Tornado Shelter

khary made this tornado shelter yesterday after watching "rescue heroes" on qubo. you can't really tell it from the picture, but he saved several action figures (and their motorcycle) from the huge tornado. they're in the middle of that mass of blocks in the box. it was cute at the time, anyway.

(and apparently we're going through a no-shirt phase...)

day at the museum, or intro to taxis and trains

we went to the field museum today. OH EM GEE i want to live there. khary was so fascinated with the ancient americas exhibit, the first one we saw. we ate lunch at mcdonald's (ick. oh, pardon me exorbitantly expensive ick--$15 for a happy meal and a value meal. wtf? oh, btw, it didn't even have dr pepper. those bastards! i had a root beer.)

then we saw the ancient egypt exhibit, featuring about a dozen or so actual mummies. the kids weren't particularly impressed, but i thought it was very cool.

sue, khary, khalil

the field museum is the home of sue, the largest, most complete, best preserved t.rex anywhere. they also have a hall of dinosaurs that is part of a larger exhibit called "evolving planet," which is AH-MAZING!! you walk though half of a whole level of the museum, winding though time--from the beginnings of the planet earth through today. each time section features the plant and animal life from that era, transitioning via the mass extinctions that took place. it's the sort of experiential exhibit that really puts the tiny human blip of existence in perspective.

 khary makes the sound of a parasaurolophus 

 

posing with the triceratops

 

on a replica of a dinosaur's leg bone

they also have replicas of lucy and turkana boy, in addition to some "touch and feel" models of hands and heads of hominids from lucy through modern humans. they were very cool. khary enjoyed touching all the hands and even gave the "lucy" ones several big hugs, lol!

lucy's touch and feel models

during the bulk of this time, lenore was literally sick and tired, so after the hall of dinosaurs (during which she began to cry because they were all dead), kenna took her to a different area and she took a nap while khary, khalil, and i spent another hour in the "evolving planet" exhibit. well, khalil slept almost the whole time...

then the museum was closing and we got a snack, then headed outside to grab a taxi, which navigated downtown rush hour traffic expertly, and dropped us off at the blue line subway station. outside of downtown, it's an "L" or elevated train line (for which chicago is famous, of course). so the boys were enthralled with both their first taxi ride and train ride. i think khary understands the beauty of real public transit. ;)

 

poor lenore still doesn't feel well

the boys (illegally) snacking on the el

2 adults & 3 kids on a bus for 10 hours

last week, my friend kenna and i got an offer we couldn't refuse: a FREE trip on the megabus to chicago to visit our good friend katje. it was perfect--we'd leave kc around lunchtime on tuesday, arrive in chicago before 10pm, have 3 full days to visit and see some sights before departing saturday morning and returning home saturday night. 4 tickets worked for 2 adults, 2 4-year-olds and a 21-month-old. (kids 2 and under didn't need a ticket, but didn't get a seat.)

it was much better than it could have been, but it was still a 10-hr trip with 3 kids. so, you know, less delightful than you might imagine.

some images of our journey to chicago...

 

getting settled in...

 

Lenore takes her seat

   

after switching seats to ones with a table...(khary took his shirt off because he got hot)

   

Khary and Lenore sacked out in somewhere in southern illinois

emollients et al

i made a homemade body cream the other night since my lotion, though much loved during the time of year during which the temp is regularly above 50 degrees, just ain't cutting it in this dry, dry, bitter cold. it was my first "go" at anything except deodorant and a brief dabbling at a friend's house in lip balm, but i think it went rather well. what i used:

2 parts cocoa butter
1 part shea butter
1 part coconut oil
.5 part Knotty Boy Dreadlock Wax*
2 drops lavender essential oil

*while waxing and rolling khary's dreads, i discovered that this stuff is amazing at moisturizing my hands and it has some serious staying power because of the beeswax. it's also all-natural, which is one of the main reasons i decided to use it on khary's hair, and smells wonderful. as i looked at the bowl i used to melt all my stuff together, i decided i needed another, more solid, addition, and it certainly fit the bill, so in it went! (which, btw, is why the proportions are all off, in case you wondered...)

after my bath last night, i slathered on this greasy goop with some trepidation that i was only going to manage to get my pajamas all gross and greasy without adding a bit of moisture to my parched skin. i awoke to more supple skin and non-stained pj's. sweet! it wasn't a one-shot deal; i'll need to keep at it and use it every night for my hands, especially. i think i'll add more wax and/or cocoa butter next time, and probably skip the coconut oil altogether. since i'm currently broke and refuse to put poison on my skin and have the basic ingredients for most body products, i think it's pretty damn awesome that i successfully concocted a body cream for zero expense.

go. me.

