the happy homewrecker

I made the trek to Crate and Barrel this afternoon. Spencer got horribly crabby (because he was hungry because he had refused to eat his lunch; sometimes I think he holds out for whatever I might bring along in my purse----like Cheerios or crackers or pretzels or whatever---so there was no way I was going to give him a snack after he refused to eat his sandwich and fruit for lunch) and Ginger was crabby because she's crabby most of the time these days. I'm hoping it's because she's frustrated with not being able to walk or communicate very well.

Anyway, Spencer had a freak-out at the store (a meltdown in a store with that much glass and porcelain is taking tantrums to a whole new level) and I had to browse with Ginger on one hip, but in the end I chose this. I looked at the Staxx, but couldn't get past the idea that they reminded me of flowerpots (something to do with the thick rim around the edge, I think). I like the Diner because it's sort of in the middle as far as weight/thickness. Our Pfaltzgraff is thick and heavy and trying to lift a stack of plates makes me feel like I should be bench-pressing to prepare for it. Diner has this retro feel, like the stuff you'd eat off of at a 50s diner, which fits in well with our cherries kitchen theme. I like it.

We're having Christmas dinner at our house this year (Mom's doing Thanksgiving), which is fine with me. Christmas morning is mostly for the kids, so we'd rather stay put and let them enjoy their gifts rather than rushing all over the state. Plus, making a ham is easier than making a turkey! Last year Gary's company gave him a gift certificate for a Honeybaked Ham and we're hoping he'll get another one this year.

Since we moved I've been wanting to replace my Pfaltzgraff dinnerware with something white. What we have is a mix of solid lavender, light blue, butter yellow and spring green dishes from a Pfaltzgraff line that was popular when we got married. I like it but it doesn't go with the kitchen we're setting up now (the yellow and red). If I can get something white, it'll go with everything. I'm thinking now would be a good time to buy since there are a lot of holiday sales, and then I could use it for Christmas dinner, too. We don't have enough of our current set for dinner, which means we'd be eating on a mix of the pastels plus this cheap old ivy-covered Corelle dinnerware from Wal-Mart (you've probably seen it before). Any suggestions on something that won't break the bank?

Laundry question: yesterday I washed a red rag rug in cold water, all by itself. Some of the dye from the rug must have remained in the washer, because some of the clothes from the next load came out tinted a very slight pink. If they were all-white items, I'd just bleach them, but they're mostly-white with trims of other colors. I'm thinking I should wash them again (I didn't dry them) and use detergent and a color-safe bleach. Any other suggestions?

Yesterday afternoon I was vaccuming upstairs when the vaccum suddenly shut off. After trying another plug in the bedroom and then realizing that the lights across the hall in Ginger's room had gone off, I figured I tripped a breaker. I couldn't find a breaker that looked like it needed to be flipped, so I left everything alone for Gary to deal with when he got home. A few hours later I was rinsing some dishes and using the garbage disposal when it, too, shut off, along with the overhead kitchen light. No breakers tripped that time, either. Something funky's going on with our electrical stuff.

And ants! We have teeny tiny black ants in our back bathroom. They're coming in either through the vent or the exterior back door next to the bathroom; Gary thinks they're looking for water. Having dealt with ant issues in our previous home, I can say at least they're the small ones. I found a nontoxic ant spray recipe but I need some Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap.

Ain't home ownership grand?

Thanks Melissa for the excellent idea to call Target's customer service number! I should have thought of that. Duh. Unfortunately they weren't able to help; I guess they only check stores in a certain area relative to where you live (i.e. like an hour away, on the other side of Cleveland) and none of those stores have the cushion in stock, either. The guy told me that it wasn't discontinued, but that I should "wait a couple of weeks until it comes back in stock." Crimeny. I don't have a couple of weeks. I have five days! My guests are going to be sitting on folded-up bath towels. Pfffft.

So I found a great chair cushion at Target. Only they had just two left, and calls to four other stores have left me empty-handed. What to do, what to do . . .

I am SO craving some Banana Split Cake. Mom promised me months ago to make me some for the Labor Day Block party if Ginger had arrived (the original recipe contains raw eggs). Although I could probably make it now with egg substitute. Hmmmm.

I bought two pints of blueberries on Monday, they were on sale for 99 cents a pint. The last time I had some, I made two batches of blueberry muffins and froze them for post-baby. I'd like to use them in another bakery recipe that I can freeze, but I'm stuck at muffins. Any ideas? Nothing with a strudel topping, the crumbs don't seem to freeze well. I'm thinking maybe blueberry pancakes, stacked in freezer bags with waxed paper between to re-heat.

We have this couch from IKEA that has a slipcover. It's a green couch, and I like the color, but over the years it's gotten a few funny patches where we think Gary's prescription acne medication bleached out the color into this strange yellowish shade. Knowing it will take a lot of wear and tear as long as the kids are small, we don't want to get a new one, but I was thinking I'd like to fix the coloring if we can. Anyone used Rit dye for this kind of big job?

Anyone have experience with making a dessert that includes peaches? We got some peaches at the store on Sunday, and while they're ripe and smell delicious, the texture is kind of odd and so they're not great for eating out of hand. I have five, I'm not sure if that's enough for a pie or a cobbler or something similar. Or if I should even try to bake with them since the texture is weird.