March 24, 2008 by veronica.

I am in the midst of wading through what I now help many, many women wade through. Now that I am 4 months pregnant, it’s amazing how much easier things are not having to pick up books, wanting them to tell me the hundreds of things that could go wrong. I know what can happen. I know what to expect (without reading that terrible, awful book. Seriously? No educator recommends it!)and it’s been very nice navigating this pregnancy. I know few women take a refresher course (even though they should…just ask a mom who has), but I’m not because, well, I teach the darn thing!!!! However, there have been gut-wrenching choices to make. But yet I made them and I know it’s not based on fear that I’m sick or that I need someone to save me. It’s all very empowering. I do want to detail why i made the choices I have, and how I will continue to make those choices. I’m learning that pregnancy is just as much about growing a baby and growing in understanding and knowledge. I’ve got the basics down (again, because, hello, I teach them!!!), but I’m continually striving for more every day.

In the meantime, two things. Last weekend, I got together with some friends to watch Rikki Lake’s documentary, “The Business of Being Born”. You can rent it through Netflix right now. It’s excellent. I actually came away with a message one might not expect, but I will detail later. I just thought it was amazing to hear the OBs make some of their comments, but really, any one who seen many births knew that was the case. I just think it’s very thought-provoking.

Also, if you are so inclined, there was an article about Penny Simkin just written in Seattle. She’s the start of the doula movement, and many moms who have had kids would have gone through something Penny devised. You can fnd it here: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/pacificnw/2004299467_pacificpenny23.html
Anyway. That’s it for now.

Posted in Living la vida Lamaze, The doula journey, Reviews | 1 Comment »

June 10, 2007 by veronica.

How many activities can be packed into a single weekend?  Well, I know now that it’s possible to:

• Shop at the MOA
• Shop at IKEA
• Visit a Sibling
• Multiply the dollars in your pocket
• Help a baby be born
• Stay overnight in Bloomington
• Visit a landmark that was once a movie set
• Score almost-free breakfast
• Lose at Air-hockey and then find out how pathetically old you are

Yes, it is possible to do all of that, just not in that order.

Friday marked our five year wedding anniversary.  To celebrate, we had planned a wonderful overnight trip without Lily, which was to include a trip to Valleyfair and then an overnight stay at Mystic Lake.  Unfortunately, Friday arrived and still no baby for my client, which meant there was no way I could leave town Friday night, as was originally planned.  She was scheduled for an “induction” on Saturday morning, so by Friday afternoon, we had made plans to get everything done that we usually do on Sundays (groceries, laundry) so that if baby came early enough on Saturday, we could still take our much-needed mini-vacay.  If baby still was not here by Saturday evening, I had very begrudgingly agreed that our trip would be postponed to another weekend (which would have thrown appointments for next weekend out of kilter, but I would have dealt with that.)

Well, wouldn’t you know, it, but while I was in the middle of a very special celebratory meal on Friday, the phone rang.  It was baby time.  Finally!  I had another very amazing, wonderful, eye-opening experience. Baby came into the world that night and I was home a little after 11pm.  You gotta love shorter labors.  That then meant our weekend plans were a go.

Because our plans were not set in stone until Friday night, we had not made any room reservations at Mystic Lake made until Friday.  When Chris called, though, the one room left was a smoking room, which we later were VERY glad not to tale because that casino is so DISGUSTINGLY smokey I would have wanted to sleep with my head out of the window.  We were gonna wing it Saturday night.

Saturday lunchtime found us at Valleyfair.  After a good, quick lunch, Chris and I set out to explore the wonders of the rides.  Or at leaset we thought about riding rides.  See, here was the funny thing:  It seems that since we were last there, we’ve gotten older.  And less willing to get thrown around at crazy speeds.  The massive coaster Wild Thing?  I was terrified (I once rode it 3 times in a row).  Tilt-a-Whirl?  Almost made me hurl (I think I rode that straight for 15 minutes on night a dozen years ago.) The short-but-jerky Excalibur?  I kept my eyes shut most of the time (I think I rode that 6 times in a row one year.)  Chris and I walked past ride after ride, rejecting them each because it was too scary, too wet, too spinny, etc.  We did watch the IMAX movie about dolphins.  We had a great time at the arcade.  However, 3.5 hours after arriving, we had to face the sad fact that we were too old and too concerned with our own well-being to get on any more rides, and left.

