Incredible

That's one word I might choose to describe how quickly the four of us (3 humans and 1 feline) can take the house from perfect to perfect mess.

Also, I'm home early with a sick boy. Fever, low grade. No other significant symptoms for now, but I can't take him to playschool till he's in the clear for 24 hours. And of course work is crazy right now. I love stress.

Snip time

It's so time to get my hair cut. It's about to reach my bra strap, and with the humidity, it's just no fun.

It's taking too long to dry and style, but if I let it go au naturel, it looks all blah and kinda frizzy, with no discernible style...unless you consider frumpy weird doll a style.

I don't think I have sharp enough face that can easily carry a super short style. Though I do love them, and have super cute friends that seem to rock them. I'm scared. I think I'd look too butch, so I'd have to always overcompensate with lots of lipstick and earrings.

I'm going for a side swept long bob with some choppiness at the bottom. I do have bangs at the moment, which I'll have to allow to grow out a bit and blend, but I have enough hair to pretty much end up with the rest of this cut, below...

Obviously, I'm far more beautiful than Salma Hayek, but if you can just let you imagination run for a moment...


What do you think? I already have the color...and I could probably get my boobs to do that with a little duct tape.

Other styles suggestions welcome.

No chicken fingers. Please.

The kids menu at Chez Cristina:

Entrees are portioned appropriately for children and come with choice of side and drink. We don't DO chicken nuggets or fingers, mac and cheese, hot dogs or frozen pizza.

Rice and beans $4

Vegetable quiche $4

Turkey sandwich, on whole grain $4

Hummus and pita triangles $4

Grilled cheese, on whole grain $4

Peanut butter & jelly, on whole grain $4

Pasta with butter or marinara $4

Chicken quesadilla $4

Fresh egg salad, tuna salad, or chicken salad with pita triangles or as a sandwich, $4

Sides:

Fresh fruit (seasonal)
Peas
Sauteed or steamed veggie of the day


Drinks:

Milk/Chocolate Milk
Soy milk
Almond milk
Orange juice
Apple juice

Read my late night thoughts

I'm having some trouble falling asleep tonight. We've had a busy couple days, and I have to work in the morning, so I'm anxious about getting to sleep, but at the same time, I hate waiting in bed for sleep to come.

My throat has been feeling funny all day. I think I'm coming down with Something. I'm not surprised, as I haven't been taking very good care of myself recently - I can blame it on a number of things, but, well...you know.

It's not all bad though. We've had some recent activity in trying to sell our home. No offers yet, but spirits are high at the moment, and in my opinion, you gotta ride the waves, or it's no fun at all.

As I was drying the tub tonight, I realized that I might be a little crazy. After all, I'm drying the tub in preparation for another house showing. Got that? Bone-dry: We all took showers. I went last. Afterward, I stood inside the tub and dried the whole thing with a microfiber towel thingie. It's shiny. Maybe I've seen too many episodes of "Sell This House." Maybe my true calling is home staging.

Here's the way I see it: The market is slow. Buyers can be fickle right now. They don't have a sense of urgency and so they have time to be more critical. There are things about our home we can't control, such as location, age, and size. We can, however, control how it presents itself. I try to put myself in the buyer's shoes. If I'm looking at several homes, with comparable amenities and price points, I'm more likely to form some kind of attachment to the one that seems most cared for, most well-appointed, and clean. And if all things are equal? I'll take the one with the shiniest tub.

So, besides the obvious cleaning, de-cluttering, and de-personalizing, here's some details I have focused on since our house went on the market - you decide if I am indeed crazy:

-All sinks and fixtures shiny and...you guessed it - dry.

-I also waxed our tub. With car wax. It helps it stay cleaner longer.

-Paint on scuffed walls has been retouched.

-Asked my realtor do the hotel-style toilet paper fold, because I forgot

-Dish rack and sponge and dish soap stashed away (sparse counter top)

-Fresh cut flowers (from the property)

-Lemons and green grapes, arranged in a bowl for the kitchen table

-Perfect towel folding

-Handles, knobs, and hinges polished

-"Where's their TV?" Mwahahaha. What TV? We only read, mostly from the Western canon. OK, OK maybe not so much...I'm just closing the doors of the armoire. But it was enough to make a visitor wonder where the TV was.

