i am a huge dork. i know, can't be true...but it is. i've always been a natural at pop culture nonsense; including, but not limited to, song lyrics, movies, latest trends, random celebrity trivia. but the whole technology thing has always been about 2 feet flying right over my head.
i could never wrap my brain around what seemed basically simple. which i think is my problem. i love to make things bigger & more confusing than they are; until i shrug & forget about it all together. this is computer, phone type stuff rather. plus, i figure i don't have to mess with it too much...i always have the hubs to do it/show me how.
i think i was signed up to blogger like a year before this blog actually came to life. twitter, about the same amount of time. & so on & so on.
i had come to the realization that i was super un-savvy in this interweb universe. if i have email & facebook, then i'm good. wrong. i needed a boost to my smartness ego. there's intelligence somewhere in there. hey, if this brain can come back with a smartass comment with mach speed, then i can figure out this shiz. i just needed to TRY...play around with different things until it clicked. (jeez, how simple is that thought process?) besides, the hubs feels the need to update my phone every 6 months...for me, it's like learning to walk again. in my cave woman-esque way, i'd hit it a couple of times with a stick until it displayed something seemingly interesting. not really, but you see where i've had no choice here but to get with the rest of the herd on this 21st century thing. (& you do realize that i totally just googled "what century are we in?")
& so now, i'm just sowing my mad techno oats all over this scene. i really love it...now that i know i can do it by myself. (isn't that silly?) still gonna ask questions though; i will definitely need to from time to time. (be ready, friends) *there is one of those 'for dummies' books out there with my name on it...i just know it! (you can make my royalty checks out to ash or cash!)
oh my goodness, i've come a long way from my 1st "tweet, tweet" on feb 15th, when my friend, the always great, ash l., helped me set up my new twitter account & blogspot with a smile & "go for it" attitude...HA! thanks, girl. (http://lindler5.blogspot.com/)
i still don't fully get photoshop (it's not my bff), but i dig picnik.com. super easy for chicks like me. i listen to music on spotify...snap cell photos more often with the coolness of instagram, & my latest infatuation (via funny man, mark p. http://whatwhitechickscherish.blogspot.com/, another keeper in my social stratosphere) is my 2 day old relationship with Pinterest. (which i had gottten wait listed for a login in the beginning...you know how you don't even want something until you can't have it?)
so yea, i'm a dork...believe me now, huh?! but, it works for me. i mean, when i'm in the carpool line, breaks at work, or can't sleep at night...i'm gonna need something to do. (besides play angry birds & words with friends)
a little late to the party, but out & ready to mingle...*lol...#...emoticon* just kidding. & maybe one day i'll even be interesting enough to be on foursquare? nah...you can just follow me on twitter @miscellaneash.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Monday, November 7, 2011
sugar is sugar...
the perfect party preparations would be best described by most etiquette magazines &/or list making books as follows: (generally speaking)
1. 6-8 weeks before...book venue
2. 4-6 weeks before...make guest list, decide on theme, food, etc.
3. 2-4 weeks before...select invitations, address, & mail
4. 1 week before...shop for all supplies, equipment, party favors
well, i have a little prep list of my own. it starts out similar with the best of intentions then gets slightly altered from the above. far from perfect, but effective. the ash way, if you will…or, fly the seat of one’s pants & get hysterical at the last minute!
the first thing...venue, or location. marked off the list & booked several weeks in advance...check. this was actually a no brainer. in the past, we've done the "have i lost my damn mind?" birthday parties at places that are famously just a room full o' bouncys. (which actually wasn't that bad as we opted for the rent your own space package.) but this year, we wanted something different. the local park was ideal with a shelter/picnic table area & covered nice sized playground.
the second thing we did (monkey & myself) was decide on the friends to invite. i had most all of the addresses, 1 or 2 shy, already. fantastic! i suggested (since he likes to draw) that we might want to make our own invitations. & he was all over it. each friend was going to get a one of a kind 'sonic the hedgehog' picture. he was serious too. & poof, the theme was 'SONIC!' (there was never any doubt...it's all he talks about.) so a week & 2 days before party day, the invites were mailed.
the hubs, being the smarty that he is, had the right mind to order a few supplies online in advance; no sonic themed things around town. so hats, plates, & a table cloth came a week prior.
all we needed at this point was the rest of the supplies, snacks, cupcake ingredients, & we would be ready. wow, we were doing great…for us, anyways.
here's where my oober party planning comes in...because i'm so organized & what not…
3 pm friday (day before)...pick up monkey from school, run over to local party supply shop. get party favors for 11? 12? hell, who knows for sure (left list of kiddies coming at home) 15...yea, that sounds safe! additional plain blue plates/napkins. candles, cupcake holders & a few boxes to transport them in. (how i managed to even think of how i would make cupcakes mobile was a miracle in itself…that’s a last minute ash freakout sort of thing)
3:43...jump in car, head over to super store of walliness. we need ingredients, cotton candy floss, snacks, drinks.
