Ginger Pork Tenderloin

Sorry I've been M.I.A. for so long! The holiday weekend was jam packed. Edited to add: Holy shit, I forgot it was Wednesday! No workout for this week, I guess. Oh well. LET'S EAT INSTEAD

Ginger Pork Tenderloin (with lima beans and cauliflower rice)

serves 2-4

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup dry sherry

3 tbsp honey

2 tbsp soy sauce

1.5 tbsp fresh grated ginger

2 tsp cornstarch

1 1lb pork tenderloin

pepper

1 tbsp veggie oil

1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

Mix the first six ingredients together and set it aside.

Sear your pork tenderloin on all four sides, 2 minutes a side. I was using cast iron so I just cut it up right in the skillet after searing.

Transfer the pork to a bowl or plate.

Keep warm. I did it like this, which makes it look like a giant clam. Hello, clam!

Grab your sauce, whisking to re-mix since the cornstarch will have clumped on the bottom, and toss her in.

Once it thickens a bit, add your pork back to it, including any juices that might have accumulated.

Add your sesame seeds. Remember how the recipe calls for only a tablespoon? Well, I opened the "spoon" side of my sesame seeds, so when I meant to shake out about 1 tbsp, I shook out probably 1/4 cup.  Oh well, it was still delicious!

Anyways. Your pork is done, so plate it up with your sides! Here's what we did. That awesomeness below is cauliflower that had a visit with my Cuisinart. Chopped to the consistancy of rice, it was then put in a skillet with some vegetable oil and garlic powder and heated through until nice and hot. That's all you have to do for cauli rice!

So, plate that stuff up!

We had both worked out that day so I figured we needed something more than just lean meat and veggies masquerading as rice. Also we love lima beans, so it's a win-win:

Top with meat, top with sauce, and enjoy!

You know, on second thought, I recommend adding at least a couple more tablespoons of sesame seeds. It was SO good.

You Go, Girl.

Well, this is nothing short of absolute badass. Looks like the UK has a new HBIC.

First Woman to Command War Ship

I was going to blog about this ginger pork recipe I made, but I will save that for another day.

That's Sarah West, the new captain of HMS Portland and the only female captain of a Royal Navy war ship. It only took 500 years!

Planks.

I think everyone, even die hard couch potatoes, know what planks are these days. Apparently, even two year olds know too.

She's got her form now!

"Why do people complain about planks, mama? This is easy."

Nothing like a healthy meal after a good solid workout. Nothing like eating it like a boss, either:

Streeeetch for that fish stick, girlie-pop!

Kung fu kick!!

Wednesday Workout!

I love finding these workouts on The Berry!

I'm still super hooked on the 100 Workout but this one looks fun. Something easy to squeeze in before your cardio.

Hope you enjoy it!

Review: Girls

Ok, fine, I admit it, I freaking loved Sex And The City. I watched every single episode. I love all four characters and the first movie (I refuse to see the second one, after learning that Carrie is basically rewarded with a diamond after cheating on her husband - that ruins it for me).

So I figured I'd give Girls a try. People were calling it the down to earth version of my beloved SATC, the more realistic side to living in NYC. Ok, great! So one afternoon while Alex napped I watched it online.

I hated it. Well, the first episode wasn't hate-worthy, but all of the characters were. I don't even know their names, but in one episode we have an intern who tries to get hired and instead gets let go, naturally right after her parents pull the financial plug on her.

So of course this is the time to go have incredibly awkward, visually disgusting sex with a man who won't text her back. Not grab her laptop and go fire off resumes to every company in the city. Not march into a restaurant, bar, cafe, what EVER to get at least some sort of job secured.

Then because she's so busy getting negged by this guy, she is hours late to her BFF's dinner party thrown for horrible people who then cook opium tea, which our heroine of course drinks in order to get the courage up to visiting her parents' hotel room to insist she deserves 1200 bucks a month for two years to, what? Fuck this guy and do these drugs and then collapse on their hotel room floor?

The next day, having been left in their bed (where did THEY sleep?), she then takes the housekeeping's tip money and leaves to go stagger around the city.

