Confessions of a SAHM

2010-01-09T19:43:00.000-08:00

I did it.
I actually survived training & I've got my own window, I can't believe it!
Now for a completely new kind of stress...not screwing up.
(no pressure)
I only helped 4 people cos it was late in the day when I actually got to set up my window but Monday I'll be in the hot seat.
Zoinks!!
(pray for me please, pray lots & pray hard)
It's pretty fun, I like talking to people & our townsfolk can be very interesting. Even more so because my coworkers have lived here a long time & we all know how small towns are...I'm learning all kinds of good stuff!
But only during lunch.
(a'hem)
~~~
So we were planning on a quick trip to visit my sister this weekend. Adah & I need haircuts & my sis lives close enough that the cost of driving there is about equivalent to paying someone else to do it. Adah especially likes having her aunt do her hair - Margaret sprinkles glitter in the kids hair when she's done & Adah LOVES it. She totally gets her princess vibe goin' & checks herself out in every mirror in the salon - she's so funny!
Anyhoo, this time we planned on all of us going so the boys could hang out with their uber-cool tween'ish boy cousins (total hero worship goin' on there) & so we could go to church with Great Grandpa K Sunday morning.
Then Eli got a sore throat.
So we amended the plan to a girls trip.
Then Eli developed a magnetic attraction to mommy's lap & mommy's sick-child instincts kicked into high gear.
So we further amended the plan to a day trip Sunday, nixing the visit with Great Grandpa because we don't want to take the chance of making him sick.
Then Eli's eye got all pink & goobery.
*sigh*
The further, further amended plan is to take Eli to the urgent care clinic first thing in the morning (to get him diagnosed with pink-eye which I've had so many times I can diagnose it myself) & then Adah & I will make our trip to get new do's & have some girl-time with auntie M and (hopefully) make it back before dinner.

I wonder what surprise we shall discover in the morning...

In which my writing skills go out the window...

2010-01-06T18:44:00.000-08:00

I ended the day feeling good for the first time in days. I made some headway in my training & I think I may just finish most of it by the end of the week & keep TB happy. That's the plan anyway. (fingers crossed, knocking on wood)

My struggle right now is that I'm so dang tired. Tonight I'm going to bed before the kids, I plan on doing some studying in bed but at least I'll be in the right place. I usually hang out with Chris & watch a show or 2 online after they go to bed but when I do that I end up not getting to sleep until about 11 & that ain't cutting it sleep wise. (you can tell in the writing of this post - usually I take the time to revise it until my thoughts flow better & I have halfway decent sentence structure but tonight I'm so tired I just don't care.)

I'm off to supervise homework now & then straight to bed...nightie night y'all!

Girlfriends spell relief!

2010-01-03T18:24:00.000-08:00

Ahhhhhh.

Time with the Lord & with my prayer/Bible study group felt soooooo good today! I have not been spending time with God lately & I'm feelin' it - as evidenced by my past week & yesterday's post.

(yeah, I'm a quick one I am.)

I knew this morning that even though we got up late, I needed to get my fanny to church & meet with my group. The sermon was great, as it always is, Pastor Dan is a wonderful Pastor but I could just feel God pushing me to get with the girls, share my heart with them & pray, pray, pray. I am so thankful to have this group of women. Gals I can laugh with, cry with & spill my guts to (in total confidence they will keep all my deep dark secrets) are worth more than their weight, I can tell ya.

I came home from church with a spring in my step, thanks to God & the knowledge that my gals will be uplifting me whenever God brings me to mind.

Unfortunately, my euphoria did not last long. Chris had me sit with him while he checked the grocery sales online & I was attacked with separation anxiety over my former task. As I'm sure you understand, his brain does not work the way mine does & as a result he was not doing it the 'right' way. I almost got a knot in my poor lil tummy watching the train wreck in progress...

Ok so it really wasn't that bad, he's doing fine, but there's a learning curve to finding the best deal & a lot of the household shopping savvy resides in my head, not his. I wanted to give him a list of what is typically better priced at which store but he prefers to figure it out himself. I understand because he'll understand it better that way but I did have to go into the other room for a minute so I could mutter about all my hours of work figuring this out for nothing...no drama here, nope none at all! (Where does my daughter get that trait? Hmmm...)

Things have been better with the kids today too. I expected to loose my mind during the sermon this morning - the kids are not very good at sitting through the whole thing & there's lots of whining & whispered fighting that gets significantly slightly louder as the time progresses. But I kept my cool & wasn't even very irritated with them. We played a bit when we got home & I had snuggle time with a couple of them so that was good as well.

One of my gal-pals gave me a good idea for a after school/work routine for us - reading (um doy) which is one of my favorite pastimes. Well, more accurately reading my books is one of my favorite pastimes - whenever I start reading one of their books I begin yawning within 2 pages, weather or not I actually like the book & I want to stop immediately. But I think I have discovered some books that will work well for us - I began reading Mrs. Pigglewiggle's farm to them recently & we all love it! Books like Ramona, Pippi Longstocking, Mrs. Pigglewiggle & the like I can get into. They have a story I actually enjoy & the kids are old enough now that it captures their attention too - bonus!! I'll let you know how it goes, although I want to read an installment this evening I think I'll wait until tomorrow & start the week out right.

Happy Monday y'all!!

Sometimes I really should stop & ask for directions.

