Archives for 2013

What rhymes with hug me? (and Friday links)

September 6, 2013

I don’t listen to Top 40 radio very often anymore. For the most part, pop music has just gotten so bad lately, and Omaha radio stations tend to repeat the same ten songs–the majority of which aren’t even current hits.

Still, every once in a while I’ll flip to Q98.5 FM, Omaha’s modern hit music station, when I’m not interested in what’s on Sirius XM’s The Spectrum (think Mumford & Sons, The Avett Brothers, ZZ Ward, and Frank Turner) or On Broadway stations. And if I’m lucky, Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” will be playing. Billboard’s Song of the Summer is such a guilty pleasure. The beat brings me back to my post-college days of dancing at bars and clubs in Washington, DC. It kind of reminds me of Justin Timberlake from his early solo days in the 2000’s.

If you know the song, you’re probably familiar with the part that goes:

I feel so lucky

You want to hug me

What rhymes with hug me?

Well, as this laugh-out-loud website proves, a lot of things actually rhyme with hug me. You will need your speakers turned on for this!

And a few more links for your Friday…

If you think warming a can of soup on the stove is too much work, this new Campbell’s product is for you. (Los Angeles Times)

The lessons an illustrator learned by collaborating with her four-year-old daughter–and the amazing drawings that resulted. (The Busy Mockingbird)

A couple of years ago, I went through a homemade hummus phase. Now I’d like to try this recipe for guacamole hummus. (Sacramento Street)

Wouldn’t a custom house portrait make such a sentimental going-away gift? I want one for when we eventually move back East. (Style by Emily Henderson)

These pumpkin breakfast pies remind me of gourmet Pop Tarts! (Frock Files)

Did you know there’s a right way and wrong way to exfoliate your face? I’ve been doing it incorrectly for years! (The Beauty Department)

Don’t forget to enter our BRIKA giveaway to win a Hazel Village stuffed animal of your choice!

Have a happy weekend!

image source

A Rosh Hashanah message from Levi

September 5, 2013

L’shana tova to my readers celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, today!

Also, thank you so much for your lovely comments, tweets, and Facebook messages regarding yesterday’s big pregnancy announcement! JB and I are so happy to be able to share this exciting time with friends and family.

Don’t wash your chicken

September 5, 2013

When Omaha’s long-awaited Chick-fil-A opened last October, the city went nuts. No longer did chicken sandwich fanatics have to drive an hour and a half away to get their Chick-fil-A fix!

Despite the hoopla, I’ve never been to the Omaha Chick-fil-A. In fact, I’ve only ever had a Chick-fil-A sandwich once a road trip, and while I’m sure it enjoyed it, I don’t remember it being worthy of its own out-of-state excursion. Even the 20 minute drive to our local Chick-fil-A seems a bit excessive for a fast food chicken sandwich.

However, I’m tempted to try The Effortless Chic’s homemade Chick-fil-A sandwich recipe, which calls for brining the chicken in dill pickle juice. Is that Chick-fil-A’s secret ingredient?!

As I was reading Jen’s recipe, the one thing that jumped out at me (besides the dill pick juice) was her instruction to wash each chicken breast before preparing them. Washing raw chicken is something either my mom or my grandmother (or both) taught me to do when I was learning how to cook. Was the point to clean the chicken or to rinse off any slimy coating? I’m not sure, but I can remember following their rules in my college apartment kitchen. I even used a paper towel to pat the wet chicken breast dry because it seemed like the obvious next step.

Sometime between college and the present day I stopped washing raw chicken. Most likely, I was simply too lazy to include the extra step in my dinner preparations. But it turns out that my laziness was actually a good thing: washing raw poultry makes it less safe, not more.

Jennifer Quinlan, a food researcher at Drexel University, has created a public health campaign to get Americans to break their chicken-washing habit. Amazingly, as many as 90% of people rinse their raw chicken before cooking. Rather than cleaning their birds, chicken-rinsers are actually spraying foodborne pathogens like salmonella all over their kitchens.

This animation illustrates how bacteria can travel up to 3 feet away from your sink:

The takeaway: If, like me, you’re planning to make a homemade Chick-fil-A sandwich, don’t wash your chicken. But do get yourself a meat thermometer! Cooking chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 165-degrees Fahrenheit will kill unwanted bacteria.

Will you admit to being a chicken-rinser? How about to being a Chick-fil-A fanatic??

top image via The Effortless Chic

And baby makes 4!

September 4, 2013

First comes love. Then comes marriage. Then comes baby in a baby carriage.

And sometimes, two and half years later, comes another baby in a baby carriage!

That’s right, I’m pregnant — again! Levi is going to be a big brother, and JB and I can’t wait to fall in love with another baby when we meet him or her in late Feburary.

But we’re also terribly nervous about having to care for a newborn again. Middle of the night feedings seem so far behind us that I don’t even remember now how we survived on such little sleep! (That’s the point, isn’t it? We’re designed to forgot how sick and tired and scared we were so that we’re willing to do it all again: pregnancy, child birth, and the newborn months.)

