there wasn’t a pair to be found anywhere in that pathetic place. forget the orange requirement; there were zero toddler mittens. ZERO.

now i know i was looking for an item in early november that parents with school-age children had long since purchased. i get it. i know. i was late, but if i recall correctly, when other parents were stocking up on winter gear for their progeny, i was pushing out one of my own.

but if i didn’t already know i was going to come up empty handed, thank the glorious heavens above i had some broad at gap kids set me straight …

after circling the racks at gap kids for a good 10 minutes, while two employees complained about their manager, i was finally asked by the older woman from about 20 feet away …

woman (in mildly irritated voice, as if *i* was the manager she was just bitching about): can i help you find something?

me (pointing to rack at front of store): um, yes, is that rack it as far as boys coats and winterwear?

the woman then gives me the most inordinately exaggerated snorting scoff. i’m thinking, “bitch, i didn’t ask you if kool-aid might cure cancer or if lollipops and afternoon naps might bring about peace in the mideast.” but not only do i get the scoff, i get the lecture …

woman (post snort): they. are. gawwwwwnnnnn. YOU needed to be here two months ago.

now i understand empathy and compassion run thin in the rarefied air surrounding the throne this woman apparently sits on … as middle-aged ruler of the other part-time, minimum wage worker at the gap kids in the poughkeepsie galleria on a thursday afternoon … but what about the dark circles under my eyes; the leaking nursing tank; the spit-up stain on my shoulder; my stringy, unwashed hair; and the — um — six-week-old baby in the stroller my three-year-old was hanging on indicated to the woman that i was, perhaps, sitting around with my thumb up my ass “two months ago”?

it crossed my mind to tell her that “two months ago” the soles of my feet were facing the ceiling of a delivery room, where i was turning my lower abdomen inside out to pump out a kid, and, gosh, that really screwed up my mitten-shopping plans.

but instead i said that i was from california and simply don’t understand winter, especially since in california, there are no coats.

her reply to me?

“honey, you are in new york now. you need to get used to it.”

how depressingly true on so many levels, and — this being my fifth winter and year here, i apparently, am still fighting getting “used to it.”

cosmic balance, though, was in the offing as the young woman at jc penney was very kind. alas, winter mittens for the d-man were not to be had.

i would have to go online, and after my fruitless search through the mall and heartwarming interaction at gap kids, i redoubled my efforts to find mittens that were not only warm, waterproof, insulated, and durable but also … O-R-A-N-G-E, dammit!

voila:

landsend to the rescue

the mittens came in yesterday’s mail, and they rock. hard. super deluxe and soft and warm … i am going to get a pair for myself.

and thus, we return to the title of this post … to the biATCH at the poughkeepsie galleria gap kids (a store you will now never find me), i say …

SUCK IT!

after the appointment, we picked steven up for lunch, but there were timing issues … eavan needed to eat not long after we got to the restaurant, so i stood and swayed in the disabled stall of the ladies room, holding her, as the two of us christened yet another non-home location with some good ol’ breastfeeding. (up to that point, we had pretty much stayed in the parking lot milieu … i think we have breastfed in the front seat of the prius in four or five different lots, but i digress.) while we were doing our thing in the big stall, a woman came in with a young child who needed to go “poopie.” the kid did his biz, and the woman cleaned him up in the stall next to us … then the two of them LEFT THE RESTROOM WITHOUT WASHING THEIR HANDS!!!

yuck!

the skin on didion’s hands is dry and mine is drier from the amount of hand washing that goes on around here. shame on that woman. this is why i touch next-to-nothing in public restrooms with my hands … and i cringe thinking about all the stuff non-handwashing people are touching around me.

gross!