2010-01-02T13:26:00.000-08:00

I am completely overwhelmed.

Work is going well, I'm s.l.o.w.l.y getting through the training but there's a lot of pressure (possibly imagined) to get it all done & it's freaking me out a bit. I have to talk to my boss on Monday about that - I don't know what her time expectation is for me getting through all this stuff. The other gal that's in training with me (and is much younger) is a lot faster than I am & I'm concerned that TB (the boss, a bit of a type-A perfectionist) is impatient with me. But I don't know how much of that is my 40-year-old-been-a-homemaker-for-7-years-intimidated-by-a-19-year-old-mind & how much is reality.

She's really not intimidating, it's more of the stereotype of the old lady can't keep up with the fresh young blood than anything else. I actually quite enjoy working with her, she's very nice & seems quite mature for a 19 year old girl. When she talked of graduating last year I assumed college, she looks a lot older than she is but silly me, it was only HS.

I'm feeling dated despite the fact that TB is a little older than me & the assistant manager is nearing retirement age. (Dangnabbed 19 year olds!)

None of this is what's overwhelming me though. No, that would be my family.

Every day this past week I've gotten overwhelmed by my kids within about 2 minutes of getting home. I assumed that on the weekend I would feel better but so far this is not the case. And this week was not even a normal work week, we had the holiday off!

Chris has been great, he's totally taken on the housework & cooking & the house is cleaner than it would be if I had been the one home. But I'm not sure this is helping me either.

The kitchen has been my domain for years but now I'm finding things in the wrong places & my routines are no longer in place. I kinda feel like a stranger in my own home. Now, I'm the first to admit I'm a tad anal about where the dishes go & things like that. I like things where I like them, what can I say? But when I showed him how I put the bowls away, round bowls in one stack & square bowls in another (completely logical, right?) he said "well you're not putting away the dishes anymore are you."

Ouch.

I've never been a fan of doing the dishes. I've been known, at times, to put them off & end up with a nasty stinky mess in the sink & all over the counter but that was MY job in MY kitchen & I'm not sure I want to give it up! Now Chris is doing the dishes, the menu planning, the shopping & the rest of MY job & I don't like it one bit. (There I said it, harrumph!)

Then there's the kids. Now, I love my kids but those of you who are familiar with my blog know that I've been challenged by them from time to time. (yes I know, the understatement of the year, young as it is...) Everyone assumed (and by everyone I mean Chris, my mom, my sisters & my BFF) that when I got back to work, out in the real world & interacting with adults again, things would get easier for me at home. Hell, I bought into it too but so far it's not been the case! I don't like to leave them in the morning & I'm happy to see them when I get home but I can only handle so much. I like to snuggle quietly with one or two, read books to them & watch them play but if things get loud (as they are 95% of the time) or more than one tries to talk to me at a time (another 95%) I simply can't handle it & they must get away from me NOW before I blow my stack. (and when I say blow I mean Mt St Helen's style.)

I don't want to hurt the kids or make them feel like Mom doesn't like spending time with them but my kids are loud, raucous and always fighting to be the one heard first & I start to panic. All weekend I've been shooing them away from me, trying to do it nicely but a lot of the time they won't listen & I have to raise it up a notch to get movement & they get their feelings hurt.

Then Chris hears me beginning to loose it & comes to my rescue & I feel guilty, or worse, he comes to the kids rescue & I feel resentful & arguing ensues.

Could someone please tell me who I am, how I fit into this dang family & where I can find my sanity? Pretty please??

Spinnin' like a top

2009-12-28T13:06:00.001-08:00

First day of work today and all I got to say is...

Wow - my brain hasn't seen this much action in a loooong time (and it's a mite dizzy!)

G'night all, I need me some sleep!

Workin' girl

2009-12-18T11:56:00.001-08:00

Hi folks.

I'm back again...I think. I'm beginning a new journey soon & I feel as though I should get my thoughts written out through this process.

I got a job.

Yup I'm no longer a SAHM. As of Dec 28th I'm a bank teller & I'm not sure how I feel about it. I'm excited, scared, nervous, depressed and well, generally in a tizzy about the whole thing.

It's weird getting back out there after not working for over 7 years. I'm so used to taking care of my home & family I don't know what to feel. And adding to my ambivalence, Chris will become a house-husband & I'm not ready to just hand it all over to him.

Can you tell I don't like change?

I know this job is going to be good for me & I know I'll be good at it. One thing I am looking forward to is meeting a lot more people here in our lil community. I tend to hermit myself in my house & this will force me to get out there & be around people...which I really do need. I think it's also going to help my depression which would be fabulous.

But for now I've got 'what if's' and 'but how about's' and 'what happens when's' swirling through my brain & I can't get the dag-nabbed thing to shut up!

So I'm thinkin' I need a new name for my blog...any ideas? All I can come up with is Michels Madness or Michels Mayhem but I'm not crazy about either of them. I want something catchy that describes the insanity of our household & life. Ya know, mom with depression, 3 strong willed kids 2 of which have ADD & a hubby with ADD all tryin' to navigate this world without messing each other up too much.

Hmmm...

A whole new me or, man do I love technology!

2009-01-08T16:00:00.000-08:00

I found this great contest over at 5 Minutes for Mom the other day for a Wii fit & I just had to try for it. Your main entry in the contest requires you to sign up for WeightView, a really cool site that does amazing things with your picture.