My intense first trimester hormones were part of the reason why I had such a miserable July and why I’ve been blogging so sporadically this summer. Feeling mentally, physically, and emotionally drained made it so much harder for me to deal with every day work and life stresses. Some days I just shut down completely! Luckily, my family was able to fly to Omaha to help out with Levi and the day-to-day running of things when I was at my worst.

For some women, pregnancy is their happy place. Oh, how I wish that were true for me!

Tomorrow I’ll be 16 weeks pregnant. I don’t have a roundish basketball bump yet, but I’m definitely thicker around the middle. And a bit mushy. I knew I’d look pregnant sooner the second time around, but not being able to fit into my pants as early as 10-12 weeks was slightly devastating nonetheless. I’m pretty sure I could still button my jeans that stage when I was pregnant with Levi!

I’ve already broken into my stash of larger-sized bottoms from my previous postpartum days. Although the scale has barely budged, I’m literally in pants two to three sizes larger than I normally wear. The doctor said this is to be expected, of course; my muscles are stretched out from my first pregnancy. Plus, I’m extremely bloated. I suppose I could start wearing maternity pants now (ooh, comfy elastic waistbands!), but that would feel like giving in too quickly.

While I have no plans to turn Bunny & Dolly into a full-fledged baby blog, I’ll continue to keep you updated throughout my pregnancy. You can expect posts about maternity style, things for baby, and my quickly-growing bump in the months ahead. Also, you should probably follow me on Pinterest, as I’m sure I’ll be pinning lots of mama- and baby-related images there, too!

Thank you all for your love and support!

P.S. – JB chastised me for not including the dog when counting the members of our family, which would make his version of the post title, “And baby makes 5!” Sorry, Briscoe.

(Top photo taken at 15 weeks, ultrasound taken at 12 weeks)

AM/PM: A day in the life of Jen from BRIKA (and a giveaway!)

September 3, 2013

AM/PM chronicles a day in the life of busy mothers to explore how all different types of moms juggle their responsibilities–from stay-at-home moms to moms who work full time outside of the home. If you’ve ever thought to yourself, “I don’t know how she does it” about another mom, read on!

Today we’re talking about balancing work and motherhood with Jen Lee Koss, Co-founder and Builder of Business of BRIKA. BRIKA is a new online shopping destination that offers a curated selection of heirloom-quality crafts while celebrating the makers behind them. (It also happens to be a Bunny & Dolly sponsor, although this is not a sponsored post!) I was inspired by Jen’s short presentation on storytelling and passion at Alt NYC and couldn’t wait to get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of her day-to-day life.

Q. How many children do you have?

A. I have two kids – Aksel who is 2.5 and Annabelle who turned 1 on June 8th!

Q. Have you always been a working mom?

A. Yes, I have always been a working mom. I moved to Canada five years ago, so I was really blessed to have been able to spend an entire year at home on maternity leave before going back to my private equity job.

BRIKA was a little side-project before I left on my second maternity leave! My co-founder Kena and I brainstormed this little idea that eventually took shape and formed over the following months. I decided to leave my job in finance to pursue it full time!

Q. Walk us through a typical work day… What time do you and your kids wake up?

A. WAY TOO EARLY!!! Typically between 5:30 and 6:00am.

Q. What does your morning look like?

A. Aksel usually wakes up first and we get downstairs to prepare breakfast (a bowl of oatmeal with yogurt and fruit). While he’s eating, Annabelle usually gets up and she is eating a bowlful of the same! Meanwhile, I’m usually drinking a latte and eating a big piece of toast with almond butter and honey. We’re creatures of habit!

Q. What time do you eat lunch?

A. It’s typically close to noon.

Q. What does your afternoon look like?

A. It’s filled with meetings, emails, more meetings, more emails and couple of phone calls thrown in there. My days have never been more jam-packed since starting BRIKA.

Q. What time do you eat dinner?

A. Sometimes it’s with the kids–super early, around 5:30pm or sometimes it’s after the kids go to bed so around 8:00pm. It depends on how hectic my day has been!

Q. What does your evening look like?

A. Once the kids are in bed, I am the most productive! I am right back on my computer and working like a mad woman!

Q. What time do you go to bed?

A. Typically around midnight. TOO LATE!

Q. What do you most look forward to doing on the weekends?

A. Going to our favorite French bakery with my husband and kids, pizza nights where my husband and I make a big pizza from scratch and drink some wine, and catching up with great friends!

Q. What’s your most effective way to de-stress when you’re feeling overwhelmed?

A. Exercise! There is nothing like a runners high!

I love to browse the children’s products on BRIKA and absolutely adore these stuffed animals from Hazel Village. One lucky Bunny & Dolly reader will win the Hazel Village stuffed animal of her choice courtesy of Jen and BRIKA!

To enter, visit Hazel Village on BRIKA and note which stuffed animal you’d like to win. Then fill out the Rafflecopter prompts below! There are six different ways to enter, so please read the directions carefully. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The giveaway is now CLOSED. Congratulations to the winner, and thanks to everyone who played!

P.S. — In addition to growing their community of makers and expanding their inventory of beautiful, well-crafted objects, BRIKA is teaming up with Madewell to present the Storyteller Series contest. Sign up here to win a trip to two to Austin, plus a Madewell gift card.

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