#7QT: home is where the food is

What a week. I'm exhausted!

{one}

I found a realtor this week. I said a small prayer before scouring the bowels of the internet for a good one, and I cold-called an awesome lady who laughs and chats as much as I do, talked up Bethlehem, and sent me 20+ houses to peruse that night. Good vibes.

I'm giggly excited over living in a house, and establishing our third home as a family. Fine, I'm really excited to decorate... and our own space, with no neighbors to listen to (even though they do have good taste in music). I'm in love with IKEA's look book, and finally having more space to spread out instead of using our kitchen table as my desk, our bedroom and nursery as extra storage, and better baby-proofing the kitchen and bathroom areas.

{two}

On that note, any tips on selling furniture? I was thinking Craigslist. We have a couple things it would be better to sell than move 18+ hours north.

{three}

A professor of mine in college, Dr. Bart, taught me English literature and that gardening is life's greatest sport. While living down south, I've had the opportunity of admiring everyone's lovely garden, or at least the perpetual greenness of the grass and the leaves in the [palm] trees.

I love Kate's "yes!" to doing something beautiful.

I think gardening will be an excellent start to cultivating a love of imperfection. I might start here.

{four}

Speaking of beautiful - these pictures! I melt. (And!! Don't miss the baby and french bulldog slide show at the end.)

If you're into craft brew, twins, and trans-Atlantic rivalries, this story is for you.

"Six Little Known Musical Portraits of the Sea" - I think the title says it all! Epic.

Brittany writes on her top seven vocation reads - what would you add to it?

No big deal: Hillsdale College grad here, and we can really say "We're Number 1!" They forgot to list me under notable alumni, though... weird.

But I read all these books for my thesis!! Notable and quotable, I am.

{five}

I'm entering that stage of postpartum living where I actually try to look decent every day. That might sound like a laugh ("lofty goals today, Julie!"), but, you know what? It is. Because Grace doesn't judge me or my extremely comfortable yoga pants. As an esteemed professor once told our class, "It takes just as much effort to put on a regular pair of pants as sweatpants."

Well... yes and no. But the point is there. I consider myself dressed once my pants are on. Next step: where are the good looking nursing tops??

My exciting discoveries of the week are two-fold:

• Uber Chic for Cheap website is a goldmine, especially the postpartum section -- it is not lost on me that everyone is goo-goo for the preggo mom, but not the mom who is nursing and just trying to look decent in her new body shape.
• The Jones Market is an etsy store with lovely, baby friendly necklaces. My MIL bought me a similar one, and Grace likes it so much that I might need to supplement my jewelry, which always steps up a girl's glamour.

What I'm really trying to say here is: It's a completely different game dressing yourself when it's just for you and the baby, and it's really time to start winning that game.

{six}

Happy six months to this little lady!

Because I'm happy!

"Oh hai, Dad!"

{seven}

Food has been on my mind a lot recently. I've been reading two cookbooks by James Beard, and I think I need to spend more time studying cuts of meats. Ham hocks? Where do I even get that?

Red beans: I'm ready.

This week, I cooked*:

Sunday: Nothing. Chinese food, y'all.
Monday: fish stew + rolls
Tuesday: petite steaks, pesto pasta, rum cake (Will's birthday!)
Wednesday: red beans and coconut milk rice {this last part was a huge, huge mistake to fix in the rice cooker}
Thursday: plain cajun rice and meaty red beans
Friday: more fish stew tonight
Saturday & Sunday: more red beans and fish stew

What will the menu be next week? I'm thinking of fixing little omelets in muffin tins because, as I sleep train Grace, mornings are getting harder [than usual]. This Amish cinnamon bread looks enticing as well. And maybe this soup for Friday? Lisa Schmidt is hosting Soup & Stories over at The Practicing Catholic -- for delicious soups and warm stories, check it out! I'll be posting there on April 11.

*plus sides of carrots or spinach salad; I'm thinking of sauteing corn and carrots this weekend.

Happy Friday!! UK vs. UL game tonight... game on. Joining with Jen on a plane!

Five Favorites (v. 7)

“Irish fight because they love. The more a man loves the more he fights for what he loves. Because the Irish love their country and their God they have more to fight for.” 
--Archbishop Fulton Sheen

{one}

Yesterday, I fixed my very first stew: Irish beef stew for St. Patrick's Day! and... we had dinner and beer with a couple of Will's classmates to celebrate the match. So, today, still unsatisfied with how the stew was tasting (after following above directions), I proceeded to take my dad's advice and cook it on low for the next eight hours. (I also added more water, more tomato paste, more red wine, more parsley and more beef/potatoes/carrots.)

Perfection. It had to "stew" - imagine that! Paired with a Shock Top and rolls. I read it's even better in the days to come! Which is good... because we have a lot of it. I cooked it in a stock pot, but I bet a crock pot would work too if you cut the ingredient size. (Or maybe our crockpot is just smaller?)

{two}

My lassie, hanging on tight - I love this swing - Fisher-Price Space Saver Swing and Seat. Affordable, swings and vibrates, and easy to move around tiny areas. Keeps Grace very happy!