Here's my before & after photos from WeightView:

Um...wow???
Holy schmokes what a difference!! (I was going to say holy cow but well, y'know...) I'd say this gives me some motivation...it even took my double chin away! I'm going to make that call to the dr I was talking about several days ago. (No I haven't called yet, that's something I talk about & think about forever but don't actually do. Could be the reason I don't get anything done!)
So.
Go sign up to see the new you and then enter the contest at 5 Minutes for Mom. Just don't win ok?...I want that Wii fit for myself!!!

The same age as Sesame Street? Cool!

2009-01-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

In 1969 (the year you were born)

Richard Nixon becomes president of the US

Mary Jo Kopechne is killed when Senator Edward Kennedy veers off a narrow bridge on Chappaquiddick Island, crashing into a pond

US astronaut Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to set foot on the moon while commanding the Apollo 11 mission

Breathtaking pictures of Mars are transmitted to earth from NASA's Mariner 7 as it passes within 2,200 miles of the Red Planet

Woodstock music festival begins in upstate NY, featuring performances by Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, and many more artists

250,000 Vietnam War protestors gather in Washington for the largest anti-war rally in US history

The first draft lottery since WWII is held in New York City

The Beatles' performance in public for the last time, on the roof of Apple Records

The Stonewall riots mark the start of the modern gay rights movement in the US

Marilyn Manson, Jennifer Aniston, Renee Zellweger, Edward Norton, Christian Slater, and Linus Torvalds are born

New York Mets win the World Series

New York Jets win Superbowl III

Montreal Canadiens win the Stanley Cup

Sesame Street premieres

Midnight Cowboy wins the Oscar for best picture

David Bowie's debut single, "Space Oddity", becomes a huge hit - in part due to the US landing on the moon

Sharon Tate & the LaBiancas are found murdered by Charles Manson & "family"

What Happened the Year You Were Born?

A heavy heart

2009-01-07T13:40:00.000-08:00

I'm taking a bit of a break today as I'm mourning the loss of 2 terrific kids. Coleman won his freedom Monday evening & Dante won his Tuesday morning.
They were both courageous to the very end & touched many lives.
Please pray for their parents, Scott & Peggy, Tony & Jo - they need all they can get right now.

God bless you all!

I dream of...Michelle?

2009-01-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

The other day I had this crazy dream about one of my favorite bloggers, Michelle from My Semblance of Sanity. It was one of those really vivid dreams that make you wonder if it really happened which is weird for me. The only dreams I ever remember are nightmares - with the exception of when I was pregnant & when I was on the nicotine patch. At those times I had extremely vivid dreams but not ones I can repeat in polite company, if you know what I mean. (wink, wink, nudge, nudge.)

So I'm in my car with my son Eli just out & about running errands. We see a sign for a kids craft place & decide to stop in & check it out. It turns out to be this huge room off the back of a house. So we go in & ring the bell to let them know we are there. And who comes out of the door but Michelle! I was so excited. I mean, I've wanted to meet this woman for the longest time but she lived so far away. I didn't understand how we could come to be at her house but hey, who's gonna argue?
So she had shelves & cupboards full of papers & paints, glues & glitters, anything you could think of to use for kid crafting, she had it there.
We get Eli started on a project & she invites me into the house for coffee. So we hang out & chit chat for awhile, checking on Eli from time to time (because we all know what Eli can be like!)
Finally he's done creating stuff & she goes to walk us out to our car...but things have somehow changed since we've been inside. We've gone from a suburb area to a rural setting & we are now on a ranch with horses & cows all over the place. I ask her for a tour & she shows us all over their operation, they've also got chickens & a few goats (strangely, just like some friends of ours back in Cle Elum...) & it's just a beautiful setting. Then she says "I've got one more thing to show you...the guest cottages."
What? Have I died & gone to heaven? She's got cottages & you can actually stay here?
Oh. My. Gosh!!!
We go & have a peek in one & it's absolutely charming. All decorated with antiques & homemade quilts, just like I would do it. *sigh*
I've got to get home but she gives me her brochure & I promise to call her soon.
Next we seem to do one of those dream time-warp things & I'm arriving at her place with some girlfriends for a weekend getaway.
Michelle greets us & gets us all tucked into our cottage. It's just the right size for us all & we are looking forward to a weekend of much laughter & fun.
We have dinner (catered by Michelle's cook, how cool is that?) & go over to the big house for an evening of crafting fun. She's got it set up so we can scrapbook, make cards, or a centerpiece for our table. She joins us & we spend the next few hours being creative & laughing until our faces hurt.
The next day we go for a trail ride on the horses & boy you oughta see the cowboy guiding us...whew! He chooses the right horse for each of us & off we go. It was a great ride through some amazing country...our cowboy is charming & helpful, and tells us some great stories of ranching life.
Next is massage time, now that our buns are aching & we're all bowed-legged & sore from riding. (Of course, Michelle had a spa at her ranch...I mean, who wouldn't?) We enjoy our pampering & decide that tomorrow we might just need mani/pedi's too.
More fabulous food & crafting fun, and a lot more laughter shared by all.
The next morning we woke up & felt fabulous. We had breakfast & were just heading over to the stables to see the ~~cowboy~~ horses & maybe go for another ride when what should happen?

My dadgum kids woke me up.

Oh man...