We then decided to go to a neaby mall. I knew exactly which mall I wanted to visit, but I had no idea where it was.  Chris had pointed it out once, but didnt remember ever going past it with me.  So we drove around Shakopee for awhile (and literally, we drove AROUND the tow, retracing our steps a couple of times before I remembered that it was some famous mall.  Chris then realized I was talking about the Eden Prairie mall, site of the movie set for Mallrats, so we drove to that mall, in search of fun.

Yeah, that mall was boring.  It had pretty much the same stores our mall has, just on two floors.  SNORE.   After 30 minutes, we got back in the car, but now to head south to Mystic Lake to gamble out money away.

How was Mystic Lake?  Well, to put it mildly, we won.  We won eough money to pretty much pay for our whole weekend, and then some.  Ok, it wasn’t a HUGE amount, but it was fun.  We had fancy dinner in the middle of gambling, them left dinner and threw our last $20 into the machines…and won a bunch more. Chris did a lot better than I did, but we had a really good time pressing buttons and watching the light flash when Chris hit one of the smaller jackpots on a bank of machines.  It was a good time.  However, we still did not have a place to stay, so we decided to head on up to Bloomington to find a hotel.

After stopping at a gas station, we realized we were just minutes away from Chris’s brother’s house.  Since he has internet, we stopped by to say hi and book a room.  We got one at a hotel just next to the MOA, and even got a great rate that included breakfast.   So off we went, first to shop (for a mere 40 minutes before the stores closed) and then to our wonderful hotel room, where Chris had a great (if overpriced) bottle of wine delivered to our room.  And, for the first time in almost 2 years, we both enjoyed a full night of quiet, uninterrupted sleep.

We had an awesome breakfast, thanks to our package deal.  They even had a waffle bar!  We went to IKEA to peruse the kids room items, then again to the MOA of do a little more shopping (and get there just in time for a fire to break out), and finished our weekend with a trip to the baby superstore to buy a bed in a bag for Lily’s soon-to-be refinished toddler bed.

Lily was happy to see us when we got her from Chris’s parents.  We were happy to see her.  But, all in all, it was a wonderful way to celebrate 5 years of wedded bliss, even if it did almost get derailed by a baby who refused to be born.

Posted in The doula journey, Reviews, Life | 3 Comments »

May 14, 2007 by veronica.

First, the Good:

Chris and I are suckers for Charter On Demand Movies.  I am lazy and this requires no driving and no walking through a store arguing over movies.  We just have to sit on our couch and scroll through menus and argue over what’s on the screen.  So easy and nobody else has to witness it.  So this weekend, I decided we had to rent Stranger Than Fiction.  I’m not sure if I put Will Ferrel on that list of actors I don’t like, but he should be there.  He’s annoying and loud and, well, annoying.  But I have to admit, I loved him in this movie.  I loved this whole movie.  It has to be one of the most beautiful stories I have seen in a very long time.  Thete’s a whole slew of famous actors in the movie with him– Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Queen Latifah, Maggie Gyllenhal–they are all awesome.  If you have not seen it, go out and prepare to be blown away.

The Bad?

This weather.  I hate it.  It’s just not supposed to be this hot yet.  When I went to my workout class tonight, I walked in sweaty and it only got worse from there.  My roses are wilting, my car is steaming, the A/C is working steadily…It all SUCKS.   I want a normal May.  Not July in May.

So what’s the Oh No?

NBC released its fall lineup, and no Studio 60.   No Crossing Jordan, either.  Somehow they had to keep ER and Law and Order, though.  But I guess these are the kind of decisions that come from studio execs who can’t run a network that gets higher ratings than Fox.

I miss Matthew Perry already.  Excuse me while I cry in a corner…

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May 2, 2007 by veronica.

You know what?  You know how in a previous post I slammed Grey’s Anatomy?  Well, here’s the funny thing.  Back in March, when my sister was visiting, she got me hooked on it.  Now I’m sad I missed out on 2 and 1/2 seasons…  I just love it.  And I decided it’s sooo much better than ER was, even in its heyday.  I mean, really, we only watched ER for the personal stuff, not the medical stuff.  And Grey’s Anatomy is like that, but the focus is on the personal stuff.  I’ve only been able to make it through some of the past weeks by knowing I’d get to watch it on Thursday.  See?  I can change my mind about things.  Just don’t hold your breath when it comes to talk radio.  I’ll always hate that garbage.

 In a side note, I added a plug in that makes you do a math problem to post.  I’ve had too much spam lately.  I hope it works out OK.

Posted in Reviews | 9 Comments »

February 25, 2007 by veronica.