Her friends aren't much better. The pretty "sweet" one is in a loveless relationship with a man who adores her yet she doesn't want to dump him. So later when she gives sound advice (get a job), it just doesn't resonate because hey, you make shitty choices too.

Don't get me started on the British bohemian who is knocked up and doesn't want to, or her annoying, Sex And The City-obsessed cousin/roommate is. I understand it was a way to show the ~omg differences~ between SATC and "real life" but who the fuck drinks opium tea and how is that realistic?

That was the first episode. I soldiered on, giving it my fairest shot, but when the second episode begins with such a nauseating, awkward, condescending, bullying sort of sex scene between the jobless wonder and her creepy, ugly, freaky booty call, I just closed the window and shut the computer down. It was enough for me.

A cast of unlikeable characters, non-profound conversations and seriously, zero lines that struck me as humorous or wise or ANYTHING other than empty-headed whining makes me grade this series with a D.

I guess the thing that made SATC work for me was the lack of reality. But even in Girls, their world of so called reality seems tinged with lunacy, idiocy, borderline sociopathic behaviors and leaves me wondering how they even like each other, because I sure as shit don't.

Orange!

As a kid, I was always impressed with the way my dad could eat an apple using a paring knife, slicing off each piece using the knife and his thumb. It was dangerous! It was edgy! He never cut himself! My dad is motherfucking Batman!

These days, Todd gets the cool points, but not for eating an apple with a paring knife. Hell, even I can do that (sorry dad, you are still Batman but not for the apple thing). No, Todd amazes me with how he can peel an orange. Each time, every time, that man can peel an orange in one fluid movement, and leave just one long, curling piece of rind. So it will can sit on the counter, still looking all round and for the most part, intact. I cannot accomplish this. I came close this morning, even getting excited.

Look at that big piece of peel on the left! That thing even has curvature! I came SO CLOSE. But then all the little chunks happened, and I became crestfallen, bitter, unfulfilled. Well, until I ate the orange, but I still wouldn't say I'm full.

It's weird because even before we had Alex, I'd look at him peeling his orange and think "I bet someday that is going to impress the hell out of our kids." And then I thought about how our kids would always be blown away by it, and then look at my lack of orange-peeling skill and just go "Well there's mom for you."

WHAT, I AM NOT INSECURE, WHY DO YOU ASK?

Alligators Got Me.

There's a saying: some days you eat the alligator, other days the alligator eats you.

Today, the alligator devoured me. I've been feeling so upbeat lately, I guess the pendulum was due to swing the other way. I woke up on the wrong side of the bed today, despite the awesome news that my little niece Alora was born earlier this morning at the exact hour and minute when Alex was born: 4:27am. Maybe I was in a funk because I missed the big moment. I was still in bed when all the bad shit started happening. The cat scratched and bit the hell out of my elbow, making me bleed, Todd and I argued, most of the glasses were still filthy in the dishwasher thanks to crappy detergent, blah blah blah. Then to top it all off, Alexandra fought like hell when I put her down for her nap.

I mean, screaming, ugly crying, hysterics. And no, not from me. It sucks listening to your kid cry like that. It was also driving me insane. I wanted to punch the pillows on the sofa, I was getting so aggravated. And you know, I hollered at her. I had gone in twice to try and soothe her and the second time, I was just so mad that she was freaking out for nothing, I yelled "Alex! Stop. Crying!!" and instantly felt like an idiot, a loser, a horrible mother. First off, I fucking hate it when I'm crying and someone tells me to stop. Oh, wow, thanks, that made everything better. Also, NO, I won't stop crying because I don't fucking want to.

So what comes out of my mouth? Stop crying. And loudly, exasperatedly, meanly. I had to set her down and rub my face, trying to rub the rotten off, I guess. Calmed down, back in control of myself, I held her then, soothed her best as I could, even though I felt so wicked, and so undeserving of her. I got her to lie down, to calm down, got her sleeping. I closed the door of her room and just felt completely wrecked, all by my own actions and behavior. I hated myself.

It sucks because motherhood doesn't pause when you're having a bad day. Alex spilling vitamin water all over the table, the dog eating catshit and smearing a disgusting mixture of litter and slobber all over his bed, buying $87.48 in groceries and having $86.50 in your wallet, Alex bonking her foot into EVERYTHING and crying dramatically every single time. All of that keeps happening, and you still have to be a mom. A GOOD mom, too, not a dickhead who yells "Stop crying!!" at her two year old. I have a headache now, and I feel sort of like I deserve it.

