Just Kat Stuff

Free Cloth Diapers

2008-07-26T10:05:00.000-07:00

I did recently mention that "Free" is my favorite 4-letter word?

I don't use them now, with The Kid who is nearly (please God) done with diapers, but I do intend to use them with Kid#2. So this is a supercool giveaway of some awesome bumGenius cloth diapers.

Feed the Children Well

2008-07-25T07:07:00.000-07:00

Found the vendor offering the largest possible ice cream sandwiches.

We went to the Americana last night to check out the place.

5 a.m.

2008-07-24T09:25:00.000-07:00

This is what we do when The Kid's fever finally breaks after 2 days and he's up at 5am, perky as can be:

At about 11-12 seconds in, he says, "Mommy, look at this!" and then slaps his feet on the floor some more... in case you don't speak Alienchildat5amlish.

This is how we wake up the Goddaughter, around 7.

There's my girl!

2008-07-22T11:16:00.000-07:00

Miss Goddaughter Supreme is on an airplane on her way to us!

My Favorite Four Letter Word - FREE!

2008-07-21T13:58:00.000-07:00

Hey, check this out - My friend Lotus is giving away a Huggies Summer Fun Package, and some Huggies Little Swim Diapers. If these are useful to you, go check out the giveaway here, and leave a comment to win!

Under Construction

2008-07-20T22:37:00.001-07:00

Playing with my template. Looking for a new look on the cheap. Bear with me.

Veeklie Vinners

2008-07-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

That is, Weekly Winners, with a weird accent, which is only in my head.
And now, maybe in yours too. =P

Went to a kid's play in Pasadena. Kid liked it a lot.

Pasadena City Hall. Taken from a moving vehicle. A little blurry and off-center and I nearly hit somebody, but...pretty.

We got together with some friends from FL this weekend - they moved out to CA before we did, but about an hour away from us so we don't see them much. These two have been buddies since they were infants.

We noticed their shoes next to each other in the grass and had to get a picture.

Yes, my kid is a Viking.

Crawled into my bed at 7pm and went to sleep. I guess all this staying up all night screeching over the molar invasion is wearing him down too.

Till next week!

More Veekie Vinners over here at Lotus' place.

Ooh, coach me, please!

2008-07-19T08:00:00.000-07:00

Hubby came across this on Craigslist L.A. and forwarded it to me. We share a strange fascination for the ludicrous, he and I... This speaks for itself, I think. It made us giggle.

*****

Life coaching in exchange for a place to live

Reply to:
Date: 2008-07-16

I will offer you an ongoing life coaching program on a weekly basis in exchange for a peaceful living situation.
:) C**** (name removed)
213.***.**** (number removed)

*****

Complete Sentances, In English

2008-07-18T12:12:00.000-07:00

This morning, the evil-non-sleeping-boychild-from-hell woke me up, by placing his hands on my cheeks, and saying:

C: "Wake up! Monny, wake up!"
K: (groan) "I'm awake." (instantly falls back to sleep.)
C: (shakes me and points towards the door) "Let's go...outside the door!"
K: (wakes up and laughs. Instantly falls back to sleep.)
C: (kneels behind my back) "One, two, three, GO!" (pushes me with all his might)
K: (grabs him and hugs him and gets out of bed)

We are experiencing a total breakdown in the sleep department. His 2 year molars are coming in, wait, didn't I write that here recently? Its all a blur. Yeah, well those sons o' bitches have not yet arrived, but are still hurting him all. night. long. I sleep with him to comfort him and so I don't have to get up and run in there all night. Daddy isn't allowed to take a turn though. When he's hurting, only "Monny" will do. But "Monny" needs some fracking sleep or she's going to have a nervous breakdown.

Last week, he napped like a superstar. This week? Not. Yesterday I took him to his bed for our naptime routine, and he laughed at me, as if to say silly mommy... and said, "I don't take a nap!"

