The Bunny Ranch

by Natasha on July 12, 2012 in Uncategorized

I always thought that if my no inhibitions, crazy, 20-something alter ego ever took over she might just go to the bunny ranch…this however is not the bunny ranch I had in mind…STUPID CUTE!

My mosquito planter had some casualties from the heat wave last week & as I was pruning up the dead pieces & digging around, getting ready to plant some new citronella plants, I heard a loud “SQUEAK!”. WTF?! I threw down the Dora shovel & jumped back. I honestly thought Lucy had buried a squeaker toy in my pot. On closer inspection however I noticed a little twitching nose…and then two noses! At this point I hurried Sophie inside & ran to get P. He gave me the look of “What now, I’m kind of in the middle of working…” to which I said “Oh trust me buddy, you’re gonna want to see this!”

Here’s what happened next…

Of course being the intelligent adults we are we knew where to turn for answers…twitter. And yes, you guys confirmed P’s hunch, they were absolutely, positively baby bunnies. About a week old we’re guessing. Google told us to cover the nest back up & lay some strings in a pattern on top, this way if the mother comes back to nurse them (she only nurses once every 24hrs) we’ll know by the strings being moved. No moved strings & you’ve got yourself some orphans. Is it terrible that part of me was wishing, “Please be orphans, please be orphans, I want to buy a tiny baby bottle, please, please please!”

The string test just didn’t seem full proof enough so we also decided to set up our motion sensor nanny cam & at around 1:44 am it captured this video. Sorry, it’s really grainy like a crappy convenient store surveillance video because, well, it is a crappy surveillance video.

That beady eyed blur in the top right is big mama bunny. She popped in, nursed the young-ins & was on her way 5 minutes later. What a life huh? Maybe someone should write a new baby book, “Bunny Mom: In & Out Parenting”

Of course I just can’t stay away from the nest, it’s right by my back door for Pete’s sake, it’s like cute little animal torture. I poked around in it once earlier today & quickly got a phone call from P,

“Stay away from the bunnies.”

Me: “Whaaaaa? What are you talking about??”

P: “The nanny cam emailed me that there was motion.”

Me: “Oh. But they neeeeed me!”

P: “Nope, they don’t.”

Me: “Hmph.”

Once they get a little older we do have the predicament of how will they get in & out of a flower pot that’s 2 feet off the ground? We read that they start exploring around the nest in the next week or two. Last thing I want is to have to fashion a tiny little bunny cast on a teeny tiny hind leg.

Ok, that’s a lie.

I would love make a teeny bunny cast & nurture it back to health. We’ll have an unspoken bond & every Spring she’ll come back to see me & give birth to future little grandchildren bunnies. Sigh.

All that to say Bunny Watch 2012 has officially begun! If you know anything about finding bunny nests please leave a comment below and let me know what to do!!

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#spoiledgirlproblems

by Natasha on July 11, 2012 in mommy blog

Have you ever found yourself so aggravated that you get into a fight (albeit a very one-sided one) with a doll?

This morning I had some nasty words with Belle.

I was running around like a madwoman trying to clean up for the cleaning ladies which a.) seems like a ridiculous concept & b.) makes me sounds like a total brat. Just insert “#spoiledgirlproblems” anywhere you like…

I walked into Sam’s room & found that she’d managed to take out every single Barbie, Barbie shoe, Barbie car & some legos that I didn’t even know we owned while I was getting ready this morning. (and by ‘getting ready’ I mean finding creative solutions to having 1″ long black roots on my newly blonde hair…ps- there aren’t any)

I grumbled around tossing Sam’s pink, medium pink, light pink & dark pink toys in every hidden nook & cranny I could find because I know if it’s left on the floor the cleaning ladies will leave vacuum marks in a circular trail around said Barbie. Seriously, can you not just pick it up? Are you afraid if you do it this one time I might just take advantage & before you know it you’re cleaning red solo cups off the chandelier a la Animal House? I then come across Sam’s talking Belle doll. As I throw a pile of other dolls on top of her it triggers her sensor & she says in an uber cheerful voice, “Hello friend, I’m so glad to see you today!”

Me: “Whaaa? You’re not my friend bee-otch. If you were my friend you wouldn’t just sit there & giggle at me, you’d carry your weight around here & maybe put your damn doll clothes away!”