5:02...finally get home (no cotton candy floss) only to get ready for monkey's school fall festival at 6.
now, as you may have noticed, i have mentioned cotton candy twice. why did we need it, you ask?! *monkey got a cotton candy machine last year for christmas, & i think we've used it once...with regular white sugar. & i had the cool idea to top chocolate frosted cupcakes with said cotton candy. blue. there is only one place that has the floss, that i could find. cromer's peanuts located downtown. which is cool, get it super quick on saturday morning.
10 am saturday (day of)…let the baking begin. both muffin pans are located & 24 bake at a time. hubs is out in search of blue cotton candy floss & ice for the cooler. oh, & ring pops! i forgot that i had not been able to locate those the day before…they were crucial to the party favor bags, as they resemble “chaos emeralds” from ‘sonic.’
11:43…all 48 cupcakes are done & cooling on the rack. time to make lunch. hubs called to say there was no blue. okay. purple is close enough. plus, monkey says grape is his favorite flavor this week!
1:38…what? where did the time go? my hair is in rollers. i am not dressed. my child is not dressed. oh crap, the favor bags…i have to put those together! the cupcakes aren’t iced! panic attack! i start icing…”hubs, i need youuuu!” & he swoops in for icing detail. i grab monkey’s clothes. i put together favor bags with one roller half way intact…it was being difficult. slap on some war paint…squeeze in to clothes. ahh, breathe.
2:14 (46 minutes until party at 3)…the cotton candy is buzzing, swirling, & sugar is flying everywhere. but we have a 2 man thing going & these cupcakes are looking incredible! these perfect fluffs of sweetness look so pretty & everything is coming together. (i knew all along…)
i mean, i cannot get over how awesome they are. as i gingerly place them in the boxes, i give myself a little ‘atta girl!’
2:42…loading up the cars. grabbing the camera. placing cupcake boxes neatly in the back seat of the one car (don't want them to get messed up!) while the hubs puts stuff in the other. we are off to monkey’s birthday party!
3:00…party time! the shelter is perfectly next to the playground. i am all smiles. my baby boy is excited. nothing could go wrong…not one eensy thing. how does everything always come together? & this by far has been the most perfect prep for a party ever! (okay, there was a hiccup here & there, but…)
so, you know how there’s always a lot of air in cotton candy bags? & once you open it, it goes kinda flat? & remember how stoked i was on our awesome creations for all to see?
1. 6-8 weeks before...book venue
2. 4-6 weeks before...make guest list, decide on theme, food, etc.
3. 2-4 weeks before...select invitations, address, & mail
4. 1 week before...shop for all supplies, equipment, party favors
well, i have a little prep list of my own. it starts out similar with the best of intentions then gets slightly altered from the above. far from perfect, but effective. the ash way, if you will…or, fly the seat of one’s pants & get hysterical at the last minute!
the first thing...venue, or location. marked off the list & booked several weeks in advance...check. this was actually a no brainer. in the past, we've done the "have i lost my damn mind?" birthday parties at places that are famously just a room full o' bouncys. (which actually wasn't that bad as we opted for the rent your own space package.) but this year, we wanted something different. the local park was ideal with a shelter/picnic table area & covered nice sized playground.
the second thing we did (monkey & myself) was decide on the friends to invite. i had most all of the addresses, 1 or 2 shy, already. fantastic! i suggested (since he likes to draw) that we might want to make our own invitations. & he was all over it. each friend was going to get a one of a kind 'sonic the hedgehog' picture. he was serious too. & poof, the theme was 'SONIC!' (there was never any doubt...it's all he talks about.) so a week & 2 days before party day, the invites were mailed.
the hubs, being the smarty that he is, had the right mind to order a few supplies online in advance; no sonic themed things around town. so hats, plates, & a table cloth came a week prior.
all we needed at this point was the rest of the supplies, snacks, cupcake ingredients, & we would be ready. wow, we were doing great…for us, anyways.
here's where my oober party planning comes in...because i'm so organized & what not…
3 pm friday (day before)...pick up monkey from school, run over to local party supply shop. get party favors for 11? 12? hell, who knows for sure (left list of kiddies coming at home) 15...yea, that sounds safe! additional plain blue plates/napkins. candles, cupcake holders & a few boxes to transport them in. (how i managed to even think of how i would make cupcakes mobile was a miracle in itself…that’s a last minute ash freakout sort of thing)
3:43...jump in car, head over to super store of walliness. we need ingredients, cotton candy floss, snacks, drinks.