***

bonus adventure: turns out eavan enjoys herself a heaping bowl of old-fashioned colic every few days or so. tonight, she outdid herself … steven and i almost maxed out our resourcefulness when it came to tricks to soothe the child. it doesn’t help that she flat out R-E-F-U-S-E-S to take a pacifier. at one point tonight, steven was holding her in some strange contortionist position, bouncing and swaying around our bedroom, while i turned on the vacuum … and since i had the vacuum on, i really had no excuse not to use it for its non-baby purpose … but one clean bedroom floor later, eavan was still on fire … crying, screaming, squirming …

enter the superhero team of google and amazon … as i write this, we are halfway through the inaugural listening party of natural womb sounds. this may well be the best $0.89 we have or will ever spend. it took about 15 minutes before eavan gave up the colic kick. she is sleeping now … not 100% soundly, but we’ll take what we can get …

roasted butternut squash & apple soup

• 1 pretty hefty butternut squash (a nice two pounder or so), peeled and cut into one-inch cubes
• 3 apples cut into one-inch cubes, peel intact … we had rome apples on hand; i want to try this recipe with macs or granny smiths
• 3 large garlic cloves, peeled
• olive oil
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 medium-to-large onion … rough chopped
• 2 handfuls baby carrots … rough chopped
• 3 large celery stalks … throw some celery leaves in, too, if you want … rough chopped
• 32 oz. chicken stock/broth … i used to use this kind; now i use this one … of course, if you make your own, bully for you! (i am quite envious!)
• 1 tsp. ground cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 heaping tsp. each of dried thyme leaves and ground cardamom
• 1-2 tbsp. brown sugar, packed
• salt & fresh-ground black pepper

1. on a parchment-lined jellyroll pan, toss the butternut squash and apple cubes and garlic cloves with enough olive to lightly coat. season with salt and pepper. bake in 400-degree oven for 20-25 minutes until fork-tender and caramelized on the edges. turn the stuff once or twice during cooking, especially since the pan will likely be a tad crammed.
2. halfway through the roasting period, melt butter in a large dutch oven or some other appropriate pot. saute the mirepoix for a good 10 minutes or so … at least until the onion is nicely softened and translucent. don’t forget to season with salt and pepper.
3. remove the roasted squash-apple-garlic mixture from the oven. combine with the cooking mirepoix, and saute an additional 5 minutes.
4. add chicken broth/stock. bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer another 5-10 minutes.
5. transfer soup in batches to a blender, blending until smooth … or use an immersion blender right on the stove top.
6. return the blended, smooth mixture to the soup pot. (if you find it too thick, add water or additional stock incrementally; personally, i like a thick and hearty texture.) add the cayenne, thyme, cardamom, and brown sugar, and TASTE, TASTE, TASTE … adjust spices to your liking; though, i wouldn’t do any more cayenne … and don’t forget to add salt and pepper … this is going to be a large batch of soup, so it needs (and can handle) more salt than you might think.
7. finish the soup by serving in cups or bowls, topped with a nice drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil … or hefty dollops of creme fraiche and chopped chives … or simple croutons … or some yummy combination of these things.

don't know what i'm talkin' about? click on the pic! this was a fun game to watch!

further: go bruin*s*!

d-man came downstairs to find a big ol' stack of goodies

the view from above, with all key players in place

yes, that is the cat in the foreground, getting in on the action

naomi and her family got didion an awesome walking stick, with a carved bear head at the top. it was so thoughtful. didion LOVES walking sticks.

auntie loretta sent didion — among other nifty things — a really cool activity set about ancient egypt. the kit has everything: activity books, hieroglyphics to color (which didion and mommy did about an hour after opening the box), and cool masks …

g-ma linda and g-pa chuck introduced didion to the wonderful world of (washable, thank god) markers … yes, he is wearing blue marker above his lip.

they also got him — drumroll, please — a thomas scooter!

the kid is, seriously, holding up his hand, yelling that he doesn't want his picture taken. hrmph!

and while i might’ve bypassed pastry garden during the great cupcake adventure of 2010, i most assuredly relied on them for one heck of a birthday cake … hazelnut cake with chocolate ganache and vanilla cream fillings and buttercream frosting. woot!

all of the above photos are views of ulster county (other side of the hudson). steven took some neat pics of the structure of the bridge, too.

didion digs the bridge.

of course, the best part is getting to snuggle with a clean, yummy baby!