linda's take on things...

nordic bo peep and long lost sheep costume giveaway!

2008-11-13T17:46:00.000-08:00

Nordic Bo Peep and Long Lost Sheep Costume GIVEAWAY!!!!

How cute is this? Perfect for Halloween and just plain 'ol playing dress up!

shenandoah costume giveaway!

2008-10-14T16:32:00.000-07:00

Shenandoah Costume GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

Such a lovely green frock! Would look so cute on Chloe! Hope to win!

making strides against breast cancer walk

2008-09-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

This year, I will be walking in the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk. I am participating in the Bay Area walk on October 18th. Please make a donation if you can. Here's my link:

http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/MakingStridesAgainstBreastCancer/MSABCFY09California?px=8127106&pg=personal&fr_id=11604&et=4jU5N3pWnis6CzTnm1bheg..&s_tafId=193570

someone more paranoid than me

2008-07-22T14:29:00.000-07:00

My coworker, Mike, was relaying a story about how he had gone to Trader Joe’s and bought a bunch of organic apples. When he was on board the 43 Masonic bus, he dropped the bag and all the apples rolled out and several passengers retreived them and gave them back to him. He asked whether I would’ve still eaten the apples and here’s a snippet of our conversation:

me: So, did you eat them?

Mike: No. I had to throw them away. The thought of the apples rolling around a dirty bus was too much.

me: You could’ve washed the apples thoroughly and peeled them and then eaten them.

Mike: But they could’ve rolled over a hypodermic needle and you can’t get rid of that just by peeling them.

me: That’s true! So true.

And I thought I was paranoid. And now my response to whether I would’ve eaten them. An emphatic NO!

the renegade is coming

2008-07-10T10:47:00.000-07:00

I am so excited! The Renegade Craft Fair is coming to San Francisco!!! And I had no clue until I checked my email this morning and looked at the Weekend Guide from Daily Candy. Lately, the guide has been a bit of a letdown with its constant suggestions of checking out fill-in-the-blank and drinking martinis. That’s all good and well if you’re into that, but that’s not exactly my cup of tea. But today, Daily Candy, you’ve come through like a good strong man to a child stuck in a well…okay, bad analogy. But the point is they informed me about something I actually want to go to. Really want to go to. (FYI – l heart arts and crafts). I’ve seen photos of the Renegade fair through the blogosphere and I’ve so wanted to check it out. And now that it’s coming to San Francisco…I can! Hip-hip-hooray!

high heels for baby? that’s heelarious!

2008-07-08T15:25:00.000-07:00

Came across these stilettos for babies. That’s right, babies (0-6 months old). But wait, MOST babies can’t even walk at that age, you say??? Well, these shoes weren’t made for walking. They’re novelty booties that will undoubtedly provoke laughter…at the expense of your baby…and maybe even you. I definitely have to say they are silly…can you imagine them on a plump baby’s feet? LOL! Are they the perfect addition to your little fashionista's wardrobe?

blithesome little happenings

2008-07-07T17:10:00.000-07:00

Recent things that make me smile:

1. Walking with my family in the Mission Terrace July 4th neighborhood parade and seeing the joy in my husband’s face as he walked and pushed our baby girl in her stroller.
2. My new shoes! New shoes, new shoo-oo-oo-oes (sung in a manner similar to Robert Freeman's in the Boondocks episode entitled Granddad’s Fight). Geox D Alexa 12. I bought them at the Geox store at the Bloomies mall. They had them in my size which is nice and they were half off which is even nicer! They are super comfy...my feeties like that.
3. Watching Chloe eat fruit! Current favorites are strawberries and figs. She wants more…and more! She loves loves loves fresh figs. (And so does mommy)
4. Sketch Swap Like the name implies, you sketch something and you get someone else’s sketch in return. So far, I’ve drawn a little chick, glasses, rulers, a bird pecking at a flower, and a rabbit in a suit and in return, I’ve received a rendering of a bunch of lines that look almost like a seismic graph (or what I imagine what one would look like), a cute bunny carrying a big heart, a chart of the business life cycle, a girl walking her dog (this is my favorite thus far), and a crotchety old Frenchman (I only say this because the picture also included the text “Yes. He is French”). I like getting other people's sketches -- it's a treat to see what they've drawn. It’s fun and I love to doodle.
5. The possibility of moving to a different department within this ad agency. It would be a great opportunity to learn new things. Please pray for me that this is not only a possibility, but will be a reality. Thanks!
6. Ingrid Michaelson’s song The Way I Am