{three}

I wish I had discovered this months ago, when it was actually Thanksgiving, but I'm not that hip. Harvard Sailing Team, on the other hand, is:



You're welcoming.

{four}

Young House Love has a line being launched exclusively at Target at the end of March and I am drooling:

So simple, yet imaginative!

I am soooo looking forward to our next place if I get to hang things up on these cute, stylish hooks!

{five}

So, this upcoming April is the five year anniversary of my blog. I'll be revealing a redesign by the lovely and super talented Margaret and oh! I feel like the new kid on the block by discovering Bloglovin this past week. I must have been living under a stupid rock or something. But I love it, and I must shout this love from the blog tops! If you want a fun and easy way to follow your favorite blogs besides e-mail or sidebar updates, this is the tool for you.

And... Follow my blog with Bloglovin!

Thanks Hallie!

#7QT: Kill with Kindness

Four days till my due date... and that's all the baby news I have. Holla back to Jen!

{one}

Pope Francis and his awesome interview - my thoughts here at Ignitum Today, "Whom Would Kindness Kill More: Them or You?" on the interview and the spiritual work of mercy of comforting the afflicted.

{two}

This week I made two larger meals out of the ground beef we bought. One was spaghetti and meatballs, the other was a casserole. Will does not like cooked vegetables, which is a good reminder to me to think more before I make a big meal of foods I like, because then I have to finish them. Since we don't eat meat on Fridays, this pushes leftovers back even further. Sadly, I am already over both these meals (and ground beef) and onto my next culinary adventure dreams...

Crock pot time!

Will requested a rump roast, and I found this recipe for Pioneer Woman’s Perfect Pot Roast; its only flaw is that it lacks potatoes, though, which we have an abundance of - it seems like I could add more vegetables too (for my own benefit).

Natalie of The Busy Budgeting Mama posted Round 3 of her freezer crock pot meals, and they look delicious. She also posted the recipes + grocery list, because she is an angel.

I also found this recipe for balsamic vinaigrette, Will's favorite dressing, so we can eat happy salad this week. BOOM. VEGETABLES.

Do y'all have any favorite crock pot or make ahead meals?

{three}

The Myers-Briggs test - have you ever had yourself personality tested? Will and I took it at our pre-cana retreat, and I'm glad I wrote it down for reference! I am an ISFJ (married to a ESTP! Which, I was thrilled to read later, is the natural pair to my personality - isn't that fascinating?).

I mention it because Jen asked in her 7QT, if our personality was a song, what would it be?

I've picked Natalie Merchant's "Wonder":



What is your personality type?! What is your song? (It's subjective - just pick one!)

{four}

The coolest part of reading my personality "portrait" were my different career starting points:

ISFJs have two basic traits which help define their best career direction: 1) they are extremely interested and in-tune with how other people are feeling, and 2) they enjoy creating structure and order, and are extremely good at it. Ideally, the ISFJ will choose a career in which they can use their exceptional people-observation skills to determine what people want or need, and then use their excellent organizational abilities to create a structured plan or environment for achieving what people want.

One of my possible career paths is child care, and as silly as it sounds, it was exactly what I needed to read today. Nannying for almost two years was my most favorite job - more than writing, more than editing. I have high hopes for this mommy job!

{five}

Here is a just found picture from my MIL's camera! Will and I where we got engaged, 6 months into our marriage, right before we moved to NOLA.

{six}

Okay people, taking a poll about my bloggy-blog. I'm thinking of changing the name to "The Julie View" (same as my Twitter handle) from "The Corner with a View" (for simplicity's sake). I'm not in the mood to start a new blog, just fixin' up the original for now. May even add a tagline... and an actual, personalized header!

{seven}

I miss my family! But they're having a good time anyways.

Four of the six of us

The dogs in my sister's high school uniform shirts

Oh hey, E!

Happy Friday, everybody!!

Blueberry Bundt (There Is A Hole In This Cake)

Yesterday was my 39 week appointment, which confirmed this baby ain't leaving soon. The nurse asked if I was in any pain, and I gave her the "Well..." answer and went to go pee in a cup.

Note to everyone: do not leave a nurse hanging like that. She will find you and she will demand to know how you are feeling.

I was feeling fine, at that point. I was awake most of the night with a tightness across my abdomen, which was more persistent and annoying that particularly painful. Not contractions, and I'm not close to going into labor. The pain I had to think about (and then forget to mention to the nurse as my brain went into La-La Land on the scale) was my throat. I hesitated to mention it because I wasn't sure if it was pregnancy-related, but as I've never had tightening/slight burning before, I figured it had to be.

Acid reflux, anyone? At least, a very mild-mild case of it. But enough to make me not want to eat ANYTHING. Which most people can tell you is not a good thing. But my MIL told me she would eat bites of angel food cake and sip milk when she was preggo and had acid reflux. Which brings me to this week's greatest idea ever:

BLUEBERRY BUNDT CAKE, with special thanks to Martha Stewart - the bearer of delicious recipe ideas

{Now, if you've clicked on the link you'll see that it is actually blueberry-lemon bundt cake. For the sake of my throat/stomach, I omitted the lemon... for now.}

ingredients

2.5 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature {I put them on top of the toaster oven 2-3 times, rotating sides}
1 cup packed light-brown sugar {I used part light, part dark}
1 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup plain greek yogurt [Chobain brand!] {Martha calls for sour cream} ... I also used more than a cup

2 cups blueberries {I used frozen and did not thaw beforehand}

instructions

{Natalie Merchant radio on Pandora is not required, but certainly enhanced this baking experience.}

I used my mixing stand (thanks, Aunt Joanne!) to cream the butter and sugars together first, then added one egg at a time. I added one cup of flour, mixed; scooped in some greek yogurt; mixed; one cup of flour, mix-mix-mix; the rest of the greek yogurt, mix; half cup of flour, mixy-mix; 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and kept the mixer going.

