Lois Lane Live

Former Reporter, Current Mommy, Superhero in Disguise

Just Another Manic Morning June 14, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 12:38 am

The kids and I don’t have mornings like the ones featured in movies or on TV.  You know, where you sit around the breakfast table, have conversations, prepare for the upcoming day.  No, it’s more like hit the snooze button, race around the house getting everyone dressed, breakfast in the car, and drop your kid off at school just before they’re considered late.  Yup, that’s morning for us.  However, I’m hoping it won’t be for long.  I’m praying that a Tassimo coffee system and delicious BAGEL-FULS all-in-ones is in my future so that I can at least set my alarm a few minutes earlier so I can have time to myself and then start the morning chaos.  )

“This post was written for Parent Bloggers Network as part of a contest sponsored by KRAFT BAGEL-FULS.”

 

Square Chickens and What Not To Do June 6, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 10:20 am

My So-Called Cooking Demonstration

Ever since I can remember, my mom has been cooking up delicious Chinese food for our family. The smell of soy sauce, ginger, and spices filled the air each and every night in our house. As I got older, I realized that I definitely did NOT inherit my mom’s culinary expertise. Living on my own in college, I relied on ramen, sandwiches, and take-out. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t for lack of trying. I’ve ventured into the kitchen a few times, and someday… someday… I will succeed. But you don’t really want to hear my stories about success. No, you’re here for the tales of concoctionary (I just made up a word - yay!) woe.

Well, this one time, at band camp when it comes to even the basics, I was a cooking retard. I honestly couldn’t make a soft boiled egg. It was either too runny or too hard, never the way I like it. I usually just cooked enough to get by. You know, spaghetti every once in a while or eggs in the morning. Well, several years after living on my own while working as a television anchor, I got a call from a local Asian American festival organizer wanting local (quasi) celebrities to do a cooking demonstration at their upcoming festival. I panicked and called my boyfriend, who’s now my husband, and asked him what I should do. He gave me his mom’s super easy “ro mee fan” sticky rice recipe which turned out to be anything but easy. Anyway, I ended up giving a demonstration on what not to do. Here’s an old blog post that I wrote about that experience and a so-called “square chicken” incident :) .

HA CAN’T COOK

This above photo is of me doing a cooking show. Yes, you read it correctly. The self-proclaimed “Kitchen Disaster” showed a room full of people how to make “ro mee fan”, a Chinese rice dish. Trust me, it wasn’t my idea. Organizers of the Asian Celebration in Eugene, Oregon asked a few local television personalities of Asian decent (all three of us) to demonstrate how to make their favorite entree. I was just glad they didn’t call it “The Oriental Celebration”. So, I called my mom and asked if she knew an easy recipe that I couldn’t mess up. Of course, she said “I don’t know, I just add stuff - I don’t really measure things out”. Yeah, easy for you to say if you just add “stuff” and it miraculously tastes like heaven. For me, I need to follow recipes to the tee because rarely do my substitutions actually result in something edible.

So then I thought of my boyfriend at the time and the super delicious sticky rice that he made for me quite often. Ben said it was his mom who taught him how to make it. Then I called her and asked for her secret recipe. Ben’s mom actually told me how to make it and I copied it down copiously. Ben also gave me a crash course in how to make it. But learning how to make it and teaching it to others are two entirely different creatures.

I was hoping that there would be three or four people who read the program and wanted to attend my class (actually, I thought that I would have a small portable stove in the middle of a busy fairground so that I would blend in to all the other crafts and things going on). I certainly didn’t want the dozens and dozens of people there who actually showed up - to a big classroom nonetheless. I was freaking out because there was a camera on me, a wok cam filming the “action” from above, two monitors for the audience to look at, and a mic clipped to my red blazer broadcasting every uncertain word from my lips. For a culinary aficionado, this would have been paradise - to have your own cooking class for showcasing your talent. As for me, I was just hoping to get out alive.

I started off with a brief introduction and the crowd was quite friendly and responsive. I guess they really thought they were going to learn something. Then, as I explained that this would only be the second time that I was going to make the “ro mee fan”, the room fell silent. I think I would have been happy to hear crickets, but they knew better than to show up to my cooking demonstration. So, no crickets, no pin drops, no nuthin’. Just me… and a wok.

I decided that humor would be my best weapon against these judgmental, I-can-cook-and-you-can’t eyes (self-deprecating humor works well when it’s true). I simply told them that if I could make this rice dish, so could they. I also ended up burning the rice so it became a course in what not to do. The first few jokes garnered a laugh or two, but God must have been smiling down on me that day because by the end of my 30 minute sweat fest, everyone was laughing, enjoying themselves, and asking questions. I was so relieved that I found a way to talk myself out of a potentially image-tarnishing situation. Whoa. So, that was the last time I tried to teach anyone how to cook something. Sorry SuperGirl, you’ll be learning the fine art of baking, broiling, and blanching from your Daddums or Grandmas or Auntie Sarah (or Uncle Jason and Aunt Michelle).

I was reminded of that story tonight because I just bought a slow cooker cookbook. I decided to make pot roast with mushroom sauce and vegetables for dinner tomorrow. As I was preparing the ingredients, I decided to re-read the instructions. Good thing I did because I almost chopped up the pot roast into squares. It didn’t occur to me that pot roast should be cooked intact inside the crock pot. Who knew? Just to be certain, I looked up “pot roast” on dictionary.com. It says “a dish of meat, usually brisket of beef or chuck roast, stewed in one piece in a covered pot and served in its own gravy”. You learn something new every day.

