307278263" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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To put it simply, this story is beautifully told. Spanning several decades, it is the tale of one family and the many changes they go through, both good and bad. The story is told at different points from different characters perspectives. It is very easy to get lost in this book. I would not be surprised if this was turned into a movie and if it does I would love to see it. If you have not read a Jhumpa Lahiri novel before, I would also recommend <i>The Namesake</i>, which is another great story....it was made into a movie.<br />
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So, what have you been reading this summer?<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UBEJRJH5FFE/U-PcsMdPEoI/AAAAAAAAGgc/N6wlbCTnmjs/s1600/BooksOfLate4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UBEJRJH5FFE/U-PcsMdPEoI/AAAAAAAAGgc/N6wlbCTnmjs/s1600/BooksOfLate4.jpg" height="640" width="370" /></a></div>
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♥TCW<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0