"she's grown so much. she's so...solid"

2008-06-18T09:52:00.000-07:00

Hilarious! Came across this brilliantly funny video on YouTube called "How to Fix Fat Kids." This is particularly funny since we went to Whole Foods this weekend to buy organic kale to puree for Chloe. Thank goodness there's someone out there who cares enough about the nutrition of our kids to save them from goldfish crackers and Jell-o brand gelatin. Here are some gems from the video:

-"You're like a little American with your little American body!"
-"Atticus, it's impolite to just point and grunt. Ask the fishmonger nicely for your tuna steak."
-"String cheese made from the milk of hormone-free constantly hugged goats."

technically speaking...

2008-06-13T12:05:00.000-07:00

I am SO not tech-savvy. Two examples from yesterday come to mind. In the evening, I asked Nathan to help me input a couple of numbers into my cell phone (which, by the way, sucks…it has stopped ringing…the little stinker just doesn’t ring anymore…how am I supposed to know when someone is trying to call me…okay, no one calls me, but how am I supposed to know when Nathan is calling me???) Anyway…Nathan proceeded with the whole when are you going to learn to do that on your own spiel. To which I rebutted, “I know how. I’m just too lazy and slow to do it.” (Really, I am. And really, I do know how to do it. But, it’s like texting for me…I don’t care to do it and when I do, I text like I’ve got arthritis in my hands. It could take me a whole minute to text a message that would take a kid five seconds.) Besides, I’d rather go through scraps of paper in my purse looking for a number than scroll through my phone. Like if I needed to look for my friend, Valerie’s, number, I know that it’s on a yellow post-it note sitting on the dining table…or if I needed to talk to Jill, her number is in the front pocket of my purse…or if I needed to get a hold of my coworker, Dax, his number is in the back pocket of my pair of James jeans. I know, what century do I live in, right?

My other example…and this is one where I am irked at myself for my lack of electronic know-how. So, Chloe was having a ball with the answering machine last night. She thought it was so funny pushing all the buttons on the machine and hearing the dial-tone. She was laughing and giggling a whole lot...too freakin' adorable! And so, I rushed to grab our video camera and pressed the open button wanting the little panel where I can see what I was filming to flip open. It was the wrong button. That was the button to open for the disc. When Nathan fixed it and flipped open the viewer thing for me, I focused in on Chloe and started taping…or so I thought. I was transfixed on her for about five minutes, just watching her push buttons and laughing, then I noticed the letters STBY. “Why does it say standby???" I shouted. Uh, because I didn’t press record! Duh. I’m mad at myself for losing such awesome footage.

I need a happy medium with all this technology…like I don’t really care if all my contact information is in my cell phone, but I do care to know how to properly operate a video camera to capture those precious and important moments in my daughter’s life!

matt, liz and madeline blog

2008-06-04T13:27:00.000-07:00

So, I’ve been following this blog practically every day. Matt, Liz and Madeline. The tagline, “life and death. all in a 27-hour period. what you read here is what follows,” pretty much sums up what the site is about. The short of it: Matt and Liz - loving husband and wife; Liz gave birth to their beautiful baby girl, Madeline; tragically, Liz passed away the next day. Matt’s blog is about his life now and the various things he does each day. It can be a sad read. But also, touching. Honest. Endearing. There are moments of levity. Cute photos of Madeline. Lots of special memories and photos of his beloved. Also, included are tons of generous gifts and heartfelt letters from strangers who have been moved by their story. Read it if you are so inclined. Have a box of tissue at hand though. Believe me, I’ve cried reading many of the posts.

npr's chengdu diary

2008-05-29T13:15:00.000-07:00

My friend, Ellen, shared a poignant blog page with me. NPR “All Things Considered” hosts were in China at the time of the earthquake. They started a blog documenting some of what they witnessed. Here’s the blog. The 5/18/08 entry, “Emotional Aftershocks,” just about broke my heart…especially the part about the mother, baby and cell phone. Such overwhelming grief and distress.

foto bela

2008-05-19T17:39:00.000-07:00

This photograph is beautitul. It was taken by Osmario Marques. Whoever he is, he's got mad skills in photography. His ability to capture ordinary people in their natural, ingenuous manner and disposition is really something to be admired. Here's the link if you're interested in seeing more of his work.