Nomatter that I explain to him that he's only two, and that two year old bodies need more sleep than he's getting. Nomatter that I tell him he's responsible for making sure he grows up strong and happy, and enough sleep is a big part of that. Nomatter that I tell him that he WILL take a nap and it is NOT OKAY to get out of bed ONE MORE TIME.

He laughs at me. The child will decide his own fate, and his fate does not include a nap, thank you very much.

Incredibly cute, he is. And um... somewhere in the midst of all this... he started spewing complete sentences in fluent English (rather than Babelish). I was too tired to notice at the time, but there you have it.

You're awful, I love you!

2008-07-18T07:52:00.000-07:00

I love this. I find it fantastically hilarious.

Ludo - Love Me Dead

Love me cancerously
Like a salt-sore soaked in the sea.
'High-maintenance' means
You're a gluttonous queen
Narcissistic and mean.

Kill me romantically
Fill my soul with vomit
Then ask me for a piece of gum.
Bitter and dumb
You're my sugarplum.
You're awful, I love you!

CHORUS
She moves through moonbeams slowly
She knows just how to hold me
And when her edges soften
Her body is my coffin
I know she drains me slowly
She wears me down to bones in bed

Must be the sign on my head
That says, oh...
Love me dead! Love me dead!

You're a faith-healer on T.V.
You're an office park without any trees
Corporate and cold
Gushing for gold
Leave me alone.

You suck so passionately
You're a parasitic, psycho, filthy creature
finger-bangin' my heart
You call me up drunk
Does the fun ever start?
You're hideous and sexy!

REPEAT CHORUS

Must be the sign on my head
That says, oh...
Love me dead! Love me dead!

SOLO

Love me cancerously
Brrrot-dot-da-d-da-da!
How's your new boy?
Does he know about me?
You've got the mark of the beast.
You're born of a jackal! You're beautiful!

REPEAT CHORUS

Wha' 'bout that sign on my head
That says, oh...
Love me dead!

Reason I hate L.A., #524

2008-07-17T11:37:00.000-07:00

This morning I was driving my son to school, headed south on the 5. A guy cut in front of me going from the lane to my left, across my lane and into the lane to my right, and off the Colorado Blvd. exit. I had to slam on my brakes.

Right about the point where he was cutting across in front of me, he stuck his big, tanned, hairy arm out his window and flipped me the bird.

He maintained the flip all the way off the freeway until I couldn't see him anymore.

He cut ME off. It is possible that he had his blinker on to get into my lane but I sure didn't see it, and the back of his truck was slightly behind my sight radius when he moved into my lane, so even if he did... how would I know?

That was just rude. And totally unnecessary.

He was in a big, bright red pick-up truck, had dark hair and a mustache. Just in case, on the very low chance that he or anyone who knows him ever reads this. I wouldn't mind his being publicly humiliated for it.

I have also been cut off in this city by people who apparently didn't even see me. Like the lady, a couple of weeks ago, about 20 feet away from my car who looked right at me and then decided to make her left turn, cutting across the road in front of me so that I had to brake and skid, otherwise she would have hit us.

People who take crazy pills should not get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle. This means you, Los Angeles.

Celebrity Sighting (Reasons why LA is sort of cool, #12)

2008-07-17T07:32:00.000-07:00

I have one very celebrity-sighting gaga friend, so when we moved back to LA I started emailing her every time I saw a famous person, for fun. It happens here, quite a lot. I think its cool, but I never bother them. I figure they deserve to eat their pastrami sandwich in peace too, right? The honest truth is that I don't give a crapppppp though, unless the celebrity is a person I really respect for some reason.. as a person. Then I'm gaga too.

But I thought my bloggy friends in other places might find them interesting, so I'll post them here when I see somebody and email my friend whose got stars in her eyes!

Today at the chiropractor, I thought this lady looked really familiar. Like... maybe I'd met her at a party or two? Or... maybe she worked in the supermarket I frequent? Or... wait... isn't she on TV? I wasn't sure, but she didn't recognize me so I left it alone. Came home and looked her up, and viola!

Kathy Kinney (remember Mimi, from the Drew Carrey show?) goes to my chiropractor.