Spanish Chicken with Yogurt Sauce (a.k.a. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM)

I just... ok, right now, if we were talking instead of blogging/reading? Right now is when I'd be holding my head in my hands while trying to find the right words to accurately describe the most mind blowing orgasm I'd ever had. Except by orgasm I mean dinner.

I got this recipe from Cook's Country, but I changed several things. It called for chicken cutlets and I used chicken legs. It called for plain yogurt, I used plain non-fat. It called for dipping the chicken in the yogurt sauce, I just soaked it in nonfat milk. It didn't call for grated parmesan in the panko crumb mix, but I SURE DID. And those bastards wanted me to fry the chicken in oil and I was like HELL NO we are baking these sex machines. Finally, it didn't suggest serving this with ranch-dressing flavored mashed cauliflower but I did and I knocked this meal on it's ASS because I totally rocked, and totally destroyed my kitchen in the process:

Notice the hand held emulsifier that I realized would't work, but just left there as I danced around waiting for the cauliflower to steam and for Grey's Anatomy to stop fucking with my heart:

Um, on to the recipe!

Spanish Chicken with Yogurt Sauce
serves 2 

2 large chicken leg quarters, thighs and drummies separated
2 cups nonfat milk
1 tsp powdered chicken bouillon
1 cup (at least) panko crumbs
2 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp chili powder
1/4 cup shredded parmesan
Cooking spray
1 cup nonfat plain yogurt
2 tbsp finely snipped fresh parsley
2 tbsp paprika
salt and pepper to taste


OH MY GOD, MY BODY IS READY FOR THIS. Ok, sorry but this recipe blew me away; it was relatively simple but man, that yogurt sauce, those spices... so good!

Preheat your oven to 375. Soak your chicken in the milk and powdered chicken bouillon. I use a no-sodium version and I love it. When the oven is ready, as ready as my body is...

Mix the panko, paprika, chili powder, and parmesan in a large bowl. Dredge your chicken pieces in that sexy stuff, pressing to make sure the crumb mixture sticks. Place chicken on a cookie sheet prepped with cooking spray, and then spray each chicken piece with cooking spray.

Throw those porn stars into the oven for about 40 minutes.

When the chicken is done, remove from oven and tent with foil. NOW the sex starts.

Put the yogurt in a small skillet or saucepan and put on medium high heat. Add your parsley and paprika, salt and pepper, and cook until heated throw. THEN YOU PLATE YOUR CHICKEN? AND TOP IT WITH THE YOGURT?!

omg. HEAVENLY.

Mashed Ranch Caulifower
serves 2 

1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
2-3 hearty squeezes of ranch dressing
1 tbsp olive oil
UM THAT IS ALL

Steam the cauliflower until a fork can completely destroy a floret. You know what I mean, you get impatient standing at the goddamn stove too.

Dump the cauliflower into a food processor and just let that bad boy run. When it seems to get gummed up, add a squeeze of ranch and a small drizzle of olive oil. Watch as your dreams come true, having already had your nightmares materialize thanks to the writers of Grey's Anatomy.

Keep blending, about two minutes, until it looks like mashed potatoes and let me tell all of you heartthrobs out there, IT TASTES LIKE IT TOO.

Here is your plate of G-Spot:

UM WHAT, IS THIS FOR REAL?

Yeah. Yeah, it is. Now roll over, light me a smoke and don't talk to me til morning.

Compliments.

I've been feeling pretty good lately. About the world, my place in it, my self. I haven't lost a pound or gained a dollar or published a book or learned Mandarin, but lately, I've been feeling very... at peace with myself. I like my skin and the body it covers. I've been sick which has put a wrench in my nightly routine, and my poor baby has my cold now, but still, it hasn't affected the overall good mood I have. Plus we went to a park today that was completely shaded and Alex had not only a stellar lunch but a rockin' dinner. To top it off I managed to not eat any of her fish sticks and I do not know if you realize but they taste as wicked rad now as they did when I was 8. Which means I guess I did eat one tiny little piece she didn't want BUT STILL.