Thanks to my coworker, Ingrid, who translated the photo's Portuguese caption, I was able to gain a little understanding of these kids. Here's what was written:

"O Serrote do Gado Bravo is a “quilombola” community located in the rural zone of São Bento do Una, interior of Pernambuco, Brasil. Its inhabitants are descendants of farm slaves that neighbored the area where they now live. The oldest inhabitants are grandchildren of these slaves and they still remember stories of slave quarters and abolition told by their grandparents. Like in other “quilombolas” communities of O Serrote they live in extreme poverty and fight for the government’s recognition of this situation – or that the government give them the title to the land a little bit of tranquility."

(You're probably thinking, "what's up with you and naked tots?" Nothing...I just think they're beautiful...the children, not the nudity.)

cuteness

2008-05-19T09:46:00.000-07:00

My favorite thing about the super hot weather we experienced in the bay area last week was seeing my baby walk around the house naked! So cute seeing Chloe-bear saunter around the house au naturel with her chubba wubba legs and pudgy little tummy. I think she enjoyed wandering around in all her unclad glory just as much as I enjoyed watching her!

This could explain my affinity for the Sonny Angel dolls. Actually, there's no explanation needed, how could you not love these dolls? Nathan and I recently took Chloe to Japantown and I was drawn into one of the best stores there, the Kinokuniya Bookstore. Among the many cool items shown on their display window were a bunch of Sonny Angel mini figures. The moment I saw those dolls, it was settled, one would be mine...regardless of cost (I figured they had to be under ten bucks and sigh of relief, they were $5.35 each). And there were options…figures from the animal series 1.5 or ones from the vegetable series...I went with the animal series. Similar to my friend Hayley's Spider Baby Booms, they’re sold as blind boxes. “What are blind boxes?” you ask. Read Hayley’s blog…she gives an excellent explanation and I’m too lazy to explain, but not too lazy to squeal about the cuteness that is the Sonny Angel doll. But I suppose not everyone thinks they’re as freaking adorable as I do…take my husband.

me: (opening the box) Look! Isn’t this so cute?!

Nathan: Why does it have a penis?

me: Whatever! It’s cute. (In retrospect, this is what I should have said, “because it’s a boy and it’s anatomically correct.”)

Nathan: It’s interesting, I’ll give it that.

me: If we could afford it, I’d collect them all until I had the whole series.

Nathan: No, you wouldn’t…even if we could afford it. They’re weird.

What a killjoy.

By the way, my blind box had the rabbit figurine. Just the one I was hoping for. Look! Isn’t it cute?!

felt it was a good meal

2008-05-06T10:23:00.000-07:00

My latest food craze is felt foods…no wonder my figure has been so svelte lately (okay, totally kidding…it’s far from). Check out what I ate the other day:

I had a hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs and toast.

Then I went to Chinatown and picked up a don tot (egg tart).

I love soup...so, it was seafood udon for lunch.

Snacked on fruits and veggies throughout the day.

In the evening, I opted for the gyoza dinner.

And can't forget about the dessert!

I didn't really eat any of this stuff, but aren't these cool? They're handmade by very talented etsians.

Complete Breakfast, Egg Tart -- this is my absolute favorite -- it's too cute, Udon, Felt Fruit Slices, Assorted Felt Vegetables, Gyoza Dinner, Cake and ice-cream summer party

blossom & bill plate

2008-05-02T14:30:00.000-07:00

I love it! Fun(ctional) and adorbs! isak.co.uk

image to warm the heart

2008-05-02T09:38:00.000-07:00

My last few posts have been sans pictures/photos, and me being the visual person that I am just had to post a picture here. This is such a delightful image – there’s just a beauty in this photo that appeals to my heart and eyes…such innocence. I wish I had a photograph of Chloe like this, but not to fret…I already have innumerable images of Chloe that I simply adore…stored up in photo albums and in my mind. And better yet, I get to play with her!

