Chocolate chip cookies, with photos

I don’t dream about bloggers like I’ve read some people do, but I think about them. I think about their posts, what problems they’re having or what they’re worrying about. When you commit yourself to becoming part of a community, when you start letting people get a glimpse of your life and start peeking into theirs, you start to feel like you really know them. You start to see that you are not alone in the world, that there is a shared pool of experiences from which we all draw. Before I got involved with blogging, how would I have ever known that someone else on the other side of the country feels the same way I do about things? It’s not ego, or selfishness, it’s just that one tends to think that they are the only one who, for example, imagines cars crashing into them when they drive or has daymares about their husband dying and how they would utterly and completely fall apart if one of their children got kidnapped. I knew one in five women struggle with depression but it really hit home when blog friend after blog friend wrote about it. I worry about people I only know from their blogs, like they were right here in front of me.

My point is that I’ve noticed a general malaise among bloggers lately; most everyone is sick of gloomy weather and desperate for Spring, people write about how they just can’t think of anything to write about and would rather lay on the couch and eat cookies. Well, ask, and ye shall receive, I give you…Cookie Porn. I hope this puts a smile on someone’s face today.

I love to make, and eat, cookies. And so does my family. So last night after dinner I dug a bag of Nestle Toll House Mini Morsels out of the pantry and got to work. I used to make the regular kind of Toll House until they came out with the Mini Morsels. It’s the same amount of chips by weight, but the pieces are much smaller so that the cookies are infused with chips. Yum. As you’ll see from the pictures I’ve been playing around with flash settings and not doing a very good job, so some of the shots came out too dark. But you’ll get the idea.

My family says Mini Morsels are the best, so that’s what I make

Almost more chips than dough.


I end up covered in flour every time. I don’t even own an apron.

I use a really big cookie sheet, because a dozen is never enough.

These needed to go back in for a few more minutes.

Mmmm, cookies. Nothing like a little sugary treat right before bed.

That big bowl of dough goes back in the fridge, and I’ll make another 16 today and tomorrow which should use up whatever dough we haven’t eaten raw – I know, it’s bad for you, raw eggs and all, but everyone who opens the fridge sneaks a chunk so what can I do?

The cookies are also good at 10:30 in the morning with a second cup of coffee, or um, so I’ve heard.

Have a good day, everybody. This morning, a sunbeam burst through my heavy living room drapes and shot right down to the floor. The boys and I stood there for a minute, transfixed, passing our hands through the beam and feeling the teeny bit of warmth it brought. Spring is really coming, I promise.

A Cold Tuesday Morning

This morning I Googled myself

Thanks to everybody who left a comment about changing my URL in their blogroll. You may also be getting an email from me which you can obviously disregard. I’m much happier with my new address now that it has the name of the blog in it. I googled my blog name, have you done that? I used to be the very first listing for the words “table for five” but I’ve been bumped down to fifth place after a bunch of listings for a movie called Table For Five from 1983 starring Jon Voight. Google’s ranking is based on the number of times a phrase is searched for, right? So all I have to do is Google it over and over and I should move right back up. I mean come on, if you had told me a year ago that something I created would be anywhere on a Google search I wouldn’t have believed it.

I made a Mix CD
A while back I wrote a post about how out-of-touch I felt regarding new music. I felt I was stuck in a rut of old familiar songs and wasn’t learning what else was out there. Jess hooked me up with her latest mix cd, and I was happy to learn that there was music being made in this decade that I actually enjoyed. In fact, “Your Cover’s Blown” by Belle & Sebastian is my new favorite song to play while I drive around doing errands.