I went to the gym today. I aim for five days a week. Since I was sick I missed out on two days, so I got there early, did 20 minutes of cardio and then did my swim. There was another swimmer there, and though he was a lot slower than I was he had good form, and he could turn under water which I think is super rad especially since even thinking of doing it makes me feel like drowning even out of the water. Later, we both ended up leaving at the same time. He asked "You were in the pool, right?" and I said "Yep." He then said "I tried keeping up with you. But I couldn't." and I grinned and thanked him. I told him I had spent months training, and then he gave me a huge compliment and said "It's obvious. You move very well in the water." I thanked him again and then complimented him on turning underwater. And then I tried super hard to not strut like a goddamn pigeon down the length of the parking lot.

That was my fifth compliment about my swimming! It made me feel so good and coupling that with my current good mood, I was basically on cloud nine. It sort of solidified how serene I've been feeling, and it made me very grateful for my body, for its muscles and its acquired skills. I'm always pretty tough on myself because I believe self-delusion is repulsive and such a dangerous slippery slope. I'd rather groan at my love handles then put on some high waisted jeans and pretend they aren't there. But now I'm like, you know what, I did a triathlon and I still turn on my husband, so that means I'm strong and I'm sexy so pass the red wine and hand me that fried chicken.

Anyways, I'm glad I gave the swimmer a compliment in return because compliments are absolutely wonderful. They can make a bad day turn good and a good day turn luminous. I think it was Plato who said the whole Be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle, and it's true. At the most extreme, a compliment could save a life, or at the more shallow end, could make a woman swagger down a parking lot feeling like the HBIC of swimming (underwater turns excluded).

Wednesday Workout!

I thought it might be fun to share a typical week's worth of workouts for triathlon training. This offers everyone a little bit of something. If you love to swim, bike or run, you'll find something fun here.

This is from Week 9 out of a 12 week program.


Day 1: 40 minute swim

Warm-up:    3x100y nice and easy (15 seconds rest)
Workout:     4x300y, energy output at a 2 out of 4* (30 seconds rest)
Cool-down: 6x50y nice and easy (10 seconds rest)

TOTAL: 1800 yards

*1 being easy, 4 being full blown maximum effort

Day 2: 35 minute run


Warm-up:    10 minutes nice and easy, 6 accelerations
Workout:     15 minutes of intervals. 6x2 minutes with 30 seconds recovery. Keep the pickups below level 4
Drills:           2x30 seconds of each drill (butt kicks, high knees and side running on each side)
Cool-down: 10 minutes easy

Day 3: 50 minute stationary bike


Warm-up:    15 minutes nice and easy
Workout:     5x1 minute Small Gear Drill (put the resistance very, very low - make sure not to bounce in your seat); start first minute rep at 5RPM lower than normal cadence. Lower the resistance with each successive minute; 1 minute recovery between; 2x2 minutes of Large Gear Drills (put the resistance very, very high); you should be at least 20RPM lower than normal cadence; with 1 minute recovery between; 5x1 minute SGD fast spinning; try to keep effort at a 3 or 4 for all intervals.
Cool-down: 10 minutes easy

Day 4: 40 minute swim


Warm-up:    3x100y nice and easy (15 seconds rest)
Workout:     7x100y at a low effort level 3 (15 seconds rest); easy 100y; 7x50y at medium/high 3 (10  seconds rest); easy 100y; 7x25y at a effort level 4 (5 seconds rest)
Cool-down: 300y nice and easy, take a break if you need to

Total: 2025 yards

Day 5: Rest Day


Day 6: Transition Workout!


Bike:                   75 minute ride at effort level 1 or 2
Run:                    10 minute run immediately after the bike ride
Optional Swim:   15 minutes or so. Short and easy; practice drills or do a few laps.

Day 7: Long Run


60 minute run, nice and easy. Stay aerobic.


Now I will say that I rarely achieved a full six workout week, because it was just impossible with Todd's work and kung fu schedule, Alexandra in the mix, and then also to avoid injury. But this is exactly what was in The Complete Idiot's Guide to Triathlon Training. 


Enjoy!

Achoo!