Also, if you ever wondered why I don’t have photos of Chloe-bear on this blog…for awhile I had been contemplating posting pics of my baby here, but I’ve come to the realization that I am too much of a paranoid android to put pics of my little chubba wubba on the internet. I watch way too much Law & Order. Maybe someday I’ll have a change of heart and I’ll be a baby photo posting blogging machine (wow…say that five times fast).

By the way, the image is from flora and henri. The clothing from this site is absolutely gorgeous with a vintage feel. Sadly, I can’t afford the stuff…unless Nathan and I jump up five tax brackets. Ha!

"we sure are cute for two ugly people..."

2008-05-01T16:03:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not, I haven’t seen Juno yet, but I have listened to the soundtrack countless times. It starts off with a cute folksy sounding song, “All I Want is You” by Barry Louis Polisar. The first time I heard it, I told Nathan it was my song to him. But my favorite songs on the album are actually sung by Kimya Dawson. The sound of her music is a raw mix of indie and folk…her stuff is very wordy. But that wordiness lends to one of the best things about her music which is her lyrics…they can be a bit odd, a tad topsy-turvy, strange even, silly, fun, yet altogether lovely…like a quirky beautiful. I mean how can lyrics like these from “So Nice So Smart” not make you smile?

“i like boys with strong convictions
and convicts with perfect diction
underdogs with good intentions
amputees with stamp collections
plywood skinboards ride the ocean
salty noses suntan lotion
always seriously joking
and rambunctiously soft-spoken
i like boys that like their mothers”

Here are my favorite Kimya Dawson songs from the Juno soundtrack:

1. Anyone Else but You (by the Moldy Peaches – Kimya Dawson and Adam Green)
2. So Nice So Smart
3. Tree Hugger
4. Tire Swing
5. Loose Lips

Can’t wait to watch the movie…Netflix, please send it to us soon!
(And in case you were wondering, this post title quotes lyrics from "Anyone Else but You")

lookybook

2008-04-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

I came across this site, and I think it’s just neat-o bandeet-o! There are some really wonderful children’s books out there and Lookybook allows you to check out entire picture books. Yes – the entire book! Page by page. So, now you can easily read five books in a week and say, “I’ve read five books this week” (and have some truth behind it).

dcfc

2008-04-14T15:46:00.000-07:00

Death Cab for Cutie's new CD, Narrow Stairs, will be out in a month! Yipee! 5/13/08.

olympic torch run

2008-04-09T23:46:00.000-07:00

The Olympic torch was in San Francisco today. Since I work so close to the Ferry Building, I just had to go check out the running of the torch. Unfortunately, due to heightened security and safety measures, the route was changed and the torch never came by the Embarcadero. Here are a couple of photos of what I did see. Lots of people wanting to witness a historic event, but even more protesting against Chinese policies in Tibet and Darfur. I must say being Chinese, it was somewhat dismaying and unnerving standing in the midst of all that anti-Chinese sentiment.

apparently someone stole his Amish Dude sign (his words, not mine)

happy candy for my eyes

2008-04-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

I heart etsy. Who doesn’t? Handmade goodies and lovelies! Here are some of my current favorites for my Chloe-bear:

Top row: Owl, Light Star Dandy, Fat Hedgehog
Bottom row: The Dutch Holiday Dress, Peg Bear Salsa, Cotton Mini Monkey

short-lived obsession

2008-04-01T09:48:00.000-07:00

So, I was going to write about my latest obsession (one of many). Golden Bonbon’s Soft Blueberry Nougat Candy. Actually, this was something that I discovered reluctantly. It’s not a candy that I would have automatically picked up, because nougat, almonds and blueberries just don’t sound so great together (oh, little did I know). A friend had many, many pieces of the candy and handed me a bunch. They did not look appealing at all, so I declined. But she kept insisting, so I accepted them, but only agreed to take a few thinking I would just give them to Nathan or my mom. This is how my conversation with Nathan went when I remembered to give him the candy that evening:

me – Want this stuff?

Nathan – (Taking a brief look at it) Sure, I’ll try it. (A few seconds later) Mmm, it’s good. You should try it. I think you’d like it.

me – Nah. Doesn’t look good at all. You have it.

Nathan – Really, you should try it. It doesn’t have any chocolate in it (it was still Lent at the time).

me – Well, if I were to eat sweets, I’d rather eat a piece of cake. (Considered the fact that we didn’t have any cake at the moment nor were we going to get any anytime soon). Okay, give me one. (Initially, the candy didn’t taste like anything special, but after a few seconds, I tasted all the yummy goodness in my mouth, and I realized that it was GOOD stuff) You don’t want any more, do you?