Then, I removed the mixing top and plopped it in the sink. (Fine, I ate some of the batter first, then plopped it in ze sink.)

Now, this is where it gets tricky. The instructions say to fold the blueberries into the batter. I took this as, generously guesstimate 2 cups of blueberries into the mixing bowl and stir, stir, stir.

However, after spraying the bundt pan with nonstick butter spray, and the timer for the oven went off, and... I got impatient about putting it into the oven, so I stirred less than I should have. The only thing that happened was that there were more blueberries on the bottom of the bundt cake, but I think that is easily remedied if you, dear reader, took more time - or put the blueberries in half at a time, so ensure them to be better spaced out.

Here you go, in its raw glory {see, I could have folded the blueberries better}:

Then, 70 minutes later at 350:

(The recommended cooking time is 60-70 minutes on the lowest rack.)

After letting it cool in the pan, I covered it up and went to bed. In the morning, I had this for breakfast:

Consensus: delicious!

#7QT: Life, Listlessness, and The Ladies Who Lunch

Hey-o, gang! Check in with Jen and the crew here!

ONE

Officially 11 days till my due date... the bets are rolling in steadily. My brother John lost first; he said September 11. My MIL bet I will go into labor tonight and deliver tomorrow... fingers crossed that doesn't happen either.

Any bets, readers? We're asking for date, time and gender! And thank you all so very much for the sweet prayers, notes and comments y'all have sent my way during these past nine months. I couldn't have made it through the nausea without my vast support system!

TWO

I love Pintrest, but do you know what would make it even better? REVIEWS.

Here's one Amazon reviewer who had me laughing out loud over his reviews of hummingbird nector, milk, toilet seats, et cetera. (H/T to this lady for pointing me there.)

But seriously. We need a Pintrest reviews board! This Epic Pintrest Fail website will suffice for now.

(Pinning? Follow me! I loves it.)

THREE

“Brother, I’m not depressed and haven’t lost spirit. Life everywhere is life, life is in ourselves and not in the external. There will be people near me, and to be a human being among human beings, and remain one forever, no matter what misfortunes befall, not to become depressed, and not to falter – this is what life is, herein lies its task.” 

― Fyodor Dostoyevsky, 'The Brothers Karamazov'

FOUR

I plan to tackle tasks this week with muffins, specifically blueberry, which I will be making without a box of mix and a can of blueberries for the first time EVER. I hope they'll be delicious. I've stalked Pintrest for delicious blueberry muffin recipes, but I think I am going to stick with my cookbooks for now... too many healthy recipes and substitutions abound. People! Some people just want their muffins to resemble a dessert!

This recipe understands me. Then again, these zucchini blueberry muffins do look enticing.

FIVE

I'm also exhausted. I have not posted on the blog since last Saturday, but I've started four pieces... I just can't finish them. Listless is the word I've been searching for when people ask how I am doing - "characterized by lack of interest, energy, or spirit" and "lacking energy or disinclined to exert effort; lethargic"... dot dot dot.

Next week I'll be 39 weeks. I'm having contractions but ... yeah, no. Yesterday at the gym/ Tulane rec center, Friends was on t.v. in the elliptical area and Rachel was rushed to the hospital by Joey because she was experiencing contractions. The doctor told her not to worry, they were only Braxton-Hicks, a.k.a. practice contractions.

Which made me preggo-rant/ think while sweating/ labor training, Had her doctor SERIOUSLY never talked to her about Braxton-Hicks?! What kind of doctor does she have? And why did she go to the E.R.? And why did the doctor tell Joey he did the right thing by bringing her in?!

Sure, they hurt. Fine. But the E.R.? C'mon Friends writers. No-no-no-no drama!

SIX

Prayer request: one of my in-laws' chickens might be biting the dust soon. My MIL is very sad about it, even though she will soon have a grandchild. (Will thinks this is a good trade-off!)

I call them "The Ladies Who Lunch"

Also, my husband and our friend Katie start the Match process on Sunday. It's a stressful time, but I pray it will be a fruitful time as well. Three months of interviewing, followed by two and a half months of waiting, and a grand reveal in mid-March after the giant algorithm computes where the aspiring doctors are to spend the next couple (or many, many more!) years of their life. All the prayers you can spare, please!

Prayers for Colorado, peace abroad, and an increase of charity too.

SEVEN

Have I shared this picture yet? Me at 38 weeks:

Happy times as Casa Baldwin. Happy Friday, all!

#7QT: Be Our Guest!