(mental note: call shrink later, mention latent anger)

After not touching her for a few minutes her automatic shutdown comes on & she says “Yawn…time for a rest! Goodbye!”

Me: “Ohhhh so now you’re tired huh?! After a whole life of contributing nothing you need a f*?%#ing nap?! That’s great. Maybe if you didn’t sleep so much you wouldn’t be so damn fat!”

Except she’s not fat. She’s perfect. She’s a freakin’ Disney princess. One with a slight beastiality problem but a princess nonetheless.

And then I realized I’ve just cursed out an inanimate object.

“Yawn…time for a Xanax. Goodbye!”

Am I certifiable or have you ever lost it on a toy?

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Crewcuts Knockoff Starfish Tank

by Natasha on July 10, 2012 in tutorials

I snapped a picture of this tee in the Jcrew window at the mall the other day, so cute right?

Well, at $42.95 I about gagged up my food court chick-fil-a. I mean seriously?? It’s a CHILDREN’S T-SHIRT!

There was only one solution…KNOCK THAT BE-OTCH OFF. (apparently it’s SUPER SHOUTY CAPS TUESDAY!!!)The ombre tank is from the Target girl’s department & I think I love it even more than the stripes. There are a few different ways you could pull this off yourself but here’s how I did it.

First, I found the tee online & used the store’s zoom function to get a close-up of the starfish necklace on my computer. J.Crew’s is basically a sketch & some crystals. Following along I drew the chain & then starfish with a black fabric marker, once you break it down they’re really basic shapes. I thought about using heat-fix crystals for the sparkle but couldn’t find the shade or size I wanted to instead I used this neat new fabric paint from Tulip. It’s called “Beads in a bottle” & it creates perfectly round little beads everytime. Possibly crafting voodoo. I squirt out an oblong, pointy glob…it magically dries as a domed bead. Go figure.That’s it! I love sticking it to Crewcuts. (although I inevitably end up spending the money I saved on their women’s shoes. I’m a sucker for candy colored ballet flats.)

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Man Pride

by Natasha on July 9, 2012 in Uncategorized

Arriving home at the airport yesterday…

Me: “Boo, are you sure we shouldn’t get a second cart?”

P: “Nah, I got this. C’mon!”

5 minutes later…

Don’t you love when “I told you so” is completely unnecessary?

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Let’s go to the beach, beach…

by Natasha on July 6, 2012 in mommy blog

Sorry for disappearing on you like that.

I never know what to do when we go on vacation because while I’m totally down with telling YOU I so don’t want Joe Creeper over there to know we’re not home. So I wrote a few posts ahead of time & then just prayed no one would be too worried that I had jumped off a bridge.

For the last week & a half ‘Mini Minaj’ & our family decided to go to the beach, beach…let’s all get away.

This one below is my favorite memory of the entire trip…

P & I were laying in lounge chairs, feet toasty in the sun & a wonderful breeze from the ocean keeping us cool while we watched our little family having the “best vacation ever” with our big family. My mom, dad (in the chair taking a grandpa nap), stepmom, stepdad, three beautiful sisters & 1 amazing brother all together in one heavenly place. I’ve dreamed of moments like these my whole life & while part of me is sad that it’s come & gone another part is so happy that we’ve given my girls some wonderful childhood summer memories. I want to soak it up & relish it forever…

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Spicy Baby Iron-On

by Natasha on June 28, 2012 in tutorials

I was listening to my itunes the other day & Ciara’s “Get Up” came on, the line “Spicy just like hot sauce careful you might burn it up” made me immediately think of a certain someone.

Don’t be fooled by the big doe eyes…

The kid is CRAY!

Until I just now looked up the lyrics I seriously thought the line was “Spicy just like hot sauce, careful you might burn it off”, which seemed to possibly indicate the person implied had a STD which would be slightly inappropriate for a 1 yr old, hence why I just put the first line. Oh well, it wouldn’t have all fit anyway. (PS-little tank & bootie shorts from American Apparel)

I used my Silhouette Cameo & grey flocked heat transfer vinyl to make the iron-on.

Ever since I made the Little Man Onesies I’ve been thinking of opening up an Etsy shop so I could get you guys that don’t have a Silhouette the iron-ons. (freezer paper can be a pain, I know) Would anyone else have a ‘Spicy Baby’ that could use this?