7:02 PM

I thought they started now.  What’s going on?  Maybe they actually start in 30 minutes.  I guess I’m a little confused. 

The fashion tonight is terrible.  Am I the only one who thinks this?  The dresses tonight have weird things added to them…like the massive globs on Beyonce’s dress…or that stupid bow on Nicole Kidman’s dress.  Reese Witherspoon’s dress in nice, but her hair is sooooo hideous.  She needs to put it up.  And Kate Winslet looks OK, but I like her better in jewel tones. 

Why aren’t they on yet?

Oh, and Anne Hathaway.  She never wears a good dress.  I have to say, though, the award for the trashiest dress goes to Jessica Biel.  I think she stole the design from Barbie, and that’s not a good thing. 

Umm…now I am panicing.  Why are they on late?????  Damn ABC!

7:13 PM

OK, according to TV Guide, I’m fine.  This is planned.  It’s not running late.  I am missing a ring, though.  Because I have to get Lil down for bed in a bit, I am going to tape part of it when I leave.  I don’t want to miss the opening.

7:28 PM

Here we go!  And I have to put Lil down…I’ll be back!

7:43 PM

I love Ellen’s hair.  I probably missed a really great opening.  Oh, but we have gospel singers now.  This is weird.  Look at the people not sure if they should stand up.  Haha.  =)  Ok, so now the awards start.  I’m in an Oscar pool.  I never win.  Chris won 2 years ago, but that’s because he picked Lord of The Rings for everything.  Not so this year.  But for some weird reason I picked Pan’s Labyrinth for everything.  No good reason.  The only movie nominated for anything that I’ve seen was Click.   And that movie was AWFUL.

Oh, I got the Art Direction right!  I’m 1 for 1!  Woooo!

7:53 PM

Ugh.  Will Ferrell.  I don’t like Jack Black either.  Oooh, but I do love John C. Reilly.  He’s outsinging the other 2, too.  Ok, that’s over.  That was weird.

AWESOME!  Got Makeup right, too!  I rule!

8:02 PM

Missed one.  I had No Time for Nuts.  That’s OK.  It only counts as a tiebreaker and I’m not worried about even being close.

Oooh!  But I got West Bank Story!!!  That’s another tiebreaker.  I changed my mind at the last minute, as I had Helmer and Son first. 

I wonder how Chris is doing.  I’ll go check his sheet at the break.

8:13 PM

That Elements and Motion thing was cool.

Chris is now 2 out of 4 to my 3 out of 4.  I think he copied.  =)

OMG–I got Sound Editing right!  Sweet!  So what’s the difference bewteen Sound Editing and Sound Mixing?  I think they explained it a few years ago, but I don’t remember. 

See Jessica Biel’s dress?  Isn’t it awful?   Oh, and I hope Mel Gibson wins NOTHING. 

Oh, I see, Mixing is actually done at a mixing board.  Hey, I got that category right, too!  That makes me 4 out of 4 for the important things, and 5 out of 6 overall.   

The academy has really short acceptance speech allowances this year.  That’s Ok for us, but think about those guys who will never be on TV again.  I bet they get so excited to say hi to their families, but then they get played off.

8:26 PM

I missed one.  Oh well.  I don’t like Eddie Murphy, anyway.    And I thought they got rid of the dance part of the Oscars 7 years ago.  These guys are really good, though. 

And who enters commercial contests?  That was so lame.  I mean, do you go to your partents and say, hey, I want to film myself in the shower fo all of America to see?  Yeah, I don’t think so.

Alright, it’s time for the singing to begin.  I think Randy Newman should just have his own dressing room there since he’s always nominated.  Wow, this song is boring. At least it isn’t like last year’s all-night Beyonce spectacular.  I hope Melissa Etheridge will win.  And why does the guys behind her look like Heath Ledger?    Her hair is growing in really cute.  See, my theory is, if you write and perform the song, you deserve to win. 

8:43 PM

I’m a dork.  I did go check out the ideas about going green at Oscar.com.  They are pretty good, but I do want to point out that people should really get into the habit of unplugging chargers for their electronics.

Oh no, I had Cars, not Happy Feet.  Shoot.  I think I gloated too much.  See?  caeron Diaz’s dress is ugly, too.  Either I am out of step (but I doubt that…the clothes at the Golden Globes was fine) or these people are on crack.

I love Ben Affleck.  And I really love that he married Jennifer Garner. 

And, no, Liz, I  wasn’t going to ridcule Wil Smith’s son…I felt bad, too.  See people?  This thing is interactive.  How cool is that? 