Happy Friday! Mi amore has a biostats test this afternoon, mi familia is going to the lake house this weekend, and I am... hot. Or wet, since those are the two weather forecasts in New Orleans. At least my sperrys are getting properly used.

ONE

I have officially emptied every single box* in our apartment! HOORAY! Dance party time!

*Except for the book boxes.

Which is to say, I still have stuff to put away.

TWO

I'm really enjoying my writer's workshop. Here's this week's activity on writing outside your comfort zone.

Listening to and reading the words of the other ladies in the class, I think this could be our anthem:



This, too:

"Writing is a vocation and, as in any other calling, a writer should develop his talents for the greater glory of God. Novels should be neither homilies nor apologetics: the author's faith, and the grace he has received, will become apparent in his work even if it does not have Catholic characters or a Catholic theme."—Piers Paul Read, Author of "The Death of a Pope"

H/T Ignatius Press

If you're a lady and looking for awesome Christian fellowship and great prompts, Elora is the best; she'll be taking names for the fall session soon!

THREE

On Thursday, Will had a classmate over for dinner and a study party. He texts me around 5:20 p.m. and asks me to have dinner ready around 6 p.m. Luckily for me, they don't actually show up until after 6:30 p.m.

I'm currently in a "use what we have" phase of cooking, in an attempt to push my culinary creativity and be budget saavy. This worked in two ways: I still went to the store to pick up a pound of ground beef and a bag of chopped mixed vegetables ($5-ish), and then used what I found in the fridge and cabinet.

And then I had a panic attack, because I thought I had waaaaay more spaghetti sauce than 1/2 container. So I added 1/3 container of water and swish-swish-swish to retrieve the rest of the sauce, and then added 1 can of diced tomatoes (including water), plus 2/3 the bag of mixed vegetables.

Meanwhile, I am cooking ze pasta and the ground beef (separately). Once the beef was cooked and drained and put back into the big ole frying pan, I added the spaghetti sauce concoction, which was warming up too slowly. I fixed that. (Remember to stir.)

I added in a variety of spices; nothing scientific, and not a lot of any of them: sage, thyme, salt, onion. It still wasn't thickening up, so I added a half-ish cup of flour, and then dumped a decent amount of parmeson cheese in too. That made is extra delicious, and is my favorite part of the recipe.

In the two minutes I had, I grated some delicious hard cheese my MIL bought us from Whole Foods. Perfecto. Pasta was al dente by the time two hungry graduate students arrived, and the spaghetti sauce was hearty and hot. And cheesy.

Yum.

FOUR

I am probably overly-proud of myself for this dish (see last entry and excessive detail), but I am a perfectionist and worry waaaay too much over how the food is going to turn out. This just gave me a much needed confidence boost in trusting my culinary instincts, novice that they are. Will could eat the same thing every day: chicken (or fish), rice (or fried spaghetti), carrots. I need more variety, so I am working on that.

My next challenge: black beans. Have any good recipes, people? I am also thinking I need to dive into some Creole recipes with red beans and rice, which would satisfy both our nutritional wants.

FIVE

I'm also in a baking mood. Liz pointed me to this recipe from The Kitchn - upside down cake using ANY FRUIT YOU WANT. Move aside, pineapple! I'm thinking peach and cherry upside down cake is sound delicious right now.

But first, banana bread. I have two overly ripe bananas begging me for some love. Smitten Kitten has a jacked-up recipe which caught my eye.

SIX

A "few" links I've enjoyed this week:

Carmelite nuns asking permission to die; martyrs are born - what a lovely, beautiful, faithful story

Hunter S. Thompson's (fantastic) cover letter - hilarious, honest, candid

Maya Angelou reading from her new children's book on fear - audio and pictures; I just love it

A Catholic nun who has gone to over 4,000 houses inviting Catholics back to mass - inspiring and humbling

Irving Babbitt - an important man; very influential in my intellectual development

21 tips for survival mode - I keep re-reading this, and all I take care of is myself, my husband, and my in-womb bebe... for now!

Young Evangelicals Are Getting High - high on liturgy and history and deep theology

Kevin McCormick's First Album (!!!) - So. Good. I've heard the man play live; I mean it.

A Step Into the Open - so much grace here, and honesty.

We're Getting a Calvin and Hobbes Documentary - AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! NO WORDS!!!!!!! JUST PUNCTUATION!!!!!!!!!!!

Photographic Series Showing What 200 Calories Looks Like in Different Foods - I mean, pretty cool.

just don't say it: About Your Past - Amanda's awesome series; I especially love/ needed this post

My Mother Regretted Her Abortion - amazing essay published at The Atlantic

Actors That Should Play Disney Princes In Real Life - Um, yes.

My nesting update. - As exciting as it sounds (with pictures!!)

Finally, everyone, announcement: check out The Mirror Magazine - an awesome new publication for women, and oh hey, I am a co-founding writer. Like The Mirror on Facebook too, and follow us on Twitter!

(You're welcome for the larger font. I just didn't want you to miss the links. Wink.)

SEVEN

And now, the question of the day - Emily Dickinson said, ‘Forever is composed of nows.' What would you do if you weren't afraid? These women answer that question here.

Talk to me, geese. Happy Friday!! Join Jen and the gang here.