The best part is that I re-invited music back into my life. I had fallen into the habit of listening to talk radio in the car. I tuned into “This American Life” and “Living on Earth”, “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me” and “What Do You Know?”, “Car Talk” and “The Splendid Table”. These are all outstanding programs to listen to, but there’s something about hearing a good song on the radio that is really uplifting. So I dug out a stack of old CDs and reacquainted myself with the bands and solo artists I’ve been listening to for years. And I realized that there’s nothing wrong with enjoying old music. These songs and artists have been around for twenty or even thirty years for a reason. With that in mind, I put together a group of songs that represent the best of what Chris and I have been listening to for most of our adult lives. The albums these songs are on are what we take in the car for road trips, what we wash dishes to, what Chris listens to while building furniture. Here’s the playlist:

And She Was……………….Talking Heads
Ruby Baby…………………..Donald Fagen
True Fine Love……………Steve Miller Band
Money Can’t Buy It……. Annie Lennox
Helplessly Hoping………. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
FM (No Static At All)….. Steely Dan
Water of Love………………Dire Straits
Kiss of Life……………………Sade
Seven Bridges Road…… .Eagles
Right By Your Side………Eurythmics
Diamonds on the
Soles of her Shoes………. Paul Simon
Free Fallin’ ………………….Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
I’d be happy to make a copy for anyone who’s interested. Email me your home or office address and I’ll get them out by the end of the week. Oh, and the title of the CD? Not sure. Maybe I should call it my “Road trippin’ Dish washin’ Furniture Buildin’ Mix”.

Here I Am!

Well I’ll be darned. It worked just like Blogger said it would. Here I am in my new address and everything. Now I just have to send a few dozen emails, change my address with Technorati, SiteMeter, BlogMad, and TTLB (shoot, am I forgetting anyone?), and get some new posts ready.

You know, for the amount of time I spend on this blog, and believe me if I didn’t have Kaitlyn it would pretty much be all damn day, I should really be earning some money with it. I know I don’t have anywhere near enough unique visits to warrant AdSense, I get in a week what some bloggers get in half a day. But there should be some way to make a little spending money, don’t you think? A lousy twelve bucks to pay for Weight Watchers meetings? 48 dollars might not seem like much, but it’s costing Chris that much a week to drive to his new job and back.

Did you know that a study showed that Moms, whether they stay home or work an outside job as well, should be paid $130,000 a year? That’s for all the jobs we do i.e. chauffeur, events planner, housekeeper, food service manager, accountant, nurse. Take the average salary for each of those jobs, prorate it based on what percentage of our day is spent doing each, and it comes to $130,000. Huh. Would I be happy if the government gave me free health care instead? You bet your ass I would.

Oh-KAY! Enough ranting for one post, geez. I’m off to start emailing everyone I know.

SHIT! Shit! I left a post at the old address that says the new address is table4five.com AND IT’S NOT!!!!! It’s table4five.blogspot.com! And now I can’t change it because blogger doesn’t recognize the old address anymore. I thought the old address would take me to the “URL not recognized” page, but it doesn’t. So now visitors to the old address will see a link to a page that is not me. That’s what I get for not proof-reading the damn thing first. And see how I am reduced to cursing like a sailor? I don’t have a clue what to do now. Shit.

Okay, I need to just calm the f__ down. If I had read my email first, I would have seen Chelle’s suggestion to re-register the old address under a different name and leave the correct new address there. God Elizabeth, have a little more coffee in the morning why don’tcha?

American Idol Recap

You have no idea how good it feels to be able to sit down and write my Thursday American Idol Recap instead of the weekly who’s-sick-this-week report. Both the boys went to school today, Ryan’s ear still hurts a little but as long as they don’t overdo it I think they’ll be fine. I’m dreading what their backpacks will look like when they get home though. Ryan missed a total of 4 and half days of school, Nathan missed 3.

BUT, American Idol. So. You know I’ve only been watching the men compete because I really want a man to win this one. I watched clips of the women’s performances on idolonfox.com and have to say they really impressed me. I think this was the best week so far. The songs from the 50s really seemed to suit everyone’s voices and styles. Here’s a rundown:

Mandisa sang “I Don’t Hurt Anymore”. The judges are speechless, and rightfully so. From what I heard she belted it right out. Although apparently Simon said she moved like a “stripper”. So?

Bucky sang Buddy Holly’s “Oh Boy”. I thought he gave it a nice country-rock feel, although he had trouble reaching some lower notes.

Paris sang “Fever”. The song was a great fit for her. I know everyone loves her, but I wonder how her voice will hold up throughout the rest of the competition. I don’t doubt that she’ll end up with some kind of record contract no matter how she does on AI.

