meat is murder; eat your mac and cheese

In the car today;

Greta: mom, how do people make meat out of cow butt?

I pause. I feel the need to tell it like it is.

Me: Well, first the cow has to die. ( horrifying images of slaughter houses pop into my head)
Then people take the meat, which is the muscle of the cow, and eat it.

Greta: When I am a woman I will never eat cow bum. That's where the poop comes out and that's gross. That's gross right?

Me: Yes, it's really gross.

This brief conversation with Greta today got me thinking. I'm going back to being a vegetarian. I was in high school and during my early twenties. I was influenced greatly by my love for animals, a book I read revealing the dark side of the slaughterhouse, and Morrissey. I fell off the wagon. Since then I will eat chicken occasionally only when eating out, I won't cook it at home because I refuse to touch it in it's raw form.

So, yeah. No more meat. I can live with a clean conscience and practice what I preach to my kids. To love thine animal.

baby artichoke

Bravo, Selma!

When was the last time that you saw a movie or tv show where a mother was breast feeding her child, or that it was even implied? I'm a huge LOST fan, but why oh why could those writers not give Claire a little time to nurse Aaron? They were on an uninhabited (as far as they knew) island for goodness sake, how was she feeding that baby? Dharma baby formula? I think not, the hatch wasn't found till Aaron was at least a few weeks old. I waited and waited. When Aaron would cry he would just get passed to Charlie or Hurly. I wanted to scream, "just give him a boob!" It was very frustrating.


I just recently heard of the whole Selma Hayek uproar. She was in Sierra Leone promoting a tetanus vaccine campaign. While there she acted as a wet nurse and breast fed a starving newborn whose mother had no milk. She also chose to do this in front of ABC cameras. Some have reduced this to a mere "media stunt". She has shaken things up, gotten people talking, kicked the wet nurse taboo in the pants. I believe she displayed a very compassionate act and highlighted the importance and naturalness of breast feeding.


Hopefully one of these days our modern western society will feel a little less backward about such a primal and beautiful thing as the gift of a mother's milk to her child, or even to the child of another in need. Maybe someday mothers nursing their 10 week old babies in a Glendale Starbucks wont be asked to leave for fear of making patrons uncomfortable. And we won't have US talk show personalities comparing public breast feeding to public urination.

Until then, to Selma, lactavists everywhere, all mothers not afraid to nurse their babies in public, to fathers who support their wives, and to all those moms from the homeschool park that have nursed their babes well into their toddler years, I say BRAVO!

hanami, anyone?

This month has been a rough one for the kids. Runny noses, junky coughs, teething, and fevers galore. As for myself, so far I have been successful in warding off these evil viruses with massive daily doses of vitamin C and spoonfuls of raw garlic. One thing good that has come about this month as it does every year about this time here in southern California, the trees, they are a' bloomin! Apple, cherry, plum, almond. I wish I could identify them all, but what an amazing sight they are. So quiet for most of the year, blending in with the surrounding green...then they pop! As if to say, "Hey! Check out how magnificent I am!" And they are.
In Japan they give proper adulation to this wonder of nature. Typically it is April when they have the hanami parties under the cherry trees. Taking time out of their busy lives to pause and soak in the beauty as well as lots of beer...not really, (really.)

We were so fortunate as to visit Japan during this season three years ago this April. Greta was 18 months old. We also had with us Gramma Peggy and Julien. We hit a few touristy places, but mostly spent our time taking walks through the cities and through the parks to admire the trees that were dripping with blossoms. It was amazing. We took probably hundreds of photos trying to capture the glory of these trees, but it was impossible.

Here are a few photos from our trip. Happy late February to all. Make time for a little hanami!

what's the time?

view the clock.

all we need is love

find love here.

stop when red lights flash

like a weed

Henry's first tooth finally broke through! He is also ready to crawl any day now. The wood floors are slippery and making it a challenge, but he's not giving up! And he will likely start college in the fall. My boy is growing so fast.

papa love

Zach goes back to work tomorrow. Back to an office on the other side of town. He has been working on and off from home for the past 4 months or so. It has been so great for all of us. We're going to miss him.

chubby bits

This past week Ollie took a trip to the vet. It was time, as Greta so delicately put it, to have his "chubby bits" removed, (her words not ours.) Or to "have surgery down there by his butt." Yes, Ollie was neutered. He's doing very well and getting lots of love.

ollie!!