~~~~

Y'all should check out this post on Michelle's blog. Even though she doesn't really have a ranch with hottie cowboys & cute cozy cottages, she's got a dandy of a contest goin' on to promote her latest venture. Don't forget to let her know who sent you!!

Now, where is that cell phone?

2009-01-03T13:41:00.000-08:00

I recieved this, my second blog award (never did anything about the first one...need to visit that blog and dig it up in her archives!) from my pal Kate who writes about her life in Texas. She's a lovely person & is wonderfully supportive, especially when I'm waaaay off my rocker. (Not that it happens often...*a'hem*)
Thanks Kate!!

The way this works is I answer the following questions with single word responses, and pass the award on to 5 other bloggers:
1. Where is your cell phone? Desk
2. Where is your significant other? Back-room
3. Your hair color? Brownish
4. Your mother? Mom
5. Your father? Dad
6. Your favorite thing? Books
7. Your dream last night? Dunno
8. Your dream/goal? Kids
9. The room you're in? Family
10. Your hobby? X-stitch
11. Your fear? Opinions
12. Where do you want to be in six years? Content
13. Where were you last night? Home
14. What you're not? Confident
15. One of your wish list items? Music
16. Where you grew up? Kirkland
17. The last thing you did? Read
18. What are you wearing? Jeans
19. Your T.V.? Sony
20. Your pet? Gihli/Smudge
21. Your computer? Dell
22. Your mood? Restless
23. Missing someone? Yup
24. Your car? Caravan
25. Something you're not wearing? Socks
26. Favorite store? Michaels
27. Your Summer? Hot
28. Love someone? Yes
29. Your favorite color? Blue
30. When is the last time you laughed? Morning
31. Last time you cried? 26th

I wish I could give this to all the blogs I read...here's my pics, go check em out!
1. Blessed...
2. Diagonally parked in a Parallel Universe
3. Livesay (Haiti) Weblog
4. Fried Okra
5. My Little Corner of the World

2009-01-01T18:27:00.001-08:00

This is going to be short and er, sweet today. I pulled a muscle in my back a few days ago & yesterday it was feeling much better...yesterday.
Today...ow, ow, OW!
I can hardly move right now, everything hurts. Moving my head, sitting down, getting up...even making a sudden facial expression hurts sometimes.
UGH!

Anyway, I didn't come here to whine my head off...I really wanted to share with you our latest kid'ism.

From Adah
"I'm a gooood pooper mom. I'm a poop girl!"

Now aren't you happy you visited today? Now your life is complete, having heard that Adah is a poop girl. I mean, what an accomplishment!

Actually it's a great thing. For the past 2 days she had successfully pooped without making a giant mess in her undies. This is huge for us, she has been very difficult in this area, making me lots & lots of nasty laundry to clean - blech! You can read more about that here & here if you so choose - but I can't imagine why you'd want to!!
So we've been lavishing her with praise & telling her that she should be very proud of herself. And proud she is, our sweet little poop girl.
*a'hem*
Totally a story to save for her embarrassment in later years :)

Hola 2009!

2009-01-01T16:48:00.000-08:00

Ok this is pathetic.
I was trying to write a silly little poem about the new year & I can't get beyond the first line (which sounded like a 3rd grader wrote it anyway.) I think I've not only lost brain cells from having children but from endless loads of laundry & dishes.
We rung in the new year by snuggling on the couch (except we didn't so much snuggle as sat next to each other...we both pulled back muscles recently.) and watching movies. Chris picked The Dark Knight & I chose Tuck Everlasting. As much as I like The Dark Night I didn't think it set the proper tone for celebrating 2009 but Chris just had to see it, then he fell asleep during my movie (which was very cute btw.) We'll be watching it again tonight so he can see what happens after the opening credits.
We've spent our first day of the new year by doing pretty much the same thing we do everyday. Cleaning..internet..laundry..internet..fighting..internet..dishes..internet..fighting over who gets to be on the internet...
You get the general idea.
So I haven't made any resolutions for this year, I never keep the dang things anyway so why bother? I really like what Dawn at BecauseISaidSo came up with though.
I have been seriously thinking about talking to my Dr about my weight. I'm about 80-90 lbs overweight & it's only getting worse. I think about exercising or cutting back on the sweets & it just sends me into scarf-everything-I-see mode. Like I know I'm going to diet soon so I better cram in all the ~~crap~~ food I can now. I'm tired of getting winded (and my knees protesting) going up the stairs. I'm tired of not being able to romp around with the kids much. I'm tired of seeing pics of myself & thinking "that's me? Yuck!!"
I would have to get my mom into this...we don't have enough money for WW or a gym or whatever & I think I'm going to need that outside motivation. I just don't have the willpower to do this on my own. I need someone (other than my husband) to kick me in the butt. I've become very lazy & unmotivated (dunno if that's a word but I'ma use it anyway) & I don't see myself doing what I need to do on a regular basis without that help.
So.
I'm off to ~~loose more brain cells~~ do laundry.
You got any resolutions? Will you actually keep them? Do anything fabulous to welcome 2009?

~~~~

2009,
you'll do just fine.

(oh yeah, 3rd grade all the way. Maybe 2nd even.)

Oh THAT mom.

2008-12-31T09:10:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had the ~~torture~~ pleasure of grocery shopping with my 3 little ~~snarling, sniveling~~ darlings. It was such a ~~hellish~~ great trip, replenishing my pantry while displaying my obvious ~~lack of control~~ parenting prowess.
Oh we ~~dragged, pushed, pulled~~ traipsed round the store, ~~blindly grabbing~~ merrily & efficiently gathering the items on my list, my ~~obnoxious~~ precious little ones ~~sitting in the previous isle throwing a fit~~ following obediently behind me like a line of ducklings.
I tell you I was the ~~nightmare come true~~ example of what every mother ~~fears~~ knows her kids will be like with her ~~pathetic~~ superior mothering abilities.
Oh yes, yesterday I truly was THAT mom.

I hope we don't get fined for this!

2008-12-30T09:00:00.000-08:00

I started this post back in October...procrastinate much? Anyway, it's a follow up on our friends memorial service & the excitement that followed.