I'm dedicating this post to my stupid summer cold which is so much worse than winter colds. Winter colds at least come with the territory. Chills? Have a blanket. Sore throat? Have some hot tea  and honey. Having sweats and then chills when it's 100 degrees out feels disgusting. Sweating from drinking hot tea in 100 degree weather is also disgusting. Anyways.

One thing we keep around the house for times such as these, for both the infected (me) and the totally-doesn't-want-to-get-sick (Todd),  is a big box of Emergen-C packets.

Now I'm not being paid to endorse these guys or anything but God do I love them. They taste delicious and check out the sucker punch of vitamins and minerals they contain:

Hey-o, holy vitamin C surge, batman! Now, there's no proof that they'll cure you but there is no denying that the laundry list of awesome up there is good for you. And while I have no problems taking Aleve or cold meds when I'm not feeling well, I also like taking more than just symptom cover-ups. I like knowing I'm at least participating in my body's biddy-battle with the cold bugs in my system. And perhaps it's psychosomatic, but I really do feel better after downing one of these bad boys.

I recommend you mix the packet with only a couple of ounces of very cold water. It tastes a lot better that way than in a full 8oz of water, because then it's too diluted and tastes like tepid water that was poured into a cup that once held orange juice in it but you can only taste a shadow of the fruit.

Anyways, if you've never tried them, they're available at Trader Joe's for around $10 and you get a whole slew of them. Happy vitamin-chugging, everyone!

"Say Cheese!" part two

So, Alex is a bit of a ham. A slave to the camera, if you will. Actually, more like a dictator of the camera. She LOVES to have her photo taken. Like love it so much she will go get the camera, or my phone, and go "picture?" because she wants me to take a picture. Not of Bingley, or Patton, or the beautiful day outside, but of her. And when I indulge her, which is admittedly too often, she immediately makes this face:

Or.... this face:

Or this one...

Then there's this one:



And this one:

After awhile, it becomes downright contagious.

 

Root Veggie Hash Browns

So I got this Root Veggie Cakes recipe fom Cosmopolitan Primal Girl and while it didn't turn out as expected, it still made for one hell of a side dish. If you're trying to avoid starchy carbs, this is an excellent alternative to hash browns. And, I feel like if I had squeezed the absolute last drop of moisture from the shredded veggies, and added whole eggs instead of just yolks, AND refrigerated the patties for like an hour before putting them in the skillet, they would have turned out. Anyways, here is the recipe:

Root Veggie Cakes/Hash Browns

Ingredients:
- 1 large (or 2 small) celery root – outer skin/knobs removed
-  3 large carrots or 12 baby carrots – peeled (if regular carrot)
- 3 parsnips – peeled
- 1/2 Cup parsley – chopped
- 1/2 red onion
- salt and pepper
- 1 Tbsp coconut oil
- 2-3 egg yolks

Directions:
1. Grate all the root veggies and onion in the food processor.
2.  Mix them together with the parsley and salt/pepper in a bowl.
3.  Add the egg yolks…start with 2 and then add a 3rd if needed.  You should be able to mould the mixture into patties and if it is not sticking together, add another egg.
4.  In a large skillet, heat the coconut oil.  Also, heat your oven to 375.
5.  While the pan is heating, make patties with the root veggie mixture.  Squeeze out the excess moisture while you are shaping them.
6.  Fry them in the skillet for about 2 minutes per side, until they are brown.
7.  Transfer them onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet and pop them in the oven for about 10-15 minutes.  This helps to finish cooking the veggie all the way through.
8.  Enjoy!


So here is how it went for me.

Grate all the veggies and onion in a food processeor, mix with parsley, salt and pepper:

Add yolks, and due to it not sticking well, add another one. Form patties, which are so dangerously loose that the moment they hit the skillet, you begin to freak out. You call in your honey badger husband to do the flipping for you.

It goes somewhat all right for the first two.

And then all hell breaks loose and instead of three big patties you have three separate piles of grated vegetable.

Yeah. So then you just run with it.

You add some Cholula:

Toss and flip to evenly mix...

Sprinkle with Parmesan and eat the hell out of it.

Don't you adore my messy counters? God I need to get some photography skills, and I need to stop talking about it in every photo post.