5:02...finally get home (no cotton candy floss) only to get ready for monkey's school fall festival at 6.
now, as you may have noticed, i have mentioned cotton candy twice. why did we need it, you ask?! *monkey got a cotton candy machine last year for christmas, & i think we've used it once...with regular white sugar. & i had the cool idea to top chocolate frosted cupcakes with said cotton candy. blue. there is only one place that has the floss, that i could find. cromer's peanuts located downtown. which is cool, get it super quick on saturday morning.
10 am saturday (day of)…let the baking begin. both muffin pans are located & 24 bake at a time. hubs is out in search of blue cotton candy floss & ice for the cooler. oh, & ring pops! i forgot that i had not been able to locate those the day before…they were crucial to the party favor bags, as they resemble “chaos emeralds” from ‘sonic.’
11:43…all 48 cupcakes are done & cooling on the rack. time to make lunch. hubs called to say there was no blue. okay. purple is close enough. plus, monkey says grape is his favorite flavor this week!
1:38…what? where did the time go? my hair is in rollers. i am not dressed. my child is not dressed. oh crap, the favor bags…i have to put those together! the cupcakes aren’t iced! panic attack! i start icing…”hubs, i need youuuu!” & he swoops in for icing detail. i grab monkey’s clothes. i put together favor bags with one roller half way intact…it was being difficult. slap on some war paint…squeeze in to clothes. ahh, breathe.
2:14 (46 minutes until party at 3)…the cotton candy is buzzing, swirling, & sugar is flying everywhere. but we have a 2 man thing going & these cupcakes are looking incredible! these perfect fluffs of sweetness look so pretty & everything is coming together. (i knew all along…)
i mean, i cannot get over how awesome they are. as i gingerly place them in the boxes, i give myself a little ‘atta girl!’
2:42…loading up the cars. grabbing the camera. placing cupcake boxes neatly in the back seat of the one car (don't want them to get messed up!) while the hubs puts stuff in the other. we are off to monkey’s birthday party!
3:00…party time! the shelter is perfectly next to the playground. i am all smiles. my baby boy is excited. nothing could go wrong…not one eensy thing. how does everything always come together? & this by far has been the most perfect prep for a party ever! (okay, there was a hiccup here & there, but…)
so, you know how there’s always a lot of air in cotton candy bags? & once you open it, it goes kinda flat? & remember how stoked i was on our awesome creations for all to see?
*is that the most "perfect" cupcake you've ever seen? omg, i had to laugh. i just had to. as i apologize to every person & explain to them how beautiful they were. the once lovely, fluffy puff of light purple was now a sugar encrusted layer of goodness. oh well, they were eaten. they tasted good at least. sugar is sugar, right? & we had the best time with our family & friends.
monkey is still talking about his best birthday party ever! & that is all that matters.
ps...why, oh why did i NOT do my normal dorky thing & take a before picture? damn you, cotton candy! hahaha...
Thursday, November 3, 2011
fallishness...
november already? poof…october is gone once again…sigh. my favorite time of the year always seems to take forever to get here & is the quickest to go away. i’m sure that the whole something planned almost every day thing doesn’t help too much; we really do indulge ourselves in this delicious month!
a few things that kept us occupied, was looked forward to, & ate up (because you're dying to know, right?):
· fair…smells, gigantic pizza slices, lights, mass amounts of smiling faces, screams from the roller coasters, fried mushrooms, farm animals, make your own ½ yard slushies.
· eats…chili, hot chocolates, warm breads, bottomless bag o candy.
· wears…pulling out the sweaters, boots, tights, leggings, scarves, hats.
· soccer…learning something new, coaching hubs, fold out chairs, shin guards, cheering to hoarseness, snapping pictures left & right, celebration dances by the kids, post game parent tunnel, good attitudes whether it’s a win or a loss.
· pumpkins…picking, carving, drawing, painting, lighting, eating. *starbucks pumpkin latte, you make me swoon!
· ah ha moments…anniversaries, birthdays coming up, outgrown jeans/long sleeve tees/shoes (the monkey won’t stop growing!)
· mountains…trees that are every color possible, hills/valleys, american indian appreciation, moccasin/knife/rock shops, small towns kept up in their original charm, hot tubbing in the freezing cold, winding roads, “no signal!”
· halloween…decorations, stories, scary movies/themed shows on every single channel (whether it’s 8 at night or 8 in the morning), costume brainstorming, costume making/preparations, trick or treating, great friends, monkey’s excited little face.
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