My favorite so far was seeing Nora Jones in a karaoke bar. I was hugging a friend, and there was Nora, walking into the bar. She saw me recognize her. I smiled. She winked, and turned away quickly. I didn't mention it to anyone (because I didn't want them to go drool on her in a drunken karaoke rampage) and they still don't really believe me, lol.

Once I saw Steve Martin crossing La Cienega Blvd.

Kyle MacLachlan pulled up next to me in his big, black SUV a couple of months ago.

And recently I saw Jay Leno double park a really cool old car in front of a deli in Burbank and run in to get something. He literally stopped traffic. That was a little annoying because I was running late.

These are the most memorable ones. I'll post more as I see 'em.

Shakespeare by the Sea

2008-07-16T14:29:00.000-07:00

This is so awesome... we're going to go check it out tomorrow night.

Free Shakespeare in the park - if you're in the LA area, come see! If you've never seen free, outdoor Shakespeare plays you really oughta, its so much fun!! A Midsummer Night's Dream is one of my favorites!

http://www.shakespearebythesea.org/locations.html

Thursday, July 17 7pm – A Midsummer Night's Dream

South Pasadena: Garfield Park
1000 Park Ave., South Pasadena, CA 91030

There are a couple of other dates coming up in the area too... check the link if you're interested.

The Alchemist

2008-07-16T06:53:00.000-07:00

See that nifty little Shelfari Widget over there? -------->

I put The Alchemist up just before I started reading it. And now that I've started... I have to say its very appropriate to what I'm going through right now. Struggling to live as an artist, to live out my own personal purpose in life...my calling... whatever you want to call it. Its so easy to get caught up in mundane crap, isn't it? Or to find obstacles everywhere and give in to them. But when you know there is so much more that you want to do and be and have and give...and create... its not easy, and it 'aint for the lazy or faint of heart, that's for sure.

I'm getting less lazy.

And I'm loving this book. Its a great story so far. Anybody else around here read it?

Let's Play a Game

2008-07-15T20:51:00.000-07:00

I'll ask a question and you answer it, kay?

The question of the hour is:

What tastes as bad as (or worse than) the glue on plain business envelopes?

lick, lick, lick...

I'll answer first:

A bottle of water that has just a tiny bit of backwash in it, and has been sitting under your car seat for a few days. That's pretty bad.

I'm going to go get a sponge. But I'd like to know. What have you tasted lately, that is as bad or worse than the taste of envelope glue?

My Tribulations

2008-07-15T07:02:00.000-07:00

In order to get into my own bed last night, I had to remove:

1 ABC book
1 5" dump truck that rumbles when you pull a string
1 Cars dvd case
1 14" rubber alligator
1 Elmo train
and
1 Winnie The Pooh airplane

Then I ended up in the kid's bed anyway, because his two year molars are threatening to come in again. How do I know my kid is teething? Because he wakes and lets out a blood-curdling scream, which wakes me from a deep sleep, makes my heart pound and my blood fill with adrenaline, so that I rush to his side, and by the time I get there, he's fast asleep again. And then it takes me another ten minutes to fall back to sleep. Repeat screaming every 30 minutes or so, all night long.

It Takes Courage

2008-07-14T11:35:00.000-07:00

"To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting." ~e.e. cummings, 1955

"The great majority of us are required to live a life of constant duplicity. Your health is bound to be affected if, day after day, you say the opposite of what you feel, if you grovel before what you dislike, and rejoice at what brings you nothing but misfortune." ~Boris Pasternak

"How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something -- but to be someone. " ~Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel

I have had a few major things happen with me lately. As you may or may not know, I'm a Scientologist. And for me, being a Scientologist involves studying life, learning about myself and others and using Scientology to very consistently and purposefully shed the baggage I carry that is not really me.

This is not a religious rant, I'm not trying to get you to believe what I do. I don't want to debate anything. I really don't give a rats rear end what anybody believes as long as they are not an asshole about it. This is just a plain statement of who I am and what I do and how I live my life, so you understand a little better about these major things I'm going to tell you here. Being a Scientologist, and getting down to the simple truths of life, is a very big and important part of who I am. It colors everything I do, think about, and communicate.

