I Have a Kudasama Flower Girl Entrepreneur

My 16 year old daughter is an artist.

She'd rather draw than do homework. She'd rather design a big, mascot-type fox head out of plastic screens and faux fur than clean her room. She'd rather make me an original, animated widget for my blog for mother's day than go buy something. She'd rather make a YouTube video on how to draw eyes than watch a movie with her family on Saturday night.

So when she brought down one of these lovely Kudasama paper flowers she made yesterday, I was not surprised at all, but I was very happy, and very excited. I love these things.

I told her I want a several of them, to put around the room, and that we could hang up a bunch of small ones on a curtain rod in front of our sliding glass doors to make a paper curtain. I could envision 30 or 40 flower spheres hanging on strings, moving slightly as people walked by, looking all modern and contemporary and elegant and art installation-y.

So my daughter invited a friend over, and together they made several of these lovely flowers, in various sizes. Her friend's mom arrived, and we began to fight over how many were going home with the other girl, and how many were staying home.

Not fighting, really, just, you know...trying to be fair and all...to the girls.

So then the girls, being smart and business minded, and tired of the negotiations, said we could buy them. And in fact, if we wanted them to make any more, they'd be happy to sell some to us.

So of course, the other mom and I looked at each other, looked at the girls, looked at the flowers, and said, at the very same time:

How much?

How the neighbors see me...

One bad thing about living in a high density neighborhood is not having a yard. So we have to let the pesky little dog outside whenever he asks. Which is a bummer when it's 20' outside. Of course I just throw on whatever warm clothes are closest to the door.

My family laughs, sometimes. But I figure the neighbors already know I'm quirky, so they probably don't even notice my get-ups any more.

For the record: no 13 year old fashionistas were physically harmed by taking this picture. Emotionally? Maybe. She'll get over it, some day.

Apple Pie.

If you came here thinking I'd talk you out of eating lovely holiday food, you're in the wrong place.

I do like pie. Especially this amazing pie from Grandma Opal, that we found on All Recipes.com last year.

You make a sort of Carmel sauce out of butter and brown sugar, then you pour it over a mound of thinly sliced apples, then you criss-cross some dough on the top, bake it for a while at 350' and - -

Voila. Delicious.

So, who's running tomorrow? Besides me, obviously...

Snow Running - Breathable Underwear

It's a glorious day in Bend, Oregon. The sun is shining on the fresh, white blanket of snow, and the blue sky says "no excuses, get outside."

Now I'm hunting up the Yak Traks to put on my running shoes so I won't slip, and appreciating my warm, first layer of "microfleece" Paradox running pants and shirt I got at Costco a couple of weeks ago.

I do like my Paradox long underwear. Because it's breathable. Which makes it seem alive. Which is really, really cool, the more I think about it.

Living, breathing underwear? If your underwear could breathe, would it have a nose? Would you want it to? How far will biotechnology evolve? Will your underwear grow a mouth and talk some day? What would it say?

Maybe I'll have another cup of tea and think about the answers to these questions before I go snow running.

Pipe down, blue sky, I'll be out there in a minute.

Birthday Wishes

I had my birthday. I'm 44 now. Here's me with my cake, making a wish. What's your birthday wish, dear readers?

Running in the Dark

My running partner, Joanna, likes to run in the dark. I'm usually busy with dinner and kids and Twitter and stuff by the time dusk rolls around, but sometimes she convinces me to go with her.

She says it's easier to run at night, because you forget about the distance up ahead, and concentrate on where your feet are going to land next, so you don't trip. And if you're a self-conscious runner, your shape blends in with the shadows of the night, so you can jiggle all you want and no one sees it, or cares.

Tonight we ran through the trails in the woods at dusk, and watched the sky turn pink, then purple as the cold winter sun slipped behind the hills. We made it back to the road before the sky turned pitch black, but just barely.

If you need a little adventure this week, go run in the dark.

Missing Sissy: No Hoop Running Tonight

I'm supposed to go to dinner with my friend Sissy tonight but I'm in bed, instead, because I was feeling a little fainty. Last time I felt this way, I got the flu. But I won't get it again, I'm not the type. Once is enough for me. This is a fluke, I swear.

Sure wish I had a fainting couch, though. I love those things. I'd prefer a red velvet one, as long as we're asking for presents. Except you aren't.

Anyway, Sissy's the friend who's even goofier than I am. Except she'd say I was lying. Sissy's just her nickname, because she's the youngest of 9 children. I'm the youngest of 4, so I can't even hold a candle to her. I could hold one for her though, and I would, if she ever needs a candle held for any reason.

The last time I was with Sissy, I did some hula hoop running, and she took this picture to prove it. It's good exercise. I'm not sure how many calories hoop running burns, but it seems like it should be 1,000 per minute, because you have to keep bending down to pick up the hoop every 10 feet or so.

Alas, if I tried hoop running tonight, I might fall over in a faint, and the hoop might break. That would be sad. Funny, but sad. No one likes a broken hula hoop.

Poor me. No Sissy craziness tonight. I only have hula hoop memories to sustain me until I stop fainting.