partially-cooled body cream

notice i mentioned deodorant above? i used angry chicken's recipe, only substituting arrowroot powder for half of the cornstarch, and poured it into a deodorant stick so i could use it even more easily. all was well and good until i developed a rash about a month into using it. a mean, mean rash. it looked like chemical burn. it ended up being because i have more sensitive skin than most, and the baking soda just makes that recipe so alkaline that my skin fuh-REAKED out. the same thing happened when i used oyin handmade's funk butter a year ago; also because of the baking soda, i presume. heartbreaking in both instances, since they worked like MAGIC. well, except for that red, raw, peeling skin thing. so  my search for the magic bullet deodorant began. and i found it, believe it or not. if the other stuff was magic, this is MIRACULOUS. terra naturals makes deodorant that is GOOD for you. GOOD FOR YOU--for real. and it works like...well, a miracle. besides all the other good stuff, i think one of the main reasons for its miracle-worker status is the prebiotics in it, which feed and promote the beneficial bacteria on your skin, thus helping those good guys outcompete the stink-producing bad guys. (even my husband LURVES him some terra naturals, and he has to stifle his scoffs at my attempts to minimize chemical/toxic exposure for our family.)

moral of the story? you don't  have to compromise your health OR your hygiene to be clean and green.

chili redux (and wine?)

thursday evening, i made chili for supper, no big woop. recipe:

1/2 large onion, chopped finely
3 cloves garlic, chopped finely
1lb ground beef
2 pkts chili seasoning
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
2 c cooked brown rice
pinch thyme
dash nutmeg
dash cinnamon* (*i think i'll omit this next time; i'm just not made for Cincinnati-style chili, i guess)
1 Tbs balsamic vinegar
4 Tbs brown sugar
add water to achieve desired consistency

i split that batch into two--in one container, i added 2 c pinto beans. the other i put straight into the freezer, and will add beans (either black or pinto), if necessary, when we eat it. that batch we ate was pretty good--even dawud ate it without complaining. but we had tons left, even with the others in the freezer!

the beef is from a local organic farm that pastures its cattle; plus, by splitting the batch into two, we reduced the amount of meat we consume at a sitting without sacrificing protein since i added beans and (organic) brown rice.  and if you wanna talk "green"-ness, making multiple batches at once--not just the chili, but i also bulk cook my rice and beans--uses the same amount of energy as cooking one batch, plus only a little more to re-heat your frozen portion.

so tonight, after a week's worth of errands saved up for one (warm-ish?) day, when we were at a loss for supper, i had an epiphany: CHILI CHEESE FRIES!!!! we're talking divine intervention here. so i cut up some potatoes, fried 'em up, poured the heated up leftover chili on them, topped with cheese, and voila! supper. not just plain supper--novel supper, tasty supper, perfect supper to accompany some football playoffs.

okay, so i didn't think to take a pic until mine was almost gone. so this is what you get. it may not *look* good, but let's face it, chili cheese fries aren't really visual art. but you can tell by the nearly-cleaned plate that it sure as hell tasted good, right?!

also, one of my saved-up-because-of-the-never-freaking-ending-snowstorms-and-dangerous-cold from this week was to pick up my january case of wine from cellar rat wine merchants (happy birthday to ME!). and since i won't need ALLLLLL TWELVE bottles for my host month for wine club, i took an inventory and decided the Quinta do Casal BrancoTinto should be my wine of the week. uncorked, poured, allowed to breathe a bit, and omg, i am a new fan of portuguese wines. this stuff is so good--true to its notes (click above on "january case"), and soooo soft with just enough bite and complexity to keep you coming back for more.

not the recommended accompaniment to chili cheese fries, but whatevs.

ARRG! blue(berry) beard

khary made himself a snack of blueberries this afternoon.

quinoa risotto

trying this tonight; no idea if it'll turn out yummy or not, but i need to use my quinoa!

edit: THIS ROCKS!! i think i'll add a cup of white wine instead of water next time, though.
(even dawud raved about it. khary wouldn't touch it, unfortunately. odd, b/c i KNOW he'd devour it if he tried it.)

i served it with crockpot "rotisserie" chicken and mustard-brown sugar-glazed carrots. it was all thrown together quickly, but the meal went together really well! :)


Quinoa Risotto

* 1 cup quinoa
* 1 Tbsp. olive oil
* 1 cup chopped onion
* 3 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 cup vegetable broth
* 1 cup skim milk
* 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
* 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Rinse and drain quinoa three times, using a fine mesh strainer to remove the bitter outer coating.

Heat olive oil in a heavy saucepan or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until soft, stirring constantly. Add garlic and quinoa and continue stirring a minute or two. Stir in broth and milk. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until quinoa is tender, stirring occasionally, approximately 10-12 minutes.

Add mushrooms and cook another 3-5 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat. Add cheese and let stand a few minutes, so risotto can thicken.

Serves 6.

see:
Quinoa Risotto with Italian Cheese: An Italian-inspired vegetarian quinoa recipe