8:55 PM

Ugh.  That bit about the horse race and the end with Tom Hanks was just awful.    Adn do you think those American Express commericals have the actors’ real signatures or do you think they make up what their signature looks like? 

Are we having fun yet?  I will probably only be able to go for another hour and then head to bed.  I haven’t quite recovered from being up for 30 straight hours. 

OH MY GOD are we going to have interpretive dance with costumes frm movies now?!??!?! Oh, no, but this is new.  They usually just show sketches and scenes from movies.  Any why are they giggling while reading the lines?  You know, this is really hokey.  HEY, yay, I got one right again!  Cool!

Ugh, UGH, NO TOM CRUISE!!!!!  I am leaving!  I will be back once he’s gone.  And he’s doing the voiceover, too?  BELCH!  I think I am going to go throw up.  FREE KATIE!!!!!

9:17 PM

Hmmm…Pan’s Labyrith is cleaning up.  I bet Selma Hayek is bawling her eyes out. 

Are they really doing that for the Saturn award?  That would be really cool, if only because someone had to greenlight that, and I think most companies wouldn’t want to spend money to send an award around the country. 

I love Robert Downey, Jr.  He needs to be in more movies.  And I got Visual Effects right, too.  I wonder how everyone else is doing.  By my count I’ve only missed 3 that count.  That’s better than I usually do.  Maybe not seeing movies was good this year–that way I don’t have an emotonal attachment to any movies.

9:35 PM

Ah, yes, Jennifer Hudson won.  OK.  No big surprise.  I didn’t like her on American idol.  See, she sang Circle of Life, like, 3 times in the competition, and I kept wondering why she didn’t know any other songs.  Ew.  I just saw her hair.  It does not look good.  It looks ratty.  I’m sorry.  I think there was this grand consiracy to make people look bad.  I don’t even know who would be best dressed– I don’t think any one is even well dressed.

I am ON FIRE!  I got Documentary Short subject right, too.  I guess now is the time to announce that I cheated.  I paid the entire Academy to vote for these people.  It was a lot of money, but it was so worth it.

10:00 PM

Wow.  Who knew Clint Eastwood could translate Italian?  Impressive.  It looks like I will have to sign off after 3 hours of blogging and go get ready for bed.  I hope you enjoyed my ramblings.  And we’ll see who ends up winning the pool!

Posted in Reviews | 4 Comments »

February 12, 2007 by veronica.

For weeks, I have been making a mental list of things that the world seems fascinated with that, really, I just don’t get.  And yes, I’ve tried to get into these things, but it just does not work.  Like what?

*Christopher Walken.  Creepy.  Creepy and he always makes me want to hide.  All the time.

*Grey’s Anatomy-  I’ve tried, and I just don’t care.  But, to make matters worse, every time I hear the phrases “Dr. McDreamy” or “Dr. McSteamy”, I really want to puke.  It’s an involuntary reflex to the cuteness of it all. 

*Lost- Too complicated, too many twists, and I do not like it.  Oh, and I hate anything with monsters.

*playing computer games- especially RPG and super-especially MMORPG.  I just don’t know why I’d want to spend lots of money to spend hours and hours each week online…doing something (I think chasing dragons…I think.)  I’m not saying others can’t, but I just don’t get it.  I also don’t understand paying large amounts of money for consoles and their various games. 

*Heroes

*Harry Potter-even Kenneth Branaugh in a movie wasn’t enough to entice me.  (Kenny B.—Him I get.)

*Golf

*Country Music- I used to listen, back in 9th grade.  What gets me is that, even though it’s been, well, many, many years, even when I am forced to listen to country radio, I still know half of the songs.

*Talk radio- NPR does not count.  I mean talk radio where all the guys do is lie–you know, make things up about people and basically be mean.  I guess I’m not sure why anyone would want to buy into this.

*Beside Christopher Walken, there’s a whole list of actors I just will not watch: Nicholas Cage, Eddie Murphy, Drew Barrymore, Jack Black….

*Seinfeld-Never got into it, and I’m fine with that.

*Desperate Housewives, Survivor, The Office, (Office Space, for that matter), and on, and on…..

Posted in Reviews | 1 Comment »

September 12, 2006 by veronica.

Lately, I have been reading a lot. In addition to my doula reading, I have been reading new-ish books, mostly of the chick lit genre. I keep meaning to post reviews, but I have to admit that most of the books tend to be, well, crap. It’s bound to happen when you use the color and text on a spine to select books to being home from the library. The only book that was even close to being good was The Girls’ Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Banks. It was OK. It was fairly well written, but it did have it’s not-so-great parts. I would recommend reading it, if for no other reason that the library has at least 4 copies, so if nothing else, they should have at least one copy availiable.