Cafe de Leche

There's a new coffee house in the hood! Its modern decor and special nook for the wee ones has me very excited. It's just down the hill, maybe 3 minutes away from our house, in HIghland Park. They use Intelligentsia coffee beans which means the coffee is AMAZING! Hip places like this so close to mi casa make me feel not so bad about living in LA. We have been living in the northeast part of LA now for one whole year. I'll admit I wasn't thrilled about leaving my Culver City comfort zone. But turns out that I'm really digging it out here. Don't get me wrong, I sticking with my Portland dream, but this side of town is a more tolerable and less congested LA for me. Not to mention the wonderful new friends we have made. Outside it's green and lush, the air is clear from the rains we have had, we can see snowy mountains from our deck. It's great living in LA right now, but trust me, I will not be singing it's praises in mid summer. For now I can truly appreciate all (some) of what this city has to offer and maybe I'll go for a second cup of coffee this afternoon at my new favorite joint that I've only been in once...Cafe de Leche.

lyla lucy lee

the flower lady

Another wedding under my belt. This was the first wedding I have done with only a weeks notice. It went really well. I was fortunate to have on hand several vases and supplies so I didn't have to go out shopping for too much. Flowers arrived on Friday all the way from Carpenteria. My supplier provides me the finest flowers, they always look better than I expect, especially after being packed tightly in boxes and shipped overnight.

When I work on a wedding there is a lot of planning involved, ordering to be done, budgets to be made, and really just 2 days of intense hands on work. Before the kids I could work throughout the day. Now the bulk of my work is done after the kids have gone to bed. Our kitchen is transformed into a work space where I clean, prep the flowers, and design. I work into the wee hours of the morning. Surrounded by color and the sweet aroma of roses, sweet peas, tulips, lilies, I keep chocolate and bubbly water close by and listen to episode after episode after episode after episode of This American Life to keep myself going. ( I Heart Ira Glass).

I love this work that I do just a few times a year. All fairly intimate and modest weddings. I have loved all the brides I have met (except for one and that was a long long time ago *cring*). Literally every time I work on a wedding, during those wee hours getting ready for the following "Big Day" I think to myself, "Yeah, I'm NEVER doing this again." But I do. Because I love those few hours before the wedding. The place a buzz with caterers, photographers, wacky djs. It's fun and everyone is usually in a festive mood. The biggest pay off is when I deliver to the bride her bouquet. Often a bride will cry when she sees her flowers, then I cry , and we hug. Those moments make it all worth it. Knowing that I have added beauty to one of the most important days in someone's life. It's fun and rewarding work to say the least.

Flowers are beautiful, powerful, delicate, and awe inspiring.

Here are just a few shots of this past Sunday's wedding.

oh yeah

I ordered for Henry this funky blue jumpsuit in a size 18-24 months from Kate Quinn Organics. Depending on the brand he can wear up to an 18 month size right now. So I was sure he'd be able to wear this, if not now then in the near future. Unless it shrinks up considerably in the wash, Henry will wear it when he's 3. Greta, hearing the shock in my voice as I took it out of the package had to try it on herself. The jumpsuit inspired in her these discoesque poses almost instantaneously. I had to grab the camera.
If you don't have your own powder blue jumpsuit to disco up your day, try some of these moves on for size.

thursday sunrise

"flowers really do intoxicate me"

A friend has planned an intimate and impromptu wedding for this Saturday. Needing to order flowers tomorrow for delivery by Friday. Calla lilies, orchids, tulips...orange, pink, and apple green...all my favorites to work with. It will consume me this week, but I love any chance I get to work and be creative with flowers. I miss my days at the flower shop, but wouldn't trade my job as mama of two for the world!

fairies

Recently we found ourselves in a Disney store. A rare occasion. It reeked of plastic and dust, a giant monitor blaring Disney commercials so loud I wanted to walk right back out. But Greta likes to check out the princess gear from time to time, so we shopped. This day she found these synthetic from head to toe fairies that were actually kind of cute, a little risque, but cute.



Once home, Greta suggested ( before I could) that we make new dresses. A perfect opportunity to soften them up a bit and add some cotton and wool, and to give them a more modest look. We cut up old tights and an old pair of her pants and fashioned new, comfortable, and easy to fly in gowns. Much better.