Chris sang “Walk The Line”. Televisionwithoutpity.com called it “the Stappiest version of a country song you could ever possibly imagine”, Scott Stapp is the lead singer for Creed, remember them? I don’t know. I like Chris, I’d like to see him go far in this, but he should stick to rocking out and not do ballads. I’m just saying.

Katharine sang “Come Rain or Come Shine”. She sang the heck out of that song. This was a great performance for her, and she moved really comfortably around the stage.

Taylor sang “Not Fade Away”. Sigh. I like Taylor less and less every week. I just don’t think his voice is that strong, and that jerky dance thing he does was quirky at first; now it’s just annoying. I can see him doing dinner shows in Vegas, but not as the American Idol. Sorry.

Lisa sang “Why Do Fools Fall In Love”. She was adorable and seemed to have fun singing the song. I don’t know about the outfit though, it was a little costumey for me.

Kevin sang “When I Fall In Love”. Was this song ever used in a Disney movie? That’s what it sounded like to me. I thought Kevin sang this well, his performance was better than Bucky’s. I was surprised he was voted off. He should sue Seacrest for that dumb “Chicken Little” comment.

Elliott sang “Teach Me Tonight”. I didn’t like it, it didn’t seem like a good fit for his voice. That’s really all I can say about that, it was just okay.

Kellie sang “Walking After Midnight”. I don’t like the high pitch of her voice, it’s a little nasally. She looked pretty in her yellow top but that bleached platinum hair-overdone. It’s not an audtion for “Laguna Beach” after all.

Ace sang “In The Still Of The Night”. I have to admit to being less enthusiastic about Ace than I was at the beginning. That falsetto thing he can do is cool and all, but he uses it in every song and he really needs to start showing more range. Also, he closes his eyes when he sings, which is a no-no. But I’d still do him if he showed up at my door, don’t get me wrong.

Overall, a good week for most contestants. If I were the men, though, I’d be watching Mandisa very closely. They’d better step it up big time or I’m afraid it will be another win for the ladies.

Side note: On “Live With Regis And Kelly”, Regis just held up a newspaper photo of Kevin next to a shot of Gelman ( his producer), and they look so much alike it’s uncanny. Maybe Reeg should give Kevin a job.

In Michigan It’s Pronounced “Blahg”

As I work with Chelle on the site redesign, contemplating colors and fonts and header sizes and such, I’ve been spending a lot more time actually looking at my own blog. Usually I just check to make sure a new post is up, or to go through my blogroll. I know, I should get Bloglines, I know.

Anyway, I’ve also been thinking a lot about why I blog, and what I’m getting out of it. I started my blog last August, after we had settled into our new house and I was pretty much waiting out my pregnancy. I was reading blogs, and found myself starting to think in terms of what I would write about if I had a blog. My experience with journal-writing has been spotty at best. I had journals, or diaries if you will, and I would occasionally write in them, but it was never a pour-my-heart-out kind of thing. More like once in a while I would pick it up, try to think of what interesting thing had happened to me, and write it down with lots of exclamation points.

So I was skeptical about my chances for actually keeping a blog going. I figured I would write a few posts, forget about it, and then remember months later that I even started it at all. Instead, I found myself getting seriously addicted to the whole thing. Yes, I said addicted. I don’t have any other vices-almost never drink alcohol, don’t smoke anymore, don’t gamble or shop compulsively. I needed something. Something that I could call mine.

I love being a “Professional Mom”, don’t get me wrong. I’ve been doing it for 7 years now and can’t imagine doing anything else. But one thing I’ve always thought was missing from my life was something that defined me. When I filled out message board profiles I always got stuck on the question about my hobbies. Hobbies? Other than coming up with 7 dinners a week that everyone in my family will like and won’t take more than 30 minutes to cook? Other than paying the bills and keeping the checkbook balanced? Does reading for a few minutes before passing out on my pillow at night count?

So…my very first post was August 29, 2005. I was shocked when I got 3 whole comments, one from our very own MotherGooseMouse; thanks again J! I tried my hardest to make my posts interesting, and witty, and funny if I could. I decided not to use the profanity that usually graces my speech because I didn’t want to offend anyone (and then I got to know Dawn ;) Much to my surprise I found the same people commenting each time I posted, so I commented on their posts, and so on and so on. I was so happy to be part of a community.

