Half full? Or half hairy?

So. Peeps. I was in the shower this morning and thought to myself, "Self, you actually got up early enough to shave those legs and since it's been a day or two (or 4-zip it--it's winter here!) you should do that." So, I squirted the shave gel on one leg, shaved it and then realized that I was entirely. Out. Of. Shave. Gel. None hiding in the closet. None in the travel bag. Even MD's wasn't available because he has started to shave in the other bathroom because I complain it takes him too long and I need to get in the shower and now I'm going to be late. (Yeah right, like it's his fault I'm running late.)

But back to my troubles. Essentially I'm walking around with one stubbly leg and one smooth leg now. And I have to tell you, it's a bit unsettling.

But it made me think of the old saying about the glass being half full or half empty. I think I'm going to try to change that saying to. The new check to see if you're an optimist or a pessimist is: "Are you one leg shaved or one leg hairy?" Oh, yeah, that's got a super catchy ring to it! I'm sure it's going to be sweeping the nation any day now. And you can point to this blog and know where it all started.

Slow cooking update...

I made the Salsa Chicken with Black Beans soup. I should have used canned beans or cooked it on high the entire time because my dried beans didn't get quite soft enough in time for dinner. (Dudes, we've got some seriously hard water here in P-town and it's impacting my beans!) Even with slightly crunchy beans it was delicious. The very best part was the fact that I used uncooked and completely frozen chicken breasts--take that lack of meal planning! The second best part was me trying to convince P that the "green stuff" in the soup *might* be celery, despite the name of the soup being "Salsa Chicken". Hee hee.

Another friend I showed the site to made the Pot Roast with Cranberry Sauce last night. Her report back was "incredibly easy and delicious." I'm looking for other suggestions of winners if anyone tries anything else!

Cooking

Is it just me or does cumin smell like a construction worker's sweaty armpit? I'm trying a new recipe today, from a blog I've recently become obsessed with (it's actually a blog from two years ago--yet again proving my T-Rex like prowess when it comes to this thing we call the internets). I'm sure that the cumin will add that "certain something" to it but it totally grossed me out when I sprinkled it in.

I'll be sure to let you all know how it tastes. And the blog, it's here: crockpot365.blogspot.com. The author took on the challenge to make something in her crockpot every day for a year. Every day, man. Every day. And many of her recipes have been put into a book called "Make it Fast, Cook it Slow." Perhaps all of my 3.5 readers will find something in her recipes that tickles your fancy as well. Enjoy!

Winter musings

I love winter. I really do. I love the sweaters and vests you can wear to hide an extra Christmas cookie (or twelve). I love the way the house seems like there's a giant muffler on it when the snow comes down, quieting all of the outside noises. I love the look of the flakes falling. I love the idea of going sledding. I love to bundle up with a good book and stay at home, out of the cold. I love the possibility of a snow day. But, if we're really being honest here, I only love it for a brief period of time. Like 20 minutes or so. Then I'm pretty much done with it. It was snowy over break, but it's melted now and I couldn't be happier.

However the snow got me thinking. I was trying to decide: is snowy weather the bane of every mother's morning or is summer weather? Winter with the snow pants and the boots and the hats and the gloves (which are always getting lost) and the potential to lose a finger or toe if you stay out too long. Or summer, with the packing of lunches that can stay cool for hours while at camp and the applying of sunscreen, and the bags packed with a swimsuit and a towel and swim goggles and another bag inside your bag to keep your stuff dry on swim days (don't forget if you have a kid with slightly long hair you'll also need some conditioner and maybe a pick or brush). Plus the potential to have your kid get skin cancer years and years from now, and know that it was (maybe) because you got a little lazy with the sunscreen one day. I'm exhausted just writing out the lists! Is it just me? Is it because I work outside the home? Is it because I still have fairly young kids? Is it because I would rather sleep-in for an extra five (OK, 35) minutes rather than do anything else? I'm not sure, but I'm thinking I am really starting to love fall. And spring. Spring is nice too.