So anyway.

The first major thing is that my husband and I did some Scientology marriage counseling. It was very simple and a lot of fun, and it changed everything. I love my husband. He is almost as imperfect as I am, and yet, miraculously, I love him. Life is fun again in this marriage.

Not only that, but my ideas changed a lot. I didn't realize it at first, but I had these ideas about who I am as a wife, what I wanted in a husband, what a marriage should be like. And it turns out that those weren't really my ideas in the first place. I can't tell you how freeing it is to realize something like that. My marriage is now really and truly mine, to create and enjoy.

The second major thing is that somewhere along the line, I was bonked over the head with the realization that I'm not always the best kind of mom I want to be. I do a hell of a lot better than my own mom ever did, I'm pretty sane I think, very loving. I care a lot about him and who he is - and I think he knows it. But lots of little things slip through the cracks. Too much tv sometimes. Not the best diet always. Getting busy and not paying him much attention, getting annoyed easily when I'm tired, not really trying to understand what he's saying or going through because I'm too busy with other stuff. None of these are HUGE - none of them are going to make or break him. But it did dawn on me that a part of who I really am is that I have very high standards for myself as a mom, and that I could do better to live up to them. It felt good to see that, and now I can work on it.

The third major thing came up with regard to my mother-in-law. She's been a tough one for me, I've taken some blows from her, and I was recently getting some help to take a look at that and not be the effect of it. What I found is something that I really did not expect. I found this out about myself: It is my intergity - as in it is who I really am - to communicate what is true for me. Very simply that. And when I do not communicate what is true for me, I am not really being myself.

I have done that with her - and I have let her get away with a lot of mean cracks that I should have done something about. That doesn't mean that I would have to be mean about it, or reject her. But the very first time she ever said something offensive to me, I could have said, "I really don't think we need to go there. But it has been so nice to meet you. And I am so excited about getting married to your son." That would have done the trick of letting her know that I don't play mean the way she does - and I don't tolerate it in my home or with the people I love, but if she would like to play nice, she's welcome into my life with open arms. Amazing what a few little words - or the lack of them - can do.

Looking at this has had quite an impact with me. It has changed the way I look at my relationship with my own mother. I won't go into that in great detail here, but let's suffice it to say that my mom has dished out a lifetime of comments to me along the lines of, ""You're too strong!" "You're too opinionated!" "You're such a bully!" "You're just too powerful!" "Take it easy!" "You're such a rough person!" "So bossy!" "Calm down!" "Sshhhh!" All of that is a horrific invalidation of who I am, which she says to me because who I am shatters her super-social, middle-class, fake cheerful life. Her smiles are a thin cover for the stinking cesspool that lies beneath, and I tend to call a spade a spade, and well, you can imagine that I basically scare the shit out of her, and have done so since the day I uttered my first word.

I had the final straw on that yesterday, and told her so. She may never forgive me. And I'm okay with that right now.

I am an artist. I am a writer. And letting anyone continually tell me that I'm too opinionated, too strong, too powerful and that I should sit down and shut up, well, its just not good for business. Buying into it, which is almost impossible not to do when you hear it all the time, is worse. Its death. A walking, breathing death, that looks like life but isn't.

Who I really am is someone who communicates what is true for me. So simple. And I knew that. But still, a revelation. It 'aint always rainbows and sunshine.

So, I started a new blog today, where I can say whatever the hell I want to say, without worrying an iota about who I'm going to offend. Sometimes I need that. It is invite only, over at It Takes Courage, and if you'd like to be able to read me there too, let me know and I'll probably put you on the list.

As for what will happen with this blog? I'm not sure. I'm sure I'll keep posting here, just because I like to write, and I like to read real stuff from real people, and there's nothing like having a community. A lot of what I have to say is funny and about my family and I love - adore - enjoy lots of other similar blogs. People are damned interesting. But blogging - and reading blogs - and being "blog-popular" - is a HUGE time-eater. And suddenly... I have these books to finish. Urgently. Because I've got stuff to say.