Chelle suggested I write about how I felt the first time I figured out how to make my blog my own. I wanted a blogroll so badly. I wanted to recognize the blogs I loved, and the people who had made me feel welcome and appreciated. I just was terrified to mess with the template. I was sure that I would do the wrong thing and crash the whole system or something. One night I asked my personal Computer Support Technician, aka my husband, if he would help me figure out the blogroll thing. We worked through it slowly, step by step so that I would be able to do it myself eventually, and let me tell you when I saw the link appear on my site, I was over the moon. I couldn’t believe that I had actually created something that was appearing on the Internet for everyone to see. I had conquered my fear of trying new things and failing, because I hadn’t failed. It was a big moment for me and my feelings of self-worth.

I know there are a lot of really good blogs out there. Almost every day I find one that blows me away; today for example I found The Reign of Ellen and wanted to stay and read all her archives in one sitting. I know I am just one tiny blog, and I am starting to understand the fluidity of the blogosphere. People read your blog, maybe more than once, maybe they leave a comment or two, and then they move on to other blogs, and it’s nothing personal. I know this.

And yet, it still bugs me when someone seems like they’re becoming a regular reader, commenting and even emailing me, and then they disappear. I want to send them a note like in Junior High: “Do you like me? Check One Box: Yes No Maybe”. I worry that I offended them in some way, with something I wrote about, with a comment I made that was supposed to be funny but was offensive instead. Not that I think I’ve ever been offensive, but who knows?

I’ll keep blogging, not for the comments but for me. It lets me get things off my chest, work out problems and solutions, record what’s happening in my life. I can’t remember what happened last week let alone last year; now I have a written record to remind me. It’s like the diary I always meant to start. I won’t stop pouring my heart out this time, and I’ll try not to use too many exclamation points either.

I SO Deserved This After The Day I Had

That screaming sound you just heard? Was me discovering that DirecTV has added a UPN channel to their programming. A UPN channel. The channel that shows VERONICA MARS.

I can start watching VERONICA MARS AS OF TONIGHT.

Did I type that loud enough for ya?

This Just In

LANSING, Mich. – Gov. Jennifer Granholm will sign a bill requiring abortion providers to give pregnant women the option to see ultrasound images of their fetuses, a spokeswoman says.

I’ve started two separate posts on this and deleted both of them. The gist of both entries went something like this: I am Pro-Choice, I’ve never had an abortion, but I imagine it’s hard enough to drive to Planned Parenthood itself without being asked if you want to see your fetus on an ultrasound. I’m sure there were all kinds of reasons why the bill passed, but I still don’t like it.

That’s all I’m going to say about that. Here’s the complete link to the news story:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060320/ap_on_re_us/abortion_ultrasound

Hello New Readers

I want to acknowledge and welcome two new commenters to the Table. First is Jenn of Jennster’s Blog. If you look at my comments from yesterday you’ll see her profile photo-she is a pretty lady I tell ya! And totally rockin’ that scarf. Her blog is excellent, I recommend stopping by.

Next is DeAnn of TV Goddess. That’s right, TV Goddess! A woman after my own heart! And she had a link to a Cafe Press page that sells “Serenity” and “Firefly” stuff. I wish that freakin’ money truck would hurry up and get here so I could buy everything they sell. A license plate frame that says “Wash is my Co-pilot”! A t-shirt that reads “Kaylee’s Spaceship Engine Repair”! Waaaaannntttt them! I may just love DeAnn a little now.

Thanks for stopping by, ladies. Always room for more at the Table.

Edited from the earlier post:My Mother-in-law is in the hospital. She is pretty sick and will need IV fluids and some tests, but she should make a full recovery. My sister-in-law and her family have driven up from Toledo to be with her and to talk to the doctors. Unfortunately this is my husband’s last week of work at his current job so he could only take Wednesday and Thursday off. We’ll go up Saturday and spend the night at Mom’s house. I’ll be doing some cleaning and getting her bills organized. Let’s hope I don’t have to use the word “hospital” again for a long time.

