Summer Barbecue Salad

So there I was, standing on line at the local Walmart - shopping for my mother because she needs things, and I can drive. It's the grey cloud of having a liscence, I get asked to run all the erands.

But anyways, standing at Walmart, I so happened to glance up at the tv screen. And what luck! I learned something new - and here I am to teach it to you (oh that rhymed!)

Ingredients

Cilantro

Watermelon

Limes

Cucumbers

Balsamic Vinegar

<<The quantities don't reallly matter exactly, just think of the Watermelon chunks as your "lettuce" for this salad>>

I used just about half a watermelon, cutting it into pretty good sized chunks

 Cut the cucumber into fourths (as shown), and "sprinkle" them onto the watermelon - I used a whole cucumber

Fresh cilantro just tastes so much better, but it means you have to cut and chopped the cilantro, into little pieces. Then add it to the salad - I just kept on adding until it looked about right. I prefer to go by gut instinct.

Then add the balsamic vinegar

<<it'll all settle on the bottom, so just keep tossing the salad until you're ready to serve it>>

I added lime juice at the very end, just one lime. It gave it a bit more of a zingy flavor, the balsamic does add some flavor, but the lime takes it to a whole 'nother level!

The whole salad took about 15 minutes or more to make, it just takes some time to cut up the watermelon and cilantro.

It fed about four people, three very hungry mouths and one picky one, with a little left over. It kept well in the fridge over-night, I had the rest for lunch the next day. But I suggest only making enough for how much you'll think you'll eat!

Props to Walmart for a good salad :)

Dueces xx

There is no explanation for this post.

So the day begin like this: I woke up, ate breakfast, watched How to Steal a Million on Netflix, ate some more food, then checked up on da blog. Cause I feel the need to check it every day... is that weird? 

So there I was, minding my own business, when suddenly, out of the blue, I hear, "Madison! Come help me with my earwax!"

"....."

Uh, I could not have heard that right.

Nope, I heard that right. 

My mom hasn't been hearing well lately, apparently she was talking to a friend about it and said friend mentioned these earwax candles. 

This is how it works:

Gather together a paper plate, matches, paper towels, a cup of water, a couple pillows, and of course the "candles"

1. Cut a hole through the middle of the plate

2. Stick the candle through the plate, and insert the pointy tip into your ear. Make sure it's in there nice and snug - the point is that once the end of the candle is lit, the fire + air creates a vacuum that sucks out your earwax. Gross, yet cool. (The paper plate is so that you don't get ashes on your face! IMPORTANT!)

3. Light the end of the candle on fire. MAKE SURE NO SMOKE IS COMING OUT OF YOUR EAR - aka you need two people to do this.

Things to remember:

>>> keep the water and paper towels handy. Once the flame has reached about 3 inches above the plate, put it out by dousing the paper towel in water and wrapping it around the flame.

>>> Personally, me and my mom put out the flame every two inches to clean out the candle. The tip gets full of earwax - so use the skewer they provide to clean it out. It's gross, but strangely satisfying.

I didn't do it, but my mother said it was amazing! She can hear me when I whisper, so I think it's worked :)

What a weird day....

xoxo

We talked the whole night through

Do you ever do that? Talk the whole night through?

It's the kind of thing that can't be forced. It just kind of has to happen. But it's so wonderful when it does! There's something about staying up with someone all night and just, talking.

Me and my mom did that last night;

I had come home a little later than usual on a Sunday night, after we said prayers together as a family and my siblings went off to bed, me and my mom just sat on her bed and talked for about 2 hours straight. At first we talked about my brother, then me, then school, then dad, then my other brother, then my friends, then euphimisms (or maybe not? We couldn't decide if they were euphimisms or not...), then people we'd met that day, then boys, then Pride and Prejudice, then Jane Austen, then college, then something else - until finally my mom almost fell asleep and I had to go to bed before I dropped dead. 

It reminded me of one night last summer where we stayed up together until about 2 in the morning watching Pride and Prejudice. We had watched the good version (with Colin Firth) and then the bad version (with Keira Knightley). And this is what we decided - the Colin Firth version is better because of the historical accuracy, length, how close it is to the book, and acting. The Keira Knightley version is better when it comes to filmogrophy, music, art, etc. But when it came to the historical accuracy and the acting? EEWWW. It was gross. SERIOUSLY.

When we were reading Pride and Prejudice in my English class, we had to give presentations on different topics relating to the Regency era in general. My partner and I talked about food, one group talked about fashion. And the only reason this irked me so much was because I'm a Jane Austen snob (ask my mother, she made fun of me last night for a good 10 minutes), and that I probably knew more than anyone in that room about the Regency period (hence the snob part). But they talked about bustles. BUSTLES. Ok, let me tell you, THERE WERE NO BUSTLES IN THE REGENCY ERA. NONE. ZIPPO. NADA. It made me so mad. sigh.

When we were talking about high school and senior year, my mom told me to just do EVERYTHING. literally everything. Be a part of as many clubs as I can, do as many sports as I can, go to every activity that I can, because it's depressing to look back with regret and say - I wish I had done that. I thought that was good advice, very "mom" advice, but good advice. It's just that I'm scared, you know? As a senior it's hard to try out for a sport, because it's almost garunteed you're not gonna get in. They basically already know who will be in different sports teams next year based on who played the last year. But I think I'll try - maybe I'll e-mail the coaches and just see if I can do anything to be on the team. Because I don't want this year to be sitting around doing nothing. The last 3 years I have hardly done anything, because I always told myself I was too busy with school and theatre. And this year I'll have work as well! But I think I can do it. If it's popsicle it's possible!

Moral of the story: I really love talking with my mom.

xoxo

80s Flashback

This morning, while getting ready for the annual Christmas Church Brunch, my mother pulled out a magical gift from her jewelry drawer. 

Pins.

Lots and lots of pins.

She handed them to me in a sort of non-chalont way, and said,

"I've been saving these for my kids, they were really popular to put on our jackets when I was younger."

so beautiful! 

My mom was voted "Most Stylish" by her Senior class. So receiving these pins was like seeing my cool-cat mom back in High School. Where all the girls probably looked at her clothes with a little green tint in their eyes, telling themselves that they would go out and find something like that next time they went shopping.

It's not like she grew up with the money to spend on her fashionista wardrobe. In fact, she grew up kind of poor. She worked for the money to buy her clothes, she did it all by herself. That's what I think she's most proud of. That she did it and no one else did. 

My new favorite commercials to watch are the BareEscential make-up commercials. I think they're message is so true, girls are forgetting that life isn't about being pretty. It's about getting out there, taking action, fixing mistakes, embracing flaws, and being yourself. I see my mom in that campaign. She inspires me to remember who I am. I'm not some princess waiting around for someone to fight my dragon. 

No way.

I'm my own force. And you can't stop me. 

My mom taught me to be my own kind of beautiful.

After all these thoughts ran through my head, I settled down with my pins on the table and meticulously placed each one on my jacket (well, almost each one. I still have a couple left over). I had to  pick and choose some of my favorites, so the end product turned out to be a very glitzy 80s jean jacket. 

Whenever I wear this jacket I think of my mom. Not only because she gave me these pins, but because they remind me of her and her determination to make the best of her circumstances and be a force for beauty.