Happy Homemaker Monday

The weather:::

The forecast says cloudy this morning, sweltering this afternoon. June in San Diego is very predictable.

On my reading pile:::  
Nothing. Maybe I'll borrow one of my mother's old Reader's Digest condensed books. I need something easy to read because I've been dozing off mid-sentence lately.

On my TV:::
Whatever is on when I collapse on the couch. Week 38 of pregnancy is all about going with the flow.

On the menu for this week:::

Once again I didn't make a menu or go shopping. The name of this blog is 'Just Getting By' after all. For a while there I was being a really good homemaker; its time to get back to my roots!

On my to do list:::

Wash and fold tiny baby clothes

Put my feet up

Figure out where to put a third kid in a two bedroom house

What I am sewing, crocheting, knitting or creating:::
I found a crochet hook and a ball of hideous purple yarn the other night. I haven't crocheted in years and was just messing around when my husband said he really liked the color. So I'm making him a simple bag to use at the shoe shine stand.

Looking around the house:::

Its dark in here because of the clouds. The house has developed a case of piles (not hemorrhoids; this is the type where a stack of mail turns into a stack of mail and a stack of coupons, then a little pile of action figures that need to be put away, and a box of baby clothes that need to be sorted, and a pile of laundry by the back door, and a pile of dishes next to the sink, a heap of shoes in the hallway, a little parking lot of hotwheels that migrates to wherever it is you're trying to step, and a mound of dirty/clean socks on the stairs).

From the camera:::

No pix this week. All the little piles of batteries around the house are dead.

Something fun to share::: 

I apologize in advance for the cynicism; I have raging hormones. What sounds like fun to me is not having sausages for toes and boiled ham hocks for ankles. It would be fun to not pee when I sneeze.   It would be fantastic to get up from a sitting position without the sound of air being expelled from my mouth, nose, or elsewhere.

World Book Wednesday

Volume J

Journalism- "Minicams, which are small videotape cameras, have revolutionized TV journalism. They can be used to tape a news story on the scene for later broadcast. They can also be used to relay the story to the TV studio as it happens by means of equipment on top of the van."

These days, your cell phone can do all that.

Jupiter- This article has a bunch of interesting facts about Jupiter. But I am more interested in the upper right corner of the illustration:

This illustration of our solar system contains a planet called Pluto. Today's solar system has only eight
planets since Pluto was demoted. I and my encyclopedia won't forget you, Pluto. We won't forget.

The World Book Encyclopedia. Chicago: World Book-Childcraft International, 1979. Includes all photos and quotations.

Happy Homemaker Monday

The weather:::

We have some nice June Gloom. Its cloudy but nice and cool.

On my reading pile:::  
Haven't made it to the library yet. I need to stock up on something soon though; I'm spending more and more time sitting down and resting.

On my TV:::
When you don't have cable, there's not much TV watching to do. I wanted to see the new Dallas this week, but we don't get that channel.

On the menu for this week:::

Nothing! We had a weekend out of town so I skipped menu planning and shopping.

On my to do list:::

Make a menu

Shopping

What I am sewing, crocheting, knitting or creating:::
Still working on the lamp. I keep saying I hope to be done by next week, but today I'll say it will get done when it gets done. There's no rush, right?

Looking around the house:::

Anthony and the freshly groomed cat are relaxing on the couch. The cat was purring very loudly while Anthony brushed her. The rest of the house needs some attention that I'm not going to give it. I'm officially playing the pregnancy card. If you could see my fat feet, you certainly would excuse my messy house.

From the camera:::

Bobby and a baby tractor at Cars Land.

Something fun to share::: 

Who has kids that LOVE the movie Cars? If you've been forced to see it so many times that you know all the words, then you should make it to the new Cars Land. We are lucky enough to be close to Disneyland so it wasn't hard for us to make a trip, but if you are far and you love Cars, its definitely worth the effort. We didn't even need the map because we already knew our way around Radiator Springs!

World Book Wednesday

Volume I

Indian, American-  I'm willing to bet this entry no longer exists in any current encyclopedia.

The third paragraph mentions that some Indians refer to themselves as Native Americans.
The fourth paragraph says Indians are also called redmen or redskins.

Iron and Steel- I initially included this entry because I thought this big old gas guzzler would prove how far the car industry has come since the 70s. Then I did some research...

According to the caption, a car contains about 1500 pounds of steel. Today, the average is about 1800.
I'm still trying to figure this out since everything on my Saturn is plastic except the oil dipstick.

Iron Lung- Polio epidemics in the 40s and 50s paralyzed thousands, and the iron lung was the only means of breathing for many patients. Although positive pressure ventilators that allow patients to move about freely have been in use since the 1950s, there are still a few dozen iron lungs in use in the US today.

Isotope- "Isotopes are atoms of the same element that differ in atomic weight, or mass." I understand that because I majored in chemistry. But just because you understand the theory behind a concept doesn't mean you can apply the knowledge to everyday life. For instance, I have no clue what this illustration is showing:

Apparently there is a device that utilizes isotopes that when pointed at a shirtless man's head will diagnose something, and when pointed at a guinea pig does research. Very close examination shows that whatever the device is reading, the naked man and the guinea pig register at opposite ends of the scale.

The World Book Encyclopedia. Chicago: World Book-Childcraft International, 1979. Includes all photos and quotations.

Happy Homemaker Monday

The weather:::

It is overcast and humid this morning. Its supposed to be cooler than yesterday, but I don't care because its still humid and I'm pregnant and miserable! (Sorry. Hopefully moms of summer babies can understand where I'm coming from.)

On my reading pile:::  
I finally finished The Last Unicorn. If I can get to the library, I would like to check out Quiet: The Power Of Introverts In A World That Can't Stop Talking.

On my TV:::
Maybe some Leave It To Beaver with Anthony.

On the menu for this week:::

Monday- Cabbage and Sausage

Tuesday- Hoagies

Wednesday- Chicken Chili and Corncake

Thursday- Meatloaf

Friday- Lasagna

Saturday- Leftovers

Sunday- Chinese Chicken Salad

On my to do list:::

Pick up the house (we had a good weekend)

Figure out where the baby stuff is packed away, and what we need to buy

What I am sewing, crocheting, knitting or creating:::
I just made it to the craft store yesterday to get more shrinky plastic for my lampshade. I'm hoping to be done by next week.

Looking around the house:::

Its a little messy but not too bad. Anthony and I should have it in shape this morning. 

From the camera:::

I planted half inch sprouted lentils on Friday. They've grown three inches in three days!

Something fun to share::: 

The most fun I've had in the last week is going outside. Get some sun or find some shade. Read a book or introduce a three year old to a roly-poly.