Just A Little Recap Today-And Kaitlyn Is Better, Thanks

Mrs. Fortune mentioned stopping by my blog to read my American Idol recap. Which is flattering, and now that I look back at my archives I realize I have been using Thursday to discuss “Idol” and other TV-related topics.

I did have Idol on the TV on Tuesday, but I was only half-watching. I know about Stevie Wonder, and it is pretty amazing that the contestants got to spend time with him individually having him help them pick a song to sing. I tried to explain to Ryan why Bucky was crying.

“Imagine if you sat down to write a story about Harry Potter, and J.K. Rowling was sitting next to you reading your story and helping you write it.” He understood.

As for the actual singing, I heard Ace and the first girl. They both seemed off-key, like they were having trouble finding the tune. I understood why on Wednesday night when Stevie sang. When he sings some songs he uses his voice to sing around the tune. His voice dips, and slides, always ending up back on key. It’s hard to sing something like that note for note. I read over on Ninja Poodles that “Doogie” (I think she means Kevin Covais) sang “Part-Time Lover”. I’m really glad I didn’t hear that. No disrespect to Mr. Wonder, but that song is annoying as hell.

What did Chris Daughtry sing? I can’t imagine how he found a Stevie Wonder song that fit his voice and style. And what the heck was up with Bucky’s hair? I assume they have hair and makeup people, one of them thought Bucky would look good with soft, shiny curls? Uh, no.

I also caught the opening number Wednesday. What does the song “All I Need” have to do with camping exactly? The set was wrong, the costumes were wrong, Ace wearing a MONSTER SUIT with a big scary head was WRONG.

As for why no complete recap, there has been a major crisis in my family this week involving my mother-in-law. She was taken by ambulance to the hospital yesterday, and my husband left work and drove up 3 hours to be with her. I want to say more, because it would be good to get the story off my chest, but I want to make sure it’s okay with Chris first. He might want to protect his mother’s privacy by having me not discuss it, I don’t know. But suffice it to say that Tuesday night was somewhat stressful, Wednesday morning was full-blown stress and panic, and the rest of yesterday was upsetting.

I do have good news, amazingly enough. Chris is leaving his current job on Friday and on Monday starts a new job that is more suited to his skills and interests and is paying him a LOT more money. He probably wouldn’t mind me revealing that he has been working for Electronic Data Systems, they used to be part of GM and then were spun off, and they provide GM’s Information Technology support as well as supporting other clients. The reason Chris is leaving? Most of the jobs are being outsourced overseas. His team will continue until Spring of 2007, but there’s no guarantee after that. And it was time for him to move on. This new company has great benefits, the only downside is that it is about a 30 minute drive each way, which means no more driving him to work so I can have a car. We’ll have to get another used one at some point.

So that’s the current news at this point. Now that the baby has gone down for her morning nap I’m planning to crawl into bed with “Outlander” and maybe even sleep a little.

Hats and Cat …or Playing Dress-Up…or Something

I took photos of the baby today, because she is too cute, and because my cousin sent me new clothes and it’s fun to play dress-up. Especially with hats, because if she’s anything like her brothers, she won’t keep a hat on for anything once she’s old enough to snatch them off her head.

I’m thinking this hat probably won’t fit her by Halloween, although she has a teeny head compared to some of the similar age babies I’ve met in the grocery store. And I’ve been waiting for months to put this cardigan on her, it is incredibly soft and just needed the right outfit to go underneath. Thanks again Kyle!

I took this picture on Monday while Chris was at work, because he is very much against baby headbands. But I think she looks really cute! Although I was surprised when I took it off and the gathered material had left marks on her forehead. Maybe it was too small?

This picture is actually from Sunday, I leaned her up against that pillow while I made a bottle (I know, I know) and she toppled over, fell asleep instantly, and then of course Blackdrop had to come and lay down next to her warm head. Ryan looked at this picture and said that with Kaitlyn in light colors next to the dark cat, it looked like Yin & Yang. I asked him where he learned about Yin & Yang and he said from the cartoon “Jackie Chan Adventures”. Hmmm.

The next set I post will hopefully be of Chris and the boys, because they’re cute too. They probably won’t be wearing headbands, though. Or pumpkin hats.