~~~~

Well, despite our reason for traveling we had a really great weekend catching up with friends.

The drive was awesome, sunny & clear the whole way. When it's that nice you can see the top of Mt Rainer from the Moses Lake area - a simply stunning sight even from that far away!

The memorial service was beautiful, we worshiped together & praised God for Dave's life. Pastor Greg did a great job speaking on dealing with grief as a Christian & we heard memories of Dave & hope for the future from his family. There was a great video Cascade Productions put together from pics of Dave's spanning the years. And of course, a TON of great food! The kids did very well through the service, it was about an hour long & they are not used to sitting that long. We stayed in the back & other than excessive wiggling from Eli & having to take Adah out 2 times, they did great. Once it was over they could run around & get their energy out - but more about that in a minute.

I got my love-tank filled by my friends, oh I miss those crazy ladies sometimes! There's a group of gals I got to know very well during a prayer group & they are like sisters to me. They are the people I can bare the ugly parts of myself to & they still love me & accept me for who I am, icky parts & all. Becky, Dave's wife was a part of that & it was good to just hug her, tell her I love her & I'm praying for her & the boys. She was quite surprised to see us there - as were a lot of others. Chris enjoyed seeing everyone too. He hasn't been back for over a year so it was great for him to connect with the guys again. We were just starting to think about leaving when this hideous noise began sounding throughout the building - the fire alarm. It took me a minute to figure out what was going on & then I had one thought 'where the heck is Eli?'

You see, Eli has been notorious for turning lights on or off & touching things he oughtn't. In fact he did this numerous times at our old church in Cle Elum - the lights would go out & immediately Chris & I would holler 'ELI!' And it was always him, the little stinker.

We found Eli & the other kids. They were all scared & holding their ears. Sam & Eli in particular have sensitive ears & the noise was hurting them quite a bit. Chris questioned Eli & after lots of reassurance he was not in trouble he admitted that he did it.

He felt so bad the poor guy, I asked him about it later & discovered that he knew it would make a noise but he had no idea it would be that loud (did I mention this building has all wood floors?) or that it would be throughout the whole building.

We were very lucky it happened at the very end of the evening, a lot of people had already left & clean up had begun. Everyone was very understanding, especially as many of them already know Eli & his talent of getting into everything. I just felt bad Becky had such a turbulent ending to her husband's memorial. The police arrived about 10 minutes later to shut the thing off & they were nice as well. Chris was worried that we would get fined or something but I think they know that accident's (& 5 year olds named Eli) happen & were glad it was nothing.

He got a big lecture about not touching things etc & we decided that his 10 minutes of pain & shame was punishment enough. Every time we mentioned the subject he was so embarrassed he hid his face. He wouldn't look at anyone other than us for anything! We still refer to it occasionally, it serves as a good reminder for him & has been useful to Chris & I as a deterrent.

The psycology of bed's and umbrella's

2008-12-29T08:20:00.000-08:00

What Your Blue Umbrella Says About You

When faced with adversity, you can be counted on.

You rise to the occasion when things are tough, and you are very dependable.

You are cool and laid back. Everyone finds you easy to get along with.

You are a good communicator and conversationalist. People pour their hearts out to you.

On a rainy day: you should spend the day catching up with your closest friends

The Umbrella Test

What Your Bed Says About You

Outward appearances aren't important to you at all. You think that the over emphasis on looks to be shallow.

You try to be an organized person, but you often fall behind. Certain parts of your life tend to fall into chaos.

You are very high maintenance. You like everything a certain way, and you're grumpy if things aren't the way you like them.

In relationships, you tend to be quite dominant. You enjoy taking charge.

You tend to be a down to earth, practical person. You think in terms of what is actual.

You are a traveler. You are comfortable anywhere, and you rarely feel homesick.

What Does Your Bed Say About You?

I resemble these both very much...my poor husband!

For unto us a Child is born

2008-12-25T02:41:00.000-08:00

Merry CHRISTmas everyone! I hope you all have a wonderful day filled with family, laughter, fun & waaaaay too much to eat :)

We will be eating a leisurely breakfast of eggs & cinnamon rolls after the who-can-fling-the-most-paper-around-the-room contest. And them I shall run around like the proverbial chicken while I get us ready to head down to my sisters for 2 days. And all this on about 4 hours of sleep.

And now a gift for my bloggy friends courtesy of my pal Rick over at Organized Doodles...enjoy!

Let us all remember...He is the reason for the season!

Oh what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day, I've got a wonderful feeling, everything's going my...oh wait, I forgot this is my life!

2008-12-20T12:21:00.000-08:00

So far this morning...

Got up late. (no shower)
Dog saw cat while taking his morning pee & ran off. (maybe he'll get cold & come back)
Welcomed an extra kid. (babysitting all day)
Played pioneer. (chopped wood for fire)
Took a call from the city. (about dog, what a surprise)
Bundled kids for a trek to the garage. (to find dog)
Dug out drift in front of garage. (about 2 ft deep)
Wrestled van onto driveway. (took a few tries)
Found dog. (who did NOT want to get in the van)
Took 5 tries to get up driveway. (and actually made it into garage)
Un-bundled kids. (me first, I have ice in my boot, mom help)
Fixed 2 boo-boos. (band aids go fast in this house)
Rescued extra kid from my kids. (she's 3 & they play very rough)
Discovered daughter cutting up my brush. (took the bristles right off)
Scolded boys for riding old crib mattress down stairs. (miraculously nobody was hurt)

And all this before 9:30!

~~~~

Interesting Sam pronunciation:

Sam "hey mom, a question mark means a question & a es-qu-ash-kon (exclamation) mark means a question too!"
Mom "gotta work on that buddy."

I had to have him repeat that a bunch of times before I could figure out how to spell it. And I'm so not correcting him...it's just too cute for that!