Bestest Chocolate Chip Cookies Evah

After craving chocolate chip cookies and reading 5 different cookbooks (Joy of Cooking is pictured below; also, The New Best Recipe from the Editors of Cook's Illustrated; Mad Hungry by Lucinda Scala Quinn; Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book; The Newlywed Cookbook by Sarah Copeland) to discern the best way to make my favorite type of cookies -- thick and chewy -- I have made an awesome batch of chocolate chip cookies. My very own variation on the classic recipe and a date night adventure in the culinary arts starts here, at the ingredients:

Please ignore the baking powder - I decided not to use it this time around!

Helpers: mixing bowl 1, a mixer + mixing bowl 2, measuring cup, 1/2 teaspoon, 1 tablespoon, 2 dining spoons, parchment paper (optional but SO AWESOME - cut with scissors), cookie sheet, and cooling rack.

So, let's start at the very beginning (a very good place to start):

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees

Mixing bowl 1 - whisk it, whisk it good (or don't, like me):
1 cup and 2 tablespoons of flour 
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

Mixing bowl 2 (under mixing stand, or using much stronger arms than mine); beat until well-blended:
1/2 cup (1 stick) of butter (many recipes recommend unsalted; I only had salted and so used that); best if softened beforehand
1 cup light brown sugar (I used brown instead of 1/2 granulated, 1/2 brown because granulated helps give cookies the crispier edge, and I wanted softer. Dark brown sugar makes them even softer, apparently... may experiment one day for softness and flavor.)

Once mixing bowl 2 is well-blended, add in:
1 [large] egg + 1 egg yolk (carefully crack egg, then transfer the yolk back and forth between the two egg shells while the albumen (egg whites) leaks out, preferably into the sink)
1/4 teaspoon of salt (I just shook salt into the bowl)
1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

Once those three ingredients are well-blended as well, add in the flour and baking soda mixture. Continue to mix, mix, mix! Then add in 1 cup of chocolate chips! I used regular semi-sweet - may go for mini next time (preference). Mix, mix, mix!

After scraping the ginormous amount of batter off the mixer, grab your parchment paper and cut to fit your cookie sheet. 

Use one dining spoon (the bigger one) to scoop the batter, and the other spoon (smaller helps) to help plop it on the parchment paper/ cookie sheet. This kind of batter is sticky on your fingers - the more you touch it, the more it connects! Don't worry about making the batter look pretty or spread wider on your pan. The baking process will help the cookies flatten out. 

Keep the batter an inch or two apart.

Pop into the oven for 8:30 to 9 minutes, depending on the color you like.

These are at 9 minutes; I prefer the 8:30 myself - both chewy-soft!

Let the cookies cool for a few minutes before transferring to the cooling rack, and then plopping more batter onto that amazing parchment paper. (Clean-up? Done. Cookies come right off!)

These cookies are fantastic. I have three recipients who all praise their deliciousness, and I myself have had to shut myself into another room to avoid walking into the kitchen for another... which I will do as soon as I publish this!

I'm sure there are ways I can improve this recipe. Any ideas?

Bon appetit!

Les Poissons Are Friends, Not Food

Happy Friday, y'all! Thanks to Jen for hosting!!

ONE

Instead of blogging, I should be chopping heads off five fish my Father so grandly left me to deal with this morning, as well as de-scale and de-bone.

By myself.

I'm taking a break and letting them cool down. Forever.

When I was in South Korea visiting a friend, we went to a fish restaurant and accidentally ordered a meal with fish eyes in it. Never again, I pledged.

That's an eyeball. Look closer if you don't see it.

The most famous fish model in Korea.

What I ate instead of fish eyes.

My friend just ate a sea slug by accident. Whoops.

Then, a month later, Will and his family took me out for a day on the Cumberland. It was delightful.

I caught my first two fishes ever-ever:

Numero uno!

Second one bled on me. I was really roughing it.

I learned how to "net" a fish:

Then, prepare said fish for cooking:

Then, eat it. Eating it was less traumatizing than the fish parts we tried to eat in Korea:

It was very satisfying, and then I was glad to go home to the Real World.

But the Real World is a hard master, and there are five fully scaled fish with eye balls waiting for me to chop them off like the Chef Louis in Little Mermaid:

TWO

I watched Finding Nemo yesterday. Best decision of my day! So full of laughs and life lessons. Favorite scene:

Marlin: I promised I'd never let anything happen to him.
Dory: Hmm. That's a funny thing to promise.
Marlin: What?
Dory: Well, you can't never let anything happen to him. Then nothing would ever happen to him. Not much fun for little Harpo.

THREE

As of yesterday, Will and I have been married for three months! I wrote about it here.

FOUR

Here is an awesome article from FEE on the welfare state. Lawrence Reed mentions my second favorite president too. FEE is an amazing organization, especially if you are more interested in learning about economics and American history. They host free seminars too!

FIVE

I should also be cleaning my room and changing my sheets. Do y'all have any secrets for keeping organized when you feel like life has chopped off your head and you're just flapping your wings to get work done?

After I chop fish heads off, I have more work-work to do. Is it better to split time and multi-task or do one thing at a time? What about errands? Grown-up life has such a learning curve.

