Grey Gardens

so i recently streamed "grey gardens," the 1975 documentary about jackie bouvier kennedy onassis' relatives--big edie and little edie beale. they were high society women who squandered their fortune and ended up living in squalor.

I came upon the documentary, because someone had mentioned it on this blog when talking about hoarders and weird people and the things they do. i have had this obsession with "hoarders" on a&e lately, and i can't get enough of it. it's so mesmerizing and jaw-dropping. i mean, i collect stuff and have a hard time getting rid of a cute shirt or other item, but some people are really attached. but...i digress.

anyway, "grey gardens" was really interesting. you don't really learn a lot of back-story on how this mother and daughter get to the point of living among raccoons and cooking their meals on an electric stove by their bed. i was so intrigued with their story that i was hoping to find a book about them, but lo and behold! hbo did their own version of "grey gardens," and aptly named it "grey gardens." it stars drew barrymore, jessica lange and jeanne tripplehorn to name a few. there was a lot more research into these women's lives and the docu-drama (as i call it) brings more to light of their life stories. and i gotta say, jessica and drew did an amazing job channeling big edie and little edie.




so if you want something new to watch, check these 2 out. the use of headscarves is very inventive, and cats make a cameo.

there's a party in my tummy. so yummy. so yummy.

one of my favorite indian dishes is lamb saag from "bombay house," but i have tried this dish at other indian restaurants--and it's tasty everywhere. those of you who don't know what that is, it's basically a dish made with pieces of tender lamb and spinach and garlic and tomatoes and ginger and lots and lots of other spices. it's like a taste explosion in your mouth.

i do want to warn you that this has to cook for 1.5 hours. the prep time is nothing, but you have wait for the lamb to tenderize. if you are hesitant to try this because of the aversion to the gaminess of lamb, please don't be. the cooking and all the spices really take all that way, and it's really worth it.

i got up some courage and decided to try it at home, especially once i found a place that i could purchase some lamb. here is the recipe that i got from food network. it was delicious, i couldn't stop eating and sort of made myself sick to my stomach. not good. learn to control.

i took no pictures of my own, cuz i was too busy eating. here is a random one from the web.


now, i gotta take a stab at some naan.

just breathe...

so i had to take izzy in for a well check-up today, because she had an ear infection last month and her weight and height are quite minimal. some of you already know this, but i am not a huge fan of my pediatrician. she is a little terse and has talked to me like i'm an imbecile before. a friend of mine reassured me that this is common in utah, especially the county i live in, due to the amount of (dumb) young mothers. after knowing this, it makes me want to go in and show her my drivers license, the parenting books i've read and the classes i took izzy to as a baby (called ecfe-early childhood family education-it's like a pre-preschool for you and your baby and is sort of a support/play group too. this is why i love minnesota).

anyway, izzy is quite normal and i think even better than some of the other kids in nursery as far as mental development goes. she can do everything that she is supposed to do for her age and even a tiny bit more, and i don't credit any of it to milk or the numerous amounts of fat that my pediatrician has prescribed i give her. yes, i understand that babies/toddlers need it. yes, i know that there are certain vitamins and nutrients in milk and other dairy products that other foods don't have. BUT i don't see why my kid has to be in a specific percentile to be healthy.

she is not malnourished at all. she eats things that most kids won't ever eat until they're grown-ups. she is happy and vibrant and smart and responsive and sociable and can sign and talk. so seriously, pediatrician?! what am i doing wrong?!!!!!

bird, bird, bird, bird is the word

so izzy is learning a lot of new words lately, and it's so neat to hear what she's picked up. i keep reminding pete to be careful about what we say around her, because i am afraid (and excited) for one of those inappropriate moments with inappropriate words.

so here is what she is talking a lot about these days:

bird
bear
plane
train (with the sound tukka-tukka-tukka-tukka-choo-choo)
cereal
juice
apple (almost all fruits are apples for some reason)
mame (eda mame)
nana (banana)
dog or pup-pa
kitty
spider (said in the deepest new jersey accent ever)
bubbles
baby
duck
water (also said in a new jersey accent)
sun
moon
star
snowman
jump
*a whole slew of other words but check out this next one
and...

hot caulk (but not really the second word. think male chicken, but not rooster.)

she means to say hot dog, but it is definitely not coming out right. i don't want people to think we are pervs and allowing izzy to see/say/hear perverted things. i keep trying to correct her, but it keeps coming out wrong. she had a hot dog last week at costco and thinks they are taste-a-rific, so this is one of her things she likes to say. ai yi yi...

anyhoo, let's hope that she doesn't talk about this processed meat product at a church meeting or something like that.

only if...

...i can tone my tummy and thighs some more...

...if my bunnyhead gets a super sweet (well-paid) internship this summer...

then, i might want to splurge on these bathing suits. seen on anthropologie.

already behind

yeah, yeah. so it's the 7th of the month already, and i didn't post my resolutions. who's judging me, but me right?

so here they are. now you can tell me what i am lacking on throughout the year.

A lot of these will be repeats from last year, since I either did not do them or am still working to acheive them.

1. Write more letters

2. Eat more organic or locally-grown foods. Plant a (really) mini garden for some fresh herbs or veggies.

3. Sew something for Izzy.

4. Share the gospel.

5. Work on toning up and strengthening. Muffin tops are so 2009.

6. Be more charitable or volunteer more.

7. Have more dates with my husband.

8. Donate or better organize my belongings. (I get anxious about this all the time.)

9. Get cracking on geneaology. My mom and dad's side are going to be super hard, since both are from places that are not well-known for written records.

10. Hang out with friends more. Sometimes I can be too much of a hermit.

oh how i love her

i never knew christmas could be so awesome with a little kid. and with a lil' girl like isadora bea, it was the best christmas ever.