~~~~

I have recently learned to be grateful that Chris is working in Ellensburg. At first I was very resentful & angry. I mean, we just moved away from there to be closer to work & now he's working right back where we came from! But the general contractor at this particular job is tarping & heating the job which means they can work all winter, even in extreme temperatures. Chris found out last week that they are the only crew working right now. All the other jobs are shut down due to nasty weather. So once again, God knows what He's doing & I haven't a clue.
Go figure :)

~~~~

Yesterday I finally finished decorating the house for Christmas. Now I just have to finish the gifts I'm making & wrap everything. Every year I plan on getting it all done early & every year I go right down to the wire. Nothing like a little added stress to spice up my everyday life.
We are getting up early on Christmas morning to open our gifts & have breakfast together. Then we will make the trek to my sister's house in Richland & spend 2 days with the rest of my family. Should be a blast & a little deja-vu, to see all our kids playing together, just like we did with our cousins when we were kids. You see, my sister bought my Grandparents old house & we spent many-a Christmas playing in the basement. Now it's come full circle & we're the boring adults talking upstairs.

~~~~

I introduced my kids to the movie Rudolph yesterday & naturally they loved it. It was so much fun to see them enjoying what I've loved for so long. Today I'm going to see if I can find A Charlie Brown Christmas online for them. I just love sharing all the old traditions with them & knowing they will pass them on to their kids someday. The best part though is sharing the real reason for the season, our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. We've always told them a bible story every night before bed but at this time of year we linger on the story of His birth. I want them to understand from an early age that Christmas has nothing to do with santa & getting lots of stuff. It's about celebrating the King of Kings & what He came here to do for us.
So we talk a lot about how santa is a character & it's fun to pretend he's real but he's not really real. And when you see santa at the store or he comes to your school party he's just a man dressed up in a costume like at Halloween. But I also make sure to tell them not to ruin it for other kids who might think santa is real.

~~~~

We took our annual trek to see the Christmas lights Saturday night. As usual we got started too late & didn't get to finish our list. But we did see some beautiful houses in parts of Spokane we hadn't been to before & it was magical for the kids. We can't afford to put up much by the way of lights so it's fun to check out the families who can keep the power companies happy.