-I go through every room and ask, "Might someone mistake this for Pottery Barn?"
Clearly, we are far from it, but it's a good guiding question. I'm not even trying to make you laugh.

-My good friend is pet-sitting the kitty. Traces of our feline pet are obliterated.

-I don't just make the beds - I style them.

-Toys are a fact. We have a child. I won't disrupt his life. But, they are clean, organized and contained in one area of the family room, and in his room. No toy migration is tolerated during this period.

-Plants are perfectly angled to maximize their planty goodness. I don't know what this really means, but I know it when it's right.

-I asked my husband to cut some wood, randomly, on his table saw, because it makes the basement smell good and crafty. As in craft-oriented.

-I looked up some articles on the psychology of colors and home staging. Yellow is cheerful and supposedly puts people in a shopping-positive mood. I have potted marigolds, as suggested.

Finally, this may be determining piece of evidence in my crazy trial: Someone of the Catholic faith, Superstitious Italian Sector, (and not in my family!) told me that St. Joseph is supposed to be the go-to Saint for home selling. Don't you love how there's a Saint for every problem? You're supposed to place a St. Joseph statue in your home or on your property. I put my mom on the case. She produced for me her very own St. Joseph figurine. Of course she did. He is nestled discreetly on my bookshelf near the front entrance. Should I put on my own restraints, or are you sending someone?

Try my Tiramisu

Tim requested Tiramisu for his birthday dessert. While there are many variations in proportions and preparations, he loves my family's standard recipe. Here's how my grandmother made Tiramisu, the simple and famous Italian dessert that gained popularity in the 80s:

This recipe will yield approx a 9x9 pan full, double layer. For more, just double!

• 2 eggs, separated
• 100 grams of sugar (a scale will work for you gram-o-phobes)
• approx 1.5 cups of espresso, or, if you don't have an espresso maker, brew some very strong coffee
• light dash (about a tablespoon) of rum or marsala, or some other nice little something, although you can omit this
• 250 grams of plain mascarpone cheese. You can get an 8oz container at the grocery store (usually by the fancy cheese) though you'll be about 25 grams shy, but that's OK. Just don't lick too much. Beware - don't get the stupid 'tiramisu mascarpone' which is pre-flavored. That's just wrong in my book.
• 1 double sleeve package of Savoiradi. This is key. You can substitute toasted lady fingers, but, just like brewing American coffee instead of espresso, it's not really proper. So if you're kind of crazy about these things like I am, look for Savoiardi (any brand will do) in your grocer's "Italian" section.
• Cocoa powder, for sprinkling on top

More about the Savoiardi. They are sometimes called Lady Fingers, as I mentioned, but they are not all created equal. Do NOT be fooled by the ones that are actually called just LadyFingers though. These are not the same and I hate them and people that think these are it. These are soft and squishy, so they have to be toasted, and then they're still not the same. Lame. For authenticity, go with the right ones. Authentic ones are hard, and have a flaky, sugary look. Or you could make them. But that's a lot of trouble, in my opinion, when they're quite good out of the package. They look like this:

OK. So here we go:

Make the espresso. Pour into a shallow dish (a pie dish will do) and dissolve half the sugar into it, completely. Add the dash of liquor. Set aside.

Beat the yolks with the remaining sugar, and and the mascarpone. Continue to beat until smooth.

Beat the whites until they form stiff peaks. Gently fold the whites into the mascarpone mixture.

Working quickly, dip the Savoiardi, sugar side down, in the coffee and allow them to soak up some coffee, but not too much so that they get too soft and hard to manage. Create the first layer in your pan using coffee-soaked Savoiardi. You may have to break some in half to fit the pan bottom, that's fine.

Add half the mascarpone mixture and smooth it out. Add another layer of coffee-soaked Savoiardi, then top w/ remaining mascarpone mixture. Smooth. Sprinkle or sift a little cocoa powder on top. Cover and chill overnight. Sometimes my grandmother would freeze the whole pan, this is OK too.

Finally, note that this uses raw eggs. It's kind of like a Zabaglione thing happening with the yolk part. MMMMM.
Do not question this. It has to be done this way or it's not real Tiramisu. It's very unlikely you'll get sick, as very few fresh eggs are tainted with salmonella. The probability is stupid low, like a .000something% chance. So crack open an egg and drink it down, kids. Or eat Tiramisu worry-free.