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“Please go back to bed” clock

by Natasha on June 26, 2012 in tutorials

Lately Sam has been waking up earlier & earlier. I remember the days when she would quietly play in her room or watch a tv show in my bed until a decent waking hour but those are no more. When she’s up…everyone’s up. I’ll glance at the clock, see it starts with a “6” ,or heaven forbid a “5”, & tell her “Go to bed. We don’t get up until the time starts with a 7” & she’ll lay back down. For 5 more minutes. Then I feel a tap tap tap. “Is it 7 now?” Repeat until the commotion wakes Sophie or mommy drags her tired rump out of bed.

Time for a clock that speaks Samanese.

This is such a quick & easy project. The clock was a cheapo find from Target but really any clock would work, you just need to make sure you can get the plastic cover off. I used a small paintbrush to apply mod podge to the 7, 8, 9 & hour hand & then sprinkled them with pink glitter. Turn it upside down & give it a few light taps to remove the extra glitter. I ended up going back & filling in a few blank spots with more mod podge & glitter. Once it’s good & dry just use a dry brush wipe off any glitter that settled somewhere it shouldn’t be. Replace the cover & explain to your little one that they can’t get out of bed (or out of their room…whatever) until the pink line touches a pink number. (of course if you’re not into glitter or want to make a boy version you could also use paint, colored tape or even stickers!)

My girlfriend Kelly did something similar except told her daughter that she couldn’t get out of bed until she saw the number “7” as the first number on her clock. Well, one day the kid was super pooped & slept in till after 8, when Kelly finally came to check on her 45 minutes later she said, “Oh mommy! I was starting to get worried, the 7 never came!” Hence me glittering the 7, 8 and 9. If she sleeps in till 10 then we have a different set of problems entirely.

Would this work for you? What do you do when your little one wakes up way too early?

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PINBUSTERS! Eggs in an Avocado

by Natasha on June 26, 2012 in pinbusters

Pinbusters is a new series where I take crazy popular pins & see if they really are as great as they look…check out the rest of my Pinbusters videos here!

As a die hard lover of both runny eggs & avocados the thought of cooking one INSIDE the other just about blew brain completely apart. Poof! Gone. Except before I could run naked through the green covered hills shouting my joy of this new breakfast fare my skepticism started to kick in. Wait a minute, avocados get mushy when you cook them. And how is the egg going to be heated through well enough to cook within that thick avocado wall?

Hmm…only one thing to do…

I did end up trying these again & they were a little prettier second time around…just remember, bigger avocado & smaller egg.

Want more? Check out all the Pinbusters! posts here!

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N-N-Neon

by Natasha on June 25, 2012 in Uncategorized

I’ve decided that you need to buy yourself something pretty.

I mean really, when was last time you bought yourself a little something snazzy?

Don’t underestimate how much something cute can put a little pep in your step my friend. Especially when that something is NEON.

Find all these items and a slew more on my new home goods ideabook “Summer Neon” on Houzz.com or my new Pinterest board “N-N-Neon”

So far I’ve scooped up the neon bikini for Sophie Monster (hello, it was EIGHT dollars!) & I’m in the midst of justifying that amazing yellow mirror. Although my DIY side wants to spray paint a thrift store find…hmmm…what to do, what to do…

Full Disclosure: Houzz.com is a sponsor of Little Pink Monster, Pinterest.com does not pay me a penny. In fact I pay them…in endless late nights of pure pinning addiction.

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cool as a cucumber & horseradish soup

by Natasha on June 22, 2012 in dinner 101

Normally I don’t do chilled soups. Having cold soup is weird, it feels counter intuitive. When I saw this recipe for cucumber, yogurt & horseradish soup in MS Living however my interest was peeked. Mm, that does sound really refreshing…cool cucumber & yogurt with a subdtle bite of horseradish. Tempting…

Throw in a few days of 100 degree weather & I was intrigued/yearning for feeling ‘refreshed’ enough to make it for an pre-dinner treat for P & I.

Cucumber, Yogurt & Horseradish Soup (via Martha Stewart Living but I tweaked it slightly) Serves 3

1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded & cut into 1/2″ pieces (before peeling slice a few thin pieces for garnish)
1 1/2 cups low-fat plain greek yogurt
zest of one large lemon
2 tbs grated horseradish

Puree all ingredients & season to taste with pepper. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until cold.

Yep. That’s it.

The aforementioned heat wave also meant it was time to cool off in other ways…