Nathan – I’ll have another one.

me – Really? You want another one? But there won’t be enough for me! (I admit it…I’m not good at sharing)

And so, I gave another piece to Nathan…reluctantly. And I devoured the rest.

The next time we went to the Asian market, I checked to see if they sold the candy and sure enough they had them, so of course, we bought a box. Nathan commented on how I needed to share the candy with him. I think it wound up being a ratio of 5:1…for every five pieces I had, I gave him one. And I (err...we) finished the box in two days…it would’ve been a day had it not been for a little something called restraint (okay, I really didn’t have much restraint, but still the contents of the box were stretched out for two whole days). And here's where the story takes a turn...recently, I purchased another box. Unfortunately, I bought a box that had been sitting on that store shelf for a gazillion years. Really a gazillion, because it tasted so stale and disgusting. It left a bad taste in my mouth…literally. Now, I don’t really care for the stuff. Well, I’m sure that’ll change once I have another piece that’s fresh…

kind of funny...kind of perv-y

2008-03-18T16:24:00.000-07:00

I’m sure you’ve seen dirty cars, trucks, vehicles with words like “wash me” peeking through the dust. Yeah, we’ve all seen that. But I just saw a car with something different and amusing, yet slightly disturbing, written on it. Among the scribbles and other markings, there on the left hand side of the hood of an old beat-up baby blue VW bug were these words: “I wish my wife were this dirty.” And let me tell you, that was one dirty car.

monday nights - i miss heroes

2008-03-18T10:09:00.000-07:00

...and my TV crush...Milo Ventimiglia

stuff white people like

2008-03-13T11:08:00.000-07:00

Here's a site my friend, JJ, sent me that is comedy:

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com/

It's more like stuff yuppies like.
Now you're in the know.

chloe hearts birds

2008-03-10T21:15:00.000-07:00

My sweetpea loves all things avian (well, except the flu). I took her for a stroll the other day and she kept pointing up at all the birds. Every single one. She would look up, point and say "wa!" It was so much fun seeing her find so much joy in something as simple and beautiful as our feathery friends which were so far high up in the sky, they looked like mere paint strokes. So very cute!

my lenten "sacrifice"

2008-03-07T13:02:00.000-08:00

Easter is two weeks away. This year, for Lent, I gave up two things:
1. Cursing – yes, I cuss. Mind you, I am not one who uses the f-word in between every other word. I don’t go around saying things like "motherf-er f- that s-." No, that’s not how I roll. It’s more like I’ll drop something and say s- or if I’m mad or angry about something, I might then drop the f-bomb. [Success barometer from a scale of 1-10 with 10 being very successful = 7.5…so I’ve had a few slip-ups…]
2. Chocolate. I love chocolate…well, most chocolates. I gave it up, because I shouldn’t be eating mounds of the stuff every day. [Success barometer = 9…I had some chocolate the first day of Lent not realizing Lent had started…so, this should really be a 10, right?]

To learn about Lent, you can check this out, because it's really not about 40 days of not swearing...technically, I shouldn't be cussing anyway. But sometimes it seems these expletives are so appropriate for that exact moment of annoyance. I digress...

something nu

2008-03-06T10:53:00.000-08:00

I’m all for inventions…really I am. Kudos to Edison and his work on the light bulb. A huge round of applause for those early pioneers of the computer. A heartfelt thanks to that guy or gal that perfected the cocoa bean and made it into yummy delicious chocolate. And the list goes on, but I just don’t know what to make of this new product called the nubrella…okay, so, I giggled a little…possibly a lot. I think the photos from the site speak for themselves. I quite fancy this one:

It doesn’t appear to be raining, yet this guy is sporting his nubrella. Show-off! As the name implies, it’s a new kind of umbrella…”the umbrella of the 21st century.” I don’t know if today’s society is ready for something so…um, revolutionary? I think I’ll just stick with my antiquated umbrella. Thanks for the laughs, nubrella. I know, I know…you’ll probably be laughing at me when I’m walking in the rain and my umbrella flips over whilst you’re safe and protected in your nubrella dome.