SIX

To go with the above theme, I play the Disney (children's) Radio on Pandora when I need a mood pick-me-up. Runners-up: Talking Heads, Mumford and Sons, Adele, The Chieftains and RUSH. Gregorian Chant for my cool-down, and Coldplay or Ray LaMontange for in-between times.

SEVEN

Reading anything awesome lately? My friend Betsy introduced me to Carrots for Michaelmas after I showed her Small Notebook. Now I am loving on A Holy Experience. My favorite daily read is Best of the Web Today at WSJ.

 Oh happy day! Have a wonderful weekend, dear readers.

Book Review: The Newlywed Cookbook

Sarah Copeland has given readers, beginner cooks and sous chefs alike, another delicious treat. Her first book, The Newlywed Cookbook: Fresh Ideas & Modern Recipes for Cooking with and for Each Other, is a wide blend of homemade and heirloom dishes. She is motivated by the advice of her grandmother, Virginia Edwards Copeland, to "learn to make his favorite things."

From an aesthetic view, the book is divine. Gorgeous photography by Sara Remington is paired with a charming lay-out. Her sister, Jenny Goddard, designed the "Sips" tag on the iced tea in the "Embellishments: Snacks, Sauces & Sips to Enlighten the Table" section. Sarah's knowledge on seasonable fruits and vegetables, organics, picking out meat, how to stock one's kitchen, what kind of tools to have on hand, and all questions in-between are abundantly given.

Sarah introduces herself as much as her book in her writing. She tells us,

"There's a moment in a marriage, whether two days or two hundred and twenty-two into it, where you're standing side by side in the morning barefoot on the cool kitchen floor. Everything is quiet but the hum of him making you coffee just the way you like it, with all that frothy milk and sugar. You're stirring his favorite pancakes, sprinkling a few blueberries in the batter, and then it hits you: these simple moments are somehow the best in life. This could happen over a fork fight for the last peach in the jar, or playing rock-paper-scissors for whose turn it is to do dishes. It can happen, and will happen over and over again if you let it. That is the essence of this book."

Sarah is a self-described "writer, urban gardener, passionate cook and curator of good living. She is a six year veteran of the Food Network and co-founder (and former spokesperson) for their charitable initiative, Good Food Gardens. She thrives on "homegrown veggies, stinky cheeses, chocolate cake" and her little family, made up of her husband Andras and their baby, Greta."

As a bride-to-be myself, and one who does not cook often (or ever), I found myself time and time again with this cookbook, pouring over it with fascination and hope. Sarah inspired me to cook for my fiance B. and his parents, and I don't take that impulse lightly. Before fixing Shrimp Saganaki for them, I had cooked for B. exactly once.

On a page labeled "Strategies," Sarah confesses that, though there may be dozens of rules to good cooking, she's probably broken most of them. She gives "ten strategies to make your kitchen the spirited and well-seasoned center of your nest." I took numbers 1, 4, 6 and 8 ("Get Smart, Get Fresh," "Learn the Art of Reading Recipes," "Be Flexible," "Don't Panic") especially to heart.

Sarah gives just enough instruction (though I would have preferred more in a few cases, as a novice), as well as insight into fresher ingredients, preparation advice and alternations for individual recipes. For meals, she makes specific suggestions of what to serve the dish with, be it the wine, bread, or greens.

I fixed the Shrimp Saganaki, which turned out so well that I decided to try another recipe. In this instance, Sarah and I are a culinary match: we both eat carrot cake every year on our birthday. This birthday, I made my own cake, as well as the cream cheese frosting. It was delicious, and only got better over the few days it lasted.

This book is wonderful, warm, and inviting. It reads like a good conversation and gives encouragement through Sarah's perpetual optimism and care toward both cooking and life. 

Originally published in The Key.

Book published by Chronicle Books, www.edibleliving.com

Confessions of the Un-Domestic

Is a person born domestic? Or do they have domesticity thrust upon them?

This morning, I got a text from my cousin telling me she was starting to make felt ornaments for her children. Putting aside the fact that she is not in a position to have children, it struck me that I never thought about making felt ornaments for my future children. Mainly because I fully expect my future family's Christmas tree to be covered in a smorgasbord of ornaments like my own family's is - complete with thumb prints with smiley faces drawn on, laminated and then tied with yarn; pictures of us through the years; other creative endeavors my parents cherish dearly and even prefer over bought ornaments.

But back to making ornaments. Or making anything, really. A college friend of mine is sewing her wedding dress. I respect that, but am in no way capably of doing so myself. Another friend recently expressed interest in doing that as well, actually. Today I fixed tea; does that count for anything?

Me woman! Me make pancakes!

My mother is utterly undomestic. She loves her job and gets her kicks there, not in making a good meal or keeping house or sewing us clothes/ costumes (as my aunt did for her two kids-- one of whom is the aforementioned felt-ornament-making-cousin). My three younger sisters have more domestic tendencies. Kato learned to knit when she tore her ACL in high school and cooks; Muffy is organized and can keep a room/ the house spotless; Boo is a decorating master and is the cutest hostess. My sisters have real gifts in the domestic arts.

