little betty homemaker.

dear mae,

i’ve started a new blog.  i’ve loved bettymaevintage for a long time, but i feel it is now that i must move on.  i no longer have the time to doll myself up for everyday outings, and i’m afraid to drag this website into a direction it was never intended to go, and rather than changing the format of this site, i’ve moved to a new home.  if my dear, lovely followers would like to join me as i dive into my new venture, i would be glad to have you!

bettyhomemaker is up and running, and will be presently airing some reruns as i get my layout established and work on some new content. this new journal will be focusing on my new life as a mother and a homemaker, building a lovely home for my new family, while managing to keep it fed and clothed even when i feel my sanity slipping away from me. some features i plan on focusing on are simple, easy recipes, inexpensive home decorating tips, baby outfit posts, and hints on how to look beautiful on four hours of sleep and no time to get ready.  this site is naturally going to be more personal, and less serious, as i have found motherhood to be.

hope to see you there,

<3,

betty

 

what i see when i look at you

dear mae,

i recently gave myself the gift of a new work space.  my poor computer hasn’t had a proper place to live since we moved here. it has spent the majority of the last two years sitting on the kitchen table. that’s class. it cost me nothing to get my little home office set up, just a bit of rearranging.  this desk was tucked in my bedroom collecting dust and junk for a year before i realized that it’s a desk. for a computer. duh, put it in the living room. it’s in really ugly shape so i draped some fabric over it. good as new. kind of.

thank goodness for goodwill! lamp:$1.50, seriously. map:$5.00, maybe, i got it a long time ago, so i don’t really remember. oh, and the desk and chair were dumpster finds. did i mention how classy i am?

is it crazy of me to match my markers to the map? maybe, but who cares? i do, that’s who, and i like it.

hey look! i can see my house from here!

the map is one of my favorite things. it’s the portland metro area and includes little ol’ wilsonville.  tom spotted it rolled up at goodwill and it was so huge we decided just to buy it without knowing what it was.  there are tiny little post-its all over it that were there when we unrolled it.  i’m not really sure what they mean, but i’m thinking that it used to be in one of the distribution centers in town (hollywood video and rite aid both used to ship out of wilsonville, and coke still does).

perspective specticals

dear mae,

i’ve got an itch for some new glasses. i’m thinking i need a pair of 1960’s round frames. they aren’t exactly in my budget right now, but i still had fun trying on a few pairs of frames at hollywood vintage.  i’m thinking a new pair would make a fantastic christmas gift from my loving husband (are you reading this?).  these were a few of my favorites:

my desire for round frames is inspired by edith head, and winston churchill. can you have classier inspiration? i think not. the third pair is my favorite. or maybe it’s just that picture, what do you think? do they suit me?

<3,

betty

holy sweet cheesus.

dear mae,

although inept at baking, i’m not completely useless in the kitchen. i’ve got a few recipes in my repertoire that i’ve perfected after making them each thousands of times.  when you can only cook 10 things well, you eat them a lot. my personal specialitly is grilled cheese. we have grilled cheese for dinner once or twice a week.  my mom recently told me some times my dad will ask her “can you make me a grilled cheese like elizabeth makes?” i laughed when she told me, and said “ha! i doubt it!” anywho, it’s not your mama’s grilled cheese, no wonder bread, no kraft singles around here!

today i made one of my more complex concoctions with a seven grain bread, swiss cheese, tomato, avocado, sprouts and parmesan. yum!

some of my best grilled cheese secrets include:

• lots of cheese! if you think you have enough, add a bit more, these sammies have three layers of cheese, bottom middle and top. not only is it super tasty that way, but it holds the whole thing together, especially if you have lots of toppings.
• use a hot pan! i’ve made the mistake of putting my bread in a cold pan and then turning the heat up, but that just makes a soggy disaster.
• experiment! i love trying different combos of flavors, some of my favorites are swiss and sauerkraut on rye; motzerella, tomatoes and basil; or grilled mushrooms and spinach on sourdough. i might try some sweet sammies soon, like goat cheese and apples? brie and strawberries? i’ll let you know!
• fish spatula! it’s the best tool for flipping a big ol’ stuffed sandwich.

fat sammich!

i’ve never put sprouts on a grilled sandwich before, but it was super yummy, albeit a tad stringy, but i’ll be using it again for sure. maybe with more mushed avocado, and provolone cheese, kind of a nod to the jimmy john’s veggie sandwich.

<3,

betty

domestic goddess. kind of.

dear mae,

i don’t know if you are aware, but i am terrible at baking. i can make some dry chewy cupcakes, whip up a cake that is both burnt and under cooked, or make a sheet of rock hard sugar cookies, but this doesn’t prevent me from trying to make an oven fresh snack from time to time.  i never bake from scratch because i end up wasting a pound of flour, half a dozen eggs, a whole bag of sugar… whatever it was that i threw together in that bowl, so i opt for something out of a box.  if i’m feeling mighty crazy i’ll add something special to at least make it look homemade. maybe some craisins.   being in some sort of autumnal spirit i whipped up a box, i mean loaf, of pumpkin bread with surprisingly tasty results!

put this junk in the pan, then bake it in the oven. don’t bake the beer. drink the beer while baking, or cheap wine, it’s up to you.

try not to bake eggshells and other foreign objects into cakes or loafs.

if you are good enough at following simple directions you might just end up with a tasty end product looking something like this:

hey! i didn’t even burn it!

the best part about box baking is that i can put it together while carrying an attention starved baby while doing the dishes and photographing the whole disaster. i may not be a domestic goddess, but i am certainly a domestic person.

love,

betty

 

maybe i’ll go au natural…

dear mae,

i don’t often get a chance to shower these days, i’m on a disgusting every third day rotation.  this however does leave me about 5 minutes to pull my hair up into a fantastical beehive occasionally.  i also might mention that i haven’t colored my hair in over two months. yikes! looks like i might be a mousy brunette before i get to get ginge again.  let me know if you care to make a donation to the get ginge foundation, otherwise i might just let it all grow out, for now at least…

tom calls this my hulk dress because i ripped the sleeves off and never hemmed the armholes. i have a sot of maternal add. never get around to finishing anyth….

<3,

betty

i also might mention that my unofficial photoshop has “expired” and i don’t care to purchase it so i have been using pixlr for my photo editing and filters.

 

 

come on ride the train. and ride it.

dear mae,

i haven’t driven a car in nearly two years. i miss driving terribly, but the alternative isn’t so bad when you live in a town with reliable and free (!) public transit, lots of bike lanes and lovely walking trails.  i find a lot of time to read, knit or just enjoy some quiet solitude on the buses and trains, and it’s even more fun with my little travel companion! he sleeps in his bjorn for the most part, but he also loves to look out the windows of the speedy train!

 

a police officer even gave niles a sticker for being such a good boy on the train!

<3,

betty