~~~~

Random recipe:
I made some yummy waffles for breakfast the other day. I use the recipe from the better homes and gardens cookbook (aka red & white book) but I use half whole wheat flour & I add a scoop or 2 of wheat germ so I can pretend it's good for us. I also make my own syrup which tastes so much better than that crap from the store...well, unless you buy the real thing which of course, is fabulously yummy. To make syrup you just boil 2 parts sugar & 1 part water with a little vanilla & maple flavoring until it's slightly thickened (emphasis on the slightly, if you boil it too long you'll end up with sugar-crystal'y syrup.) What made these waffles so great was that his time I didn't know I had run out of maple flavoring. I improvised & threw a couple of cinnamon sticks in & it turned out so good I don't know if I'll make it any other way.

~~~~

Hey I blogged today, can you believe it?
Have a wonderful day & enjoy your snow if you have it :)

Forgive me bloggers for I have sinned...

2008-11-25T12:51:00.001-08:00

It's been a month since my last post.

I can't believe it's been that long.

Ok, yeah I can but...but...but...

*sigh*

I've become addicted to a couple of things that are taking up my cyber-time... Carepages/Caringbridge cancer kids updates & Facebook (or facecrack as I've seen it lovingly called.)

I think I just gatta quit playing all those dag-nabbed games on FB (I can quit anytime I want to...I just don't want to right now...sound familiar???)

Anyway...

For now here's some kid'ism's for you.

Mom: (getting up to put in a movie for the kids & seeing Adah sit in my chair) "Adah, how come every time I get up you take my chair?"

Adah: "Mom, I didn't take your chair...I'm just sitting in it!" (Like duh mom, what are you thinking you silly woman?)

Can't argue with that logic!

This one needs a little set up - all 3 kids got a tummy bug & we had Michels pukefest 08 for a couple of days. This conversation was the day after Sam got it, I had just offered him something to eat...he was eating again but very little.

Mom: "You sure you don't want anything to eat?"

Sam: "No."

Mom: "Does your tummy still feel funny?"

Sam: "yeah, it feels kinda tickley."

Awww...

Mimi's poem

2008-10-22T12:11:00.000-07:00

I belong to a special group of women
My friends and I have an amazing bond.
We never wanted to be in this group,
Yet we are in, for life.
Maybe we have met, maybe we haven’t,
Yet our love for each other is boundless.
We know the pain the other one feels,
And we share our victories small or huge.
Words like chemo, IV, Zofran , bald heads
Are always parts of our conversations,
As well as roidrage, tears, and meltdowns…
We always know where the closest puke bucket is,
We can hold it in one hand and if necessary,
Swallow the sandwich the other hand was holding.
We can drive to the hospital,
Park in the dark parking garage
Make our way thru the halls of the hospital
And to the appropriate floor,
Settle in a room, turn the TV on,
Give instructions to the head nurse,
Silence loud beeping IV pumps,
Direct a wagon AND an IV pole
To the playroom without hitting anything
Make our way back to the correct room
And all this, mind you,
With our eyes closed at any given time.
We know how to draw blood from lines
Sticking out of little kids chests.
We can hold them down with one hand,
While a nasogastric tube is inserted in their little nose,
And be on the phone with their dads at the same time.
We can live for days on hospital food,
And on maybe only one meal a day .
We know the names of up to 20 different drugs,
Their purpose, dosage and time to be taken.
We are always on call, 24 hours a day,
Seven days a week.
We are used to not always looking our best,
Hard to do with only a few hours of sleep .
Make up , hair styling, skirts are words of the past .
We have become addicted to texting,
hospital, clinic, home, wherever…
We talk sometimes at all hours of the night,
We know we can count on someone to be up.
Then for one of us, the world stops.
She has to walk away, broken.
This job is over .
The job is over, but the fight is on.
Remember , I said we were in this forever.
We are friends, sisters, temporary nurses,
We are each others rock, each others punching bag,
We listen , we vent , we cry , we laugh together.
We share our lives and our deaths
We share our pain and our victories.
We are strong, but not by choice,
Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose,
But never are we defeated .
We are not nurses
We are not doctors,
We are cancer moms…
Mimi ( 10-18-08 )

Please visit her carepage & check out the kids she shares about. Fall in love with them, let their stories break your heart, learn what the GOLD ribbon stands for & tell your friends about it. Learn how childhood cancer is the leading cause of death by disease in children. Learn how under-funded childhood cancer research is & join in the fight to increase awareness. But above all pray for these kids & their families. They need as much love, support & prayer as they can get!

The 'We Deserve It Dividend'

2008-10-19T20:38:00.000-07:00

I got this via email today & thought it too good to pass up.
Enjoy!!

~~

I'm against the $85,000,000,000.00 bailout of AIG. Instead, I'm in favor of giving $85,000,000,000 to America in a 'We Deserve It Dividend'.

To make the math simple, let's assume there are 200,000,000 bonafide U.S. Citizens 18+.

Our population is about 301,000,000 +/- counting every man, woman and child. So 200,000,000 might be a fair stab at adults 18 and up..

So divide 200 million adults 18+ into $85 billon that equals $425,000.00.

My plan is to give $425,000 to every person 18+ as a 'We Deserve It Dividend' .

Of course, it would NOT be tax free. So let's assume a tax rate of 30%.

Every individual 18+ has to pay $127,500.00 in taxes. That sends $25,500,000,000 right back to Uncle Sam.

But it means that every adult 18+ has $297,500.00 in their pocket. A husband and wife has $595,000.00.

What would you do with $297,500.00 to $595,000.00 in your family?

*Pay off your mortgage - housing crisis solved.
*Repay college loans - what a great boost to new grads
*Put away money for college - it'll be there
*Save in a bank - create money to loan to entrepreneurs.
*Buy a new car - create jobs
*Invest in the market - capital drives growth
*Pay for your parent's medical insurance - health care improves
*Enable Deadbeat Dads to come clean - or else

Remember this is for every adult U S Citizen 18 + including the folks who lost their jobs at Lehmann Brothers and every other company that is cutting back. And of course, for those serving in our Armed
Forces.

If we're going to re-distribute wealth let's really do it...instead of trickling out a puny $1000.00 ( 'vote buy' ) economic incentive that is being proposed by one of our candidates for President.

If we're going to do an $85 billion bailout, let's bail out every adult U S Citizen 18+!

As for AIG - liquidate it. Sell off its parts.

Let American General go back to being American General. Sell off the real estate. Let the private sector bargain hunters cut it up and clean it up.

Here's my rationale. We deserve it and AIG doesn't. Sure it's a crazy idea that can 'never work.' But can you imagine the Coast-To-Coast Block Party! How do you spell Economic Boom?

I trust my fellow adult Americans to know how to use the $85 Billion 'We Deserve It Dividend' more than do the geniuses at AIG or in Washington DC .

And remember, The Birk plan only really costs $59.5 Billion because $25.5 Billion is returned instantly in taxes to Uncle Sam.

Ahhh...I feel so much better getting that off my chest.

Kindest personal regards,
Birk
T. J. Birkenmeier, A Creative Guy & Citizen of the
Republic

PS: Feel free to pass this along to your pals as it's either good for a laugh or a tear or a very sobering thought on how to best use $85 Billion!!