In this area, I wonder if I have more in common with my two brothers, only with more tact and graciousness. I think my brothers would live in a cave and not notice, as long as it had wireless internet, food and a place to sleep. Come to think of it, so would I... does that make me less womanly?

I've been thinking about this lately, mostly at night while I am up late reading and writing after work. I wonder if I am going to be pulling late hours to do my research after I get the bumpkins into bed. In high school, I received the nickname "Sally." One of the reasons (among the many) was because I was constantly carpooling my five younger siblings around, which apparently makes me comparable to a housewife. I think carpooling will be the least of my duties as a mother, but certainly one I have had plenty of experience in juggling alongside other tasks.

In college, my undomesticated side became ultra-exposed, when I learned I should have been able to bake bread or sew on a button by the age of 18. Allow me to express my yearning for a home education class or two now. Four years later, I graduated without gaining either of the above skills. I moved away from home and realized that I had my own kitchen to cook in. It was tiny. My mom called it a "Julie sized kitchen." I ate a lot of raw vegetables and fruits, grilled cheese and many bowls of cereal. My actual cooking adventures usually involved the smoke alarm unjustly going off.

Yes, this is how big my kitchen was.

Recently, I found a book called "How to Sew a Button: And Other Nifty Things Your Grandmother Knew" by Erin Bried and it made me feel instantly better. A lot of the things she writes about, I already know how to do. Hooray! For other things, like cooking a turkey, she explains it well and even editorializes occasionally (she encourages drinking wine while cooking, which is five gold stars in my book!). I have not finished it (yet), but I am grateful for it. It gives me hope. It gives me knowledge. It gives me courage. It gives me directions.

I am starting to think, when the time arrives, domesticity will be thrust upon me, and I will like it because it will be my way of building a loving home for my future family. It sounds like a challenge, and I accept. I also look forward to the little people gripping my legs when the firemen come for their weekly visit and saying, "Mommy tried again!"

When I was growing up, it was always made clear that becoming a wife and mother was always expected, but secondary. Career first, and then you can have a family. Cooking is optional; hire someone to do it is better.

I am starting to see the flaws in this plan. Cracks really: I'm barely 24, have been published in multiple national papers and journals, and I completely freeze up at the thought of cooking pork chops.

Therefore, I would like to share an idea, born from the actions of my doctor, who went to medical school when she was 40 and her kids were more grown, and from my paternal grandmother, who got her Master's in English when my Dad was in high school.

Exceptions aside (my own mother, for instance, would be a very unhappy person if she wasn't working and thus fulfilling her purpose), I think it better to reverse that order: prepare yourself mentally so that you can teach your children and edify yourself and the people around you, be prepared to go back to school when the time comes, and perhaps work part-time. Later, when the children are grown or mostly-grown, there will have more than enough time to pursue something more full-time.

On the plus side, I can overcompensate for my lack of domesticity by sharing my voracious reading habit with the little minds; teach my children logic, reason and theology; play soccer, tennis, dress-up, cards and Monopoly; make homemade play-dough; correct their homework; take walks in the park; color alongside them with my own set crayons and colored pencils. Then we'll clean up our mess and play Simon Says until Mommy Say So.

Do any other [female] readers feel this way? A pressure to work first? Family "later"? Putting emphasis on what we do and not who we are?

Have You Filed Your Taxes?

I almost didn't write one this week but, nonetheless, here is my volume 20:

one

Today is not, I repeat, not Tax Day. Tax Day was moved to Monday, because there is a holiday of some sort happening in Washington, D.C. Or, if you work at a tax law firm like I do, then every day is Tax Day!

two

Something I read for class, by Catholic Moral Theologian David Bohr:

The Christian life is like this. Faith is not usually a sudden inspiration that comes out of nowhere. Faith is a habit built up over time by doing faithful actions. Faith, as it was for the ancient Israelites, is not just a feeling or interior assurance, but is constituted in the real, material world by concrete practices. Faith is skillfully and wisely dealing with strangers, loved ones, money, genitals, and pots and pans. Faith is not usually something that comes in a flash of blinding light, but is built up over time by small actions like saying a prayer for a friend, cutting vegetables at a soup kitchen, putting one's rear end in a pew every Sunday morning. If faith takes hold, these sort of actions and a thousand others become second nature.

three

Spring is here, finally! Still cold-ish sometimes, but at least I can walk outside with my shoes off again, feet squishing against the grass and cool mud.

More things I like about spring: driving with my windows down again, bare legs, shorts, spring skirts, playing and running outside with the family dog, weekend croquet matches, no more cold weather, birds singing, warm breezes, anything nautical, sunshine.

What are things you like about spring?

four

One of my best friends from college/ Kappa is at culinary school in New York and I miss her a lot. Fortunately, she keeps a blog. Even for a non-foodie like me, I enjoy it. She's also been tying in Scripture verses to the beginning of her posts lately too, which gives new perspective. Check it out!