WEEKLY WINNERS

2008-07-12T18:17:00.000-07:00

I pulled off an awesome surprise for my hubby's birthday today. He's always wanted to get his pilot's license, and today was the start.

He really was surprised, which is pretty miraculous for a guy who reads my mind constantly. I had to work really hard to not even THINK about airplanes around him for the last week. He thought he was going to be doing a job in this building, until we popped out and yelled "Surprise!"

Yeah, I know these balloons were for Daddy, but now they're MINE.

Woot, woooooot!

Walking out with his instructor.

Cirrus SR2o (I think that's what he said)

The kid got to touch lots of airplanes - BIG fun.

Posh.

He had a blast.

Into the blue.

See more weekly winners here.

HOT MOM TRICKS - Raw Veggies

2008-07-11T13:05:00.000-07:00

I'm always on the lookout for ways to make things healthier. But to work for me, they also have to be easy and fun - as in, no stress, no tears, and no forcing people to eat things they think are "digutsting".

Our natural doc has been on me to increase the kid's intake of RAW veggies. There's nothing like raw veggies for his health, (or mine) says she. I know this, but... when's the last time you saw a 2 year old willingly eating celery? I babysat some kids like that when I was 12, but their family was middle eastern, made everything (yummm) from scratch, and her kids had no idea what chips even were. They ate green peppers for fun. My kid - not so much. I know it will be good for him to learn to eat them as he gets older, but for now I just want them to get IN.

I have the cookbooks - Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious and Missy Chase Lepine's The Sneaky Chef, and there are lots of great recipes there, but those don't give me raw veggie help.

Here's what I do:

RAW VEGGIE TRICK #1 - Juice
I make fresh apple/celery juice about once a week. I make a bunch and keep it in the fridge, and its good for a few days. Its about 50/50 apples and celery. Sometimes I use more apples and put a bit of spinach in there. He likes it!

At first I had to use bottled apple juice to dilute it with so he could get used to the taste. I used less and less of the bottled stuff every day until he was drinking the apple/celery straight.

Buying juice in containers from any store, by the way, is nowhere near as good as making it yourself. All juice sold in a store is "flash pasturized" which kills loads of the nutrients.

RAW VEGGIE TRICK #2 - Ground Raw Vegetables
I've found that anything Italian - any kind of pasta with sauce and cheese, will hide LOADS of raw veggies and they eat it up. So - I buy those bags of organic broccoli slaw from the supermarket. It is made of broccoli stems, which have far more nutrients than the heads of broccoli, and usually has some carrots in it too. I make spagetti or lasagna or whatever as I normally would and let it cool down. Then I put a few handfulls of the broccoli slaw in the food processor and grind it up into itty bitty bits - tiny pieces or puree, doesn't matter. Then I mix the veggies into the spagetti sauce, or cheese, or lift the top layer of the lasagna and load it up with raw veggies. They put away tons of this stuff, and I'm ecstatic knowing that at least 1/3 of the food they are eating at this meal is raw vegetables.

You can use other types of raw vegetables and can hide them in lots of other foods too, but this is the type I do it with most often.

Update: Mashed potatoes, cooled off, make a great disguise for minced carrots, celery & broccoli - worked last night. =)

The Latest

2008-07-10T21:35:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted much in the last while, so here's an overview:

1. The diet is going. Slowly. I cheat. But going.

2. Summer house guest season opens. The god-daughter from hell is arriving next week for a month, and I'm so excited. The world is a strange, barren place when she's not with us. Miss her too much.

3. Sister in Law arrives in Aug. We're going to get new tattoos together. And go to Disneyland. We gots plans.

5. Still managing to keep the MIL at bay. She hasn't been here since Christmas. I know I can't hold her off forever, but I can dream. Right?