Last week was different. I didn’t need to get any doula books at the library, so I could focus solely on getting fun books to read. I hit pay dirt. First of all, I found and read Cause Celeb by Helen Fielding. She’s the author of the Bridget Jones books. I like her pace, and I was expecting another chick lit book. I have to say it’s more of a straight novel than another fluffy girly book. It’s set during a famine in Africa and was far more…umm…gruesome than I expected. The book does have flashback to the protagonist’s life in England, and it does have some elements of a love story in it, but it deals more with the changes one goes through in life and the total absurdity of the celebrity world. It was great. While it does have its rough patches, I would say that it’s a very good and somewhat easy read.

The second book I scored was Hardboiled & Hard Luck by Banana Yoshimoto. I have been read Yoshimoto’s book since 10th grade, when we read an excerpt of Kitchen in English class. Her books come out in a very slow trickle, am I always have to keep my eye out for new books. I own Sleep and Goodbye Tsugimi, which are both wonderful, so I knew exactly what I was getting into when I found her latest book. Hardboiled & Hard Luck is wonderful. Yoshimoto’s writing is eloquent and sparse, yet so descriptive it takes you right into her stories immediately, even though it deals with a culture so different from our own. I would highly recommend any of her books; our library has most of them.

On a complete whim, I grabbed Gatsby’s Girl by Caroline Preston. I picked this book based off of the cover art, I have to admit. This, however, was even better than the cover suggests. The story is very loosely based on the life of a woman named Generva King, a woman who had a mostly letter-based romance with F. Scott Fitzgerald before he became famous. The book goes through Ginerva’s life, bringing us through her courtship and rejection of F. Scott Fitzgerald, her dull marriage to a man she meets while at a party with Fitzgerald, and the dissolution of her marriage and family. Throughout the book, she is astonished to find that the man she once went out with is now a famous author and has written much of their relationship into his books. She does talk to him a few times once he is famous, and he always claims that she was his only real love. It’s a very well-written book, and even if you haven’t read anything by F. Scott Fitzgerald, you’d like it.
The fourth book I picked up was Tender Is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I have never read The Great Gatsby and I really wanted to read that, but all of the library’s copies were checked out. So I got Tender Is the Night instead. (I know, I know…I was an English major and he’s from MN, but I never wated to read anything by Fitzgerald before.) I’m still reading it. I don’t really like it. I’m not even sure I want to finish it. Maybe Nina or Stephanie can help me out, but from what I’ve read in the introduction, Fitzgerald barely was able to finish writing it before he died. Can anyone tell me if I should even bother finishing it?

I’m taking back all of these books in the next 15 minutes, so they should be back on the shelves soon. If anyone has any books to suggest, I’d love to hear about them!

Posted in Reviews | 4 Comments »

September 4, 2006 by veronica.

Please humor me.  I’ve wanted to write about this for awhile.

3 weeks ago, we purchased the Wolfgang Puck Cookware set from Sam’s Club.   Our old pots and pans were non-stick, which meant they were covered in cancer-causing material.  To make matters worse, this horrific coating had started to flake off.  For this reason, Chris and I made to decision to buy new cookware.  Not only did I want new pans, but I was adamant that they be stainless steel.  Chris and I looked EVERYWHERE for new pans.  It’s very easy to spend a large sum of money on new pans; I, however, was on a budget.  After looking at every store in town, we finally settled on the Wolfgang Puck set.  Now, I had seen these bad boys in action on HSN.  Of course, when Mr. Puck himself is using them, they work wonderfully.  So I was a little afraid that they would not work quite as well in real life.  Well you know what?  THEY WORK GREAT!

We’ve cooked lots of things in the pans, from hash bowns to eggs to pasta.  Everything has turned out beautifully.  I made scrambled eggs last week; I usually have a hard time getting the eggs to cook all the way and not have some still raw while burning the rest.  This did not happen.  The eggs came out light, fluffy, perfectly done, and the pan needed no scrubbing when I was done.  I was also able to make the most beautiful grilled cheese sandwiches without having to watch them much at all.

If you are looking for a nice set of pans that should last you a very long time, I would highly recommend these.  A 19 piece set is only $100.  The handles are fastened securely, the lids are solid, and the pans are very heavy.  It’s very comparable to a $300 set in quality, but it’s very hard to beat the value.

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