Oh, the meat portion, which is dwarfed by the epic amount of root veggies, is stuffed chicken breast that Todd made on the grill in foil packets.

Wednesday Workout!

Courtesy of The Berry!

120 squats?! BRING IT ON

Run Run Run.

Last night after half an hour of weights, I ran for three miles, only my second run since THE TRIATHLON in March. I had told myself no running for two full months but I couldn't keep away from it. Although I have decided that for perhaps all summer, no running outdoors on pavement at all, because that was really upping the pain during my training.

Anyways, I guess the reason I am making this its very own topic today is all to due with my knee. I ran three miles yesterday and today... it actually doesn't hurt as bad as it typically does. I mean, I'm even in heels today, which before, caused a lot of pain. Now, before I go on, let me say that when I say my knee hurts, it's not actually my knee. It's the shin bone right below my knee, where the tendon meets the bone. Here:

I had issues with tendon pain along the outside of my ankles for months so I wouldn't be surprised if this is some tendon thing. I stretch my knees after each run, honest. If it's not tendons then I am mildly concerned about a stress fracture. But, when I push down on it like in the picture, it feels slightly swollen and it hurts.

BUT ANYWAYS, my point is that today it hurts less and this was after some high impact sport. It hurts more after a long bike ride than a quick 30 minute run. So I'm confused, but also super, super happy. It felt so good to run for longer than like, the door to the mailbox or across the yard when Alex is about to step in dog poop.

I missed running. In fact I am such a big fan of running that, whether or not it's true, I'm blaming all the vigorous biking I had to do during my many moons of triathlon training. And while I'm so grateful to the tri for my newfound swimming skills and stamina, I'm admittedly a little irritated that it has caused a new injury. My knees never, ever, EVER bothered me when I would run 3x a week (tendons are another issue but I digress), and after several weeks of triathlon workouts, it began to take it's toll on old righty here.

So I was delighted to find that all evening last night, severe knee/shin/tendon pain never descended like it typically does after a 10 mile bike ride. I know, I know, biking is like zero impact, but it certainly does use those knees, and like I said, only when cycling was introduced into my workout regimen did the knee thing flare up.

Here's to hoping I can slowly start adding more runs into my weekly workout routine. As of now I'll only devote one day to it, and like I said, treadmills only. But keep your fingers crossed for me, friends, because it felt divine and I'd love to get back into it on a more frequent basis.

Randoms.

1. Alexandra fell asleep on me last night while I watched Once Upon A Time, and made me think back to her infancy. When she'd fall asleep on me I'd just sit there in heaven, desperate to pee, ravenous and thirsty. It didn't matter; I was happiest just soaking up the baby love, slightly sweaty from the little baby furnace curled up on me. It was absolute heaven last night, watching Snow White kick ass while Alexandra dreamed away on my chest. And it was super rad how Todd and I changed her into an overnight diaper without even waking her up. But I will admit it was also pretty nice peeing after we placed her sleeping little body in her crib on a commercial break.

2. I am officially over that "Somebody That I Used To Know" song by Gotye. It's on every goddamn channel on the radio, and it's played every single day on every single one of them. I no longer care that she had her friends collect her records, that she treats him like a stranger, or that he screwed her over and couldn't get over an old flame. Go screw yourselves, Gotye and Kimbra. You were in my head on repeat this morning from 5am to when I finally fell back asleep by forcing myself to think of the Harry Potter theme.

3. Speaking of 5am this morning, I had an attack of my allergies. First I was so stuffed up I couldn't breathe. So I blew my nose a couple of times and then had to go use some Afrin. Then I apparently blew my nose another seven times (Todd, moved by a pity that is shocking considering I woke him up at 5am to blow my nose, counted how many times I had to do it) after a sneezing fit. Thankfully I didn't sneeze out the Afrin awesomeness, because I finally was able to breathe. I hate you allergies. Flowers, you suck. Trees, you're all a bunch of jerks.

4. We had pizza last night from Papa Murphy's. I strongly urge all of you, ALL OF YOU, to go there and get the taco pizza. Holy crap, that thing was like heaven. It was two indulgences, pizza and Mexican food, combining forces to create what can only be described as another wonder of the world, or to my diet plan, maybe another Horcrux. I told Todd last night, if only they could have found a way to include a ribeye steak and some pasta carbonara. Although had they figured that out the sun probably would have went nova from the sheer epicness.