6. Still looking for a new house. No dice yet. No hurry.

7. The Kid is busy. Talking. Constantly. Running. Constantly. Bored with me if I don't keep up. I'm just trying to maintain some semblance of cleanliness with the havoc he can wreak in my house. The knives have been moved to a high cabinet. When I scold him, he tells me, "Shhhhhh!" with his finger pressed to his lips. He sings at the top of his lungs, plays my guitar with abandon, tells jokes I don't understand and laughs his ass off. My sweet, calm, tidy baby has turned into a wildman. I'm crazy about him.

8. We are having a piano delivered tomorrow. Its a gift from someone who has two. Haven't had a real piano since I was a kid, so that will be very cool. Have to make room for it. Having it means that I really ought to play it. Wildchild LOVES the piano, so he'll be stoked.

9. Extended family members are having massive drama, some of which seems to have quited down for the moment. Here's to it staying that way for a while.

10. I've been staying up way too late, after the boys are asleep, writing, watching Battlestar Galactica on Netflix, reading. Stealing some time for myself, which has been slim lately, but I pay the price the next day. Thankfully the kidlet has been napping again, so I can too, when I'm desperate. Gotta get a handle on myself and manage my time better.

Otherwise it has been work, errands, study, playing with the kid, cleaning, helping friends or family with things they need, trying to exercise every day, sneaking in a bit of my own writing in between it all (like this book I want to finish, and publish... just that little thing), and like a psycho I recently agreed to work on another church volunteer project. Brilliant.

And on that note... I'm going to bed.

How are YOU?

Um?

2008-07-08T23:52:00.000-07:00

I got an enlightening email in my spam box today.

Subject line: Explore the world in 3D!

That's so funny...because I totally thought I WAS exploring the world in 3D?
But apparently I need some special software to do that? And it can only be done on my computer?

The things ya don't know until somebody sends you some junk mail. By the looks of my spam tonight my penis is too small and I can make a fortune working for Google from home.

I'll get right on that.

Anyway, no time for blogging because we're completely and utterly addicted to BATTLESTAR GALACTICA around here, and the next disk arrived from Netflix today, and well... who needs sleep? Not me.

Kat for President!

2008-07-07T16:49:00.000-07:00

I haven't mentioned this here, because it started out as a joke... but it looks like I could really win! You won't believe it! With a little help from my friends, I could be the next President of the United States!

Weekly Winners

2008-07-06T00:40:00.000-07:00

The ones that won my heart this week were pictures I received via email from friends and family.

From my God-daughter's mom:

The subject line read: 21 grapes. We are so proud!

From my gorgeous friend RK. She made the dress for an event. I asked for a picture of her in it:

The subject line read: Took this one just for you!

From the Campfire Stories book release party:

Hubby reading his story 'round the fire.

From my daughter-in-law:

My Kid and step-son (his big brother) on a ride. The little one had perma-grin.

See more weekly winners over here.

This is So Wrong

2008-07-01T22:49:00.000-07:00

Wow. I'm tougher than I thought.

27

My favorite question on this quiz:

How would you feel about the fact that you're fighting a bunch of kids?
A) This is so wrong - these are children for pete's sake. I don't think I could fight them, even in self defense.
B) I'll do what I have to and fight just hard enough to win
C) To hell with morality, I'd be too busy pile-driving, crane-kicking, and bare-knuckle bashing them all the way back to kindergarten.

I chose B. But C is funnier.

Weekly Winners

2008-06-28T18:43:00.000-07:00

My camera is still sitting in someone else's house, silent and untouched for the past week. So I give you this:

My Life as a Mom So Far, a Photographic Retrospective

2 months knocked up - happy news!!

Very Knocked Up

BirthDay

First Christmas

Meeting his big god-sister - love at first sight.

First Mother's Day

First experience as a prop in service of mom's weird sense of humor.

First swim.

First Halloween

First Birthday

2nd Christmas
(just realized how much use that black wifebeater t shirt got!)

First Beer

AND

First Time Kissing a Girl
(same party)

I'll leave it here for this week and continue it in another Weekly Winner. There are so many firsts, too many good pics for one post.

Have a great week!

See more Weekly Winners over at Lotus' pad.