Since I’m airing out all my embarrassing cooking stories, I probably shouldn’t leave this one out. Only recently have I allowed Ben to tell this story. Here goes. About two years ago, I went to Albertson’s to buy some chicken. The whole chicken was ridiculously cheap… something like .57 cents a pound. The same chicken sold all cut up was $1.99 a pound. Of course, I was going to buy the cheaper bird. But just before I left the butcher’s area, I asked a nice young guy if he could cut up my chicken for me. “Sure” he says, “how do you want me to cut it?” What? How does he want me to cut it? I hadn’t thought of that. “Ummm…. into little squares?,” I reluctantly offer as I hold up my hands to show a square the size of a mini-Rubik’s cube. That’s when the über nice guy said “Yeahhhhh… okay… how about if I cut some drumsticks, thighs, and breast pieces for you?” I was relieved that he offered another suggestion so I said “Sounds good to me”. I was happy the nice man gave me cut-up chicken for the price of uncut. Unfortunately, I later realized the retard-o factor of that conversation when I told Ben what happened at the grocery store. Ben was in disbelief. “You said what?… squares?”. He laughed so hard… then he laughed some more. D’oh. This is why I think eating out is so alluring.

“This post was written for Parent Bloggers Network as part of a contest sponsored by the American Egg Board.” Hope I win! :) I could really use the help. I’m truly the poster child for bad chefs everywhere!

 

Love Thursday May 14, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 10:28 pm

Me, July 1999 in Eugene, Oregon (It’s Love Thursday over at Shutter Sisters ) )

 

Love Thursday March 6, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 2:38 am

Love at the Happiest Place on Earth - Toon Town, Disneyland

(click here for more “Love Thursday” photos)

 

Love Thursday - Valentine’s Day February 14, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 1:40 am

Flowers from My SuperHusband

 

Happy Love Thursday and Valentine’s Day, everyone! 

For more Love Thursday photos, click here:

http://shuttersisters.com/home/2008/2/14/love-thursday-february-14th-2008.html

 

Love Thursday February 7, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 1:28 am

Our Love

My engagement ring and wedding band… symbols of the love between my husband and me.  I wear it daily, I feel it always.

For more Love Thursday photos, click here:

http://shuttersisters.com/home/2008/2/7/love-thursday-february-7th-2008.html

 

Sling It, Baby! February 7, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 12:35 am

Wearing my baby has never been so much fun and painless!

If any of you internets out there is thinking of buying a sling for your newborn, infant, or toddler, I highly recommend Mod Mum’s sturdy, practical, and stylish slings.  They come in a variety of designs. Since I’m currently in love with the color brown, their “Lily” sling was my favorite (pictured above).  My five month old sits comfortably inside and he’s happy as a clam.  I love the durability of the fabric and the reinforced edges which makes the carrier that much more plush for your baby.  My 2 1/2 year old likes to sit on my hip in it.  The sling supports up to 35 pounds.  The first thing I noticed about the sling is that it’s actually nicer than it looks in the photos… and the photos are pretty nice!  If you purchase the sling, I think you’ll agree that it’s a sound investment that pays off in the form of a happy baby snugly nestled next to his or her mommy.  Thanks to MomViews.net for sending this sling to me after their big scavenger blog hunt party last year.  Junior really enjoys his “bed.”  :)

 

HOOKED UP! February 6, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 1:23 am

LOVE this desk!

 

Here’s my contribution to the Shutter SistersSuperhero Photo Challenge: Self-timer self-portrait.  I set up my D40 on two stackable shelves plus a tiny aluminum wastebasket lid.  That’s my “I’m-way-too-lazy-to-pull-out-my-real-tripod-which-is-a-mere-ten-feet-away” make-shift tripod.  Hey, it got the job done.  I (the camera) took the photo this afternoon right after my Hooker was delivered.  I think this pic really captures the spirit of me; no make-up, jeans, my Superman autographed 8X10’s behind me, my computer monitor representin’ my inner geek, and a desk that I’m so excited about it’s retarded.  This desk is so sexy that I might want to make baby #3 on it.  Or not.   

 

Houston, We Have a Winner… February 4, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 1:00 am

Thanks so much for all your wonderful comments and entries for my Bloggy Giveaways Carnival Contest (try saying that ten times fast).  Just browsing through the websites of all the entrants, I am honored to have had such wonderful visitors to this site.  Thank you!

Well, according to  

Mrs. Glosser's Math Goodies

Custom Random Number generator,

 

out of 178 entries, the lucky winner is #122 Meredith A. who wrote “Ooo how beautiful! Count me in please!”  I have emailed her and will be sending her prize shortly.  Thanks to all who entered.  I wish I  had 178 of these to give away, but with two kids, that pretty much won’t be happening any time soon.  Thanks again and take care!  :)

 

Win It - A Pack of 20 Note Cards Made by Me! January 31, 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — loislanelive @ 2:55 am

There’s a Bloggy Giveaways Carnival going on and you’re invited. Lots of blogs are giving away free stuff right now. Just browse their sites and enter the contests that interest you.

 

On this particular blog, I’m giving away a pack of 20 “Mountaingate Bloom” note cards made by me. It features one of the first photographs that I took of an apricot tree just before it bore fruit on my old Sony DSC-V1 camera. The front says “Many Thanks” and the back is blank for you to write that perfect little note of thanks to someone who’s made you dinner, given you a gift, or is simply a wonderful friend. The cards come in a box with 20 matching lined envelopes. 

 

To enter, just leave a comment on this post by Sunday, February 3, 2008 at 9 p.m. The winner will be randomly chosen shortly after that.  Your chances of winning are pretty good since I’m not one of those cool mom bloggers who review tons of stuff and have millions of readers.  No, this is just an itty bitty little site that wanted to participate in this year’s fun giveaway.  Thanks and good luck!  :)