5. Saturday, as I furiously scrubbed out more butt stains from another piece of furniture, I was back to hating the cat. But then this morning he lounged on the bathroom counter, purring, hanging out with me while I put my makeup on so I guess I'm back to kind of liking him. I need to find kitty diapers I guess.

Children's Museum!

Yesterday, I decided I was too tired to get moving quick enough to get to the zoo by 9am when it's still cool enough to enjoy yourself and see some activity before the heat makes the animals go back to their dens or just lie there. I was also too tired to drive downtown for a 10am storytime at the library. However, I was not too tired to spend the morning watching Sesame Street with Alexandra and then getting down to the Tucson Children's Museum for some leisurely fun. And I am so, so glad we went.

Alexandra, to put it mildly, had an absolute blast. She was into everything, and I have the pictures to prove it. A lot of them are blurry; I forgot my digital camera and was forced to use my cell phone, which has no flash. I am thiiiis close to marching down to the cell phone store and getting a smart phone. I'm fed up.

Anyways, on to the merriment!

The first room we really attacked was called Bodyology, which made sense only due to the five huge body parts on the left wall. A huge ear, set of lungs, a big nose complete with nose hairs and boogers, an enormous heart that would beat and light up when you pushed it, a huge belching, yodeling mouth and a big eye with an eyelid you could move and also different colored panels you could use to change the eye color. Basically the only one that didn't gross me out was the heart. I'm not a booger fan.

But the real gem for Alex was the fruit trees. It had several metal strings of beads, and there were countless pieces of fake rubber fruit with magnets on the tops, so you could hang them up:



I showed her once or twice how to hang the fruits and she got the knack of it really quickly. I was so proud. I've only posted two photos of her doing this but there are like five more on my phone.

Look at those fast fingers fly!

My little doll. <3 Anyways, after several minutes of fruit hanging (and mild freaking out when the other children pulled them off), it was time to go grocery shopping!

In the same room as the trees, but on the opposite wall from the body parts, was a little mock grocery store.

Now, I'm not sure if you can tell, but Alex really, really, really, REALLY enjoyed pushing the cart around and shopping for about 100 cans of fruit cocktail and about 10 bell peppers.

At one point she had so many groceries that they all came tumbling down (like mom like daughter), leaving a path of destruction in her wake. So after we put everything away, it was time to cruise around the rest of the place.



Let's just have a perch on this here chair and see what's going on.

We played with wooden blocks where Alexandra displayed some genetic inheritance from her two architect grandfathers...

And we played with legos where Alexandra proved that legos are freaking awesome...

There was the giant rope maze which she crawled through, needing no directions or encouragement. Girlfriend saw, removed her shoes, and conquered. We hit up the art area in the background, checked out a music room, the ocean room, had a poopy diaper which was exactly when mom realized she ran out of diapers in her bag and when mom realized how absolutely rad the Tucson Children's Museum is for having diapers on hand for just such an occasion.

Anyways, I was so happy that they had spare diapers, because if they didn't, we would have missed out on the super fun rain forest room, reserved for kiddos four and under.



See that thing the mom in the background is leaning over?

It's this big round padded hut thing you accessed by crawling through a couple of tunnels. There were holes to peek out of on the top...



And the sides!



A little boy had been tossing balls in through the little windows, and instead of being upset about having balls thrown at her, she was actually looking for more.

We spent a good two hours at the museum, and if I had only been less of a lazy butt in the morning, we could have spent even more time there, but when we left we were long overdue for her afternoon nap. But we hadn't even hit up the train room, or the science room, and I know Alex could have enjoyed herself more thoroughly in the music room if that poopie diaper hadn't hit. She was so tired, and so happy after a morning at the museum.

I'm more than convinced that we need to buy a membership. For a family of three (and a free child less than two years old), it would be the price of four trips for Alex and me. So that's settled. I could easily go once every two weeks or so, and I know Alexandra would get a kick out of it.

All in all, an absolutely spectacular morning.