Vivy and me running down a hill in Georgia

five

My best friend (Bear-Bear, to those unawares) has an incredibly talented younger sister, whom I call Old Sport. Listen to her beautiful song here:

six

Doesn't this song just make you happy? This website on St. Augustine makes me happy too-- many thanks to Emina at Illumination for posting it! The libertarian allegory from the Mises Institute of Rebecca Black's song "Friday" is worth a chuckle too; and, as always, are you reading WSJ's James Taranto?

seven

We Bright Maidens had another lovely response to our post this week: saving sex for marriage. I must admit, I was rawther nervous about posting mine, but the responses, either public or private, were overall so gracious, that it made me feel very happy to share my stories and view point. Many thanks to Tito Edwards for featuring mine on National Catholic Register and The Pulp.It as well! AMDG!

In case you missed it:
"The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same" by Julie Robison
"Cut to the Chaste." by Elizabeth at Startling the Day
"Three Strikes, I'm Out!" by Trista at Not a Minx

This next week's topic is finally to be revealed.... REVERSION STORIES! How three cradle Catholics "re-discovered" the Church, and why we've stayed Catholic. Being friends with Trista and Elizabeth, I can assure the audience that y'all will be in for a treat.

After Lent, we'll take a one week break, and then resume posts every two weeks. We'd like to invite anyone interested to write alongside us, and post it on our Facebook page! Or e-mail us the link, and we'll happily post it for you.

Happy Friday, folks! See Conversion Diary for more.

Food, Glorious Food!

I made the smoke alarm go off in my apartment today. I was just making dinner. No, nothing was burning. It all turned out delicious, in fact. That was the most confusing part, and it reminded me how much I have to learn about the culinary arts-- starting with how in the heck one turns off a smoke detector.

I was home Monday for a long Labor Day weekend and my baby sister cooked part of our lunch. The noodles part, to be exact. My "baby" sister is 11 years old. I call her Boo-Boo. Boo, for short. Her other nicknames include Meg, Doodle and Baby (the family joke is that she'll be 37 and drinking sweet tea, straight out of a Faulkner novel, still being called "Baby").

The point is, she was cooking. Noodles. Not very hard, but it impressed me. I burned noodles when I was her age. She just let the water boil over.

The first time I cooked by myself, I made cookies. By age 11, our family had bloated to 8, so I doubled the batch because I was positive the cookies were going to be so delicious that my huge family would devour them all. I wanted them to have lots of cookies to eat, not just one or two to taste. Here's what happened instead: I did double the recipe, except for one ingredient. I forgot whether I had added this certain ingredient, so I added it again.

Bad move. The ingredient was baking soda. The cookies tasted like tin foil. I was heartbroken, to say the least, and my family still brings it up, 11 years later. Thanks, guys.

In my defense, I've vastly improved since my first cooking venture. My specialty is grilled cheese. I kid you not. My aforementioned baby sister actually requested Julie's Grilled Cheese for her birthday dinner a few years ago. In grade school, I got really good at desserts, like Lemon Squares. High school marked a high for learning lots of foods like pasta because I was running nearly every day. Last summer in D.C., I ventured into cooking meat and fish with olive oil. I also made a divine peach and blueberry cobbler from scratch.

My second defense is this: I've never really had to cook. Dinner was ready for me when I got home every night from practice in high school. I was on the meal plan at college. In D.C., my meals wavered from raisins to pb&j sandwiches. I didn't eat out all the time, but I ate much more on the go. There was hardly time to actually cook for myself besides Sunday, which is when I would cook for the week. A few of my closest friends from college were in D.C. that summer, as well as a couple GW and CN friends, and the handful of people I randomly met and befriended. Dinner plans were always in order; and if not dinner, then drinking, and that is always rather filling.

I have to admit: D.C. lulled me into a false sense of security about meeting people after college. I met people all the time out East. I was hardly wanting for plans, particularly dinner plans. Eating is an individual activity, but it's so much better with others. Eating alone, as I do most nights here, is almost pointless. I don't mind it--crave the alone time now, honestly--but it is a dull activity to make dinner for one's self. I'd rather be feeding others than cooking for one.

As VP of the I Love Food Club* for the past 12+ years, I say (off-the-record, mind you) that food is overrated. I don't particularly enjoy eating. I like that it gives me nutrition for my body to function well, and I love the taste of whatever I am enjoying, but the physical act of eating? Eh. One does not give a dinner party just to feed the participants. One, however, does it to invite over friends for excellent conversation and the enjoyment of the amiable company, and perhaps even the anticipation and fun of cleaning and dressing up one's dining area. The food is an important part too, but one does not look forward to eating. One looks forward to the time spent.

Unless, of course, you're an orphan in Oliver Twist:

I'm moving home later this month and the food aspect of the move is exciting; that is, I am excited to eat with the family again. We have family dinner every night, where we say grace and everyone goes around the table highlighting their day. It may sound mundane, but I simply can't wait. It was great eating with people in college, where meals really helped cultivate community, but that is not here. Not having to shop for groceries will be nice too!

In the meantime, I enjoy the freedom to eat when and what I please, read my New Yorker book of food reviews, and will try to avoid setting off the smoke alarm again before I move-- but no promises!

*The I Love Food Club was established by my cousin Sarah (President) and sister Kato (Secretary/ Treasurer) when we were very small. I don't remember the date, but definitely early 1990s. We recently initiated in two new members: my mom and Sarah's sister's son Stetson, who has the chubbiest and cutest cheeks. We are currently accepting applications, but the waiting list is long.