Mixed feelings

2008-10-10T22:09:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about our plans for tomorrow & emotionally I'm being pulled in 2 directions.
One one hand I'm excited to visit with friends I haven't' seen in a long time. I miss them so much & cherish any chance to go back home & see them.
But on the other our reason for going is not a happy one.
We will be driving back to Cle Elum for the funeral of our friend David Zapel. (I can use his name now, the family was identified in the local paper so it's ok.) It's going to be hard to say goodbye to him, it's still hard to imagine he's really gone.
It's also going to make for a very long day. It takes about 3 hours to get there & we will be returning home after dinner. I suspect the kids are not going to be fond of this arrangement.
But it's worth it to honor Dave's life & to be there for Becky, Tim, Kyle, Jason & Cory.
Thanks for your prayers, I know they are felt. Becky has been telling everyone of the peace God's given her all this week. Pray that peace continues in the coming days & that the boys feel it also. I know they have many, many hard days ahead.
God bless you all & have a great weekend!

Wha???

2008-10-09T15:57:00.000-07:00

What happened to blogrolling? I was trying to read some blogs but my blogrolls are gone & their site won't pull up - boohoo.
Figures, I have time to read blogs for the first time in over a month but I can't get to any of them. Girrrrr!

~~

So what's new in the Michels household?
Notsomuch really.
Chris is back to work after more than a week off. We are anxiously awaiting next week when we'll have a normal paycheck again...as are our creditors & utilities (a'hem) =)
The kids are still loving school. Sam is doing very well, much better than last year. I won't ever regret keeping him in kindergarten, so far he's really blossomed.
The twins adore everything about their class & teacher. She can do no wrong in their eyes (unlike dumb'ole mom ya know) & have fitted right in. Even Eli, my rambunctious terror has been following the rules. Well until yesterday, that is. Seems he tackled a kid & bonked his head on the floor. He got a time out for that but truly I'm surprised it didn't happen earlier...like on the first day! But they made up & all is well. Good thing he's so dang cute!
I'm trying to adjust to the new season. Seems like 2 weeks ago we were in the 90's & now it hardly gets over 65. We keep the house pretty cold to try & save money so I'm in long johns, sweats, t shirt, mock neck, sweatshirt & 2 pairs of socks. I do ok in the morning when the heater is on frequently but in the afternoons I do nothing but shiver. I try to remember my summertime mantra; I'd rather be too cold than too hot, it's easier to warm up than cool down. But it's hard to remember that when your thermostat is set at 63! Really though I do love fall. All the leaves, the crisp air on sunny days & wintertime just around the corner. Much welcomed after the sweltering heat of summer.

~~

It feels good to be writing again. I've missed it (and you!) as an outlet - cheap therapy is always welcomed around here.
I hope to be visiting you all soon, if blogrolling & time will allow it =)

Prayers please

2008-10-05T20:46:00.000-07:00

I know I haven't posted in forever & I'm sorry I'm coming on now only to request something. But your prayers are needed for the Z family. D was killed in a heavy equipment accident yesterday. He leaves behind his wife B & their 4 boys, T, K, J & C. B is a good friend of mine from the town we used to live in. This is a strong family that loves the Lord but they will need lots of prayer support in the coming days. We know that D is in heaven but B & her boys will miss him terribly, especially J & C who are juniors in HS this year.
Thanks so much, I'll be back soon. Just preoccupied lately & busy with life.
God bless you all,
Alane

Frugal Franny Friday

2008-09-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

I'm thinking of making this a weekly feature...is that something you are interested in, my dear readers? (This would be a great time to de-lurk & let me know who you are, you lurkers you. In other words, comments comments comments, I love me some comments :))
I would post a frugal recipe or tip & maybe a question every now & then...might put mr linky to work (if I can figure him out) if y'all like the idea.

So today's Frugal Franny recipe is my first frugal recipe find. Laundry soap is soooo expensive & not so great for the environment. I searched online to see if there was a cheaper alternative & found several. Most of them made liquid detergent, but I've always used powder so I went that route. Plus to make the liquid stuff you need a five gallon bucket to store it & I just don't want that much detergent sitting around (Eli is just waaaay to good at opening things he shouldn't, if you know what I mean.)
So I tweaked the original recipe to suit my tastes & it's what I've used for about the last year.

1 bar '>Fels Naphta soap
1/2 heaping Cup Borax
1/2 heaping cup Super Washing Soda
Grate the Fels Naphta, discarding the last bit of the bar (which, if you do grate it, might make you loose a fingertip or 2. Not that I know anything about how that could happen...nope, not me!)
If it grates into little curls, smoosh them up so they will dissolve better. (a food processor would be very handy here, unfortunately I don't own one so I have to do it the manual way.)
Add Borax & Washing Soda & stir.
Use 1 tbsp per load, for heavily soiled clothes use 1- 1/2 to 2 tbsp.

You could use other kinds of soap if you have sensitive skin or anything, just your usual bar soap works just dandy. However, my hubby is convinced those would gunk up the pipes over time so we don't go that route. I could find nothing on the Internet about anybody having this problem though.
I wash most of my clothes in cold water to save energy & this mixture works fine for me. I do run just a little hot water to dissolve the soap before I switch to cold & add the clothes.
If you are interested in the liquid recipe just Google homemade laundry detergent & you should find it pretty quick.

Who?

2008-09-04T18:48:00.000-07:00

I found this over on My Little Corner of the World, who got it from Diary of a Stay at Home Mom & I thought I'd join in the fun.

1. Who is your man? My fabulous hubby Chris that I love sooooooo much.
2. How long have you been together? We met almost 11 years ago & have been married for 10.
3. How long did you date before you got married? 5 months.
4. How old is your man? 33.
5. Who eats more? Usually Chris.
6. Who said "I love you" first? Chris.
7. Who is taller? Chris by 3 inches.
8. Who sings better? Me - he's not got a horrible voice or anything but sometimes he makes me wince cos he's so off key. (Sorry honey, I love you but it's true.)
9. Who is smarter? Useless knowledge - Chris. Practical common sense - me...but don't ask Chris what his opinion is :)
10. Whose temper is worse? Oh mine by far!
11. Who does the laundry? Mostly me.
12. Who takes out the garbage? Mostly me but I try hard to get him to do it.
13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me.
14. Who pays the bills? Right now Chris does it.
15. Who is better with the computer? Chris.
16. Who mows the lawn? Usually Chris but I do part of it sometimes.
17. Who cooks dinner? Mostly me but Chris is a fantastic cook when the mood strikes him.
18. Who drives when you are together? Me but only because he has to drive so far to work & he's sick of it.
19. Who pays when you go out? Whoever has their wallet handy.
20. Who is the most stubborn? That's pretty equal which makes for some dandy fights!
21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? We are equally bad at this, I'd say it's about 50/50.
22. Whose parents do you see most? Mine but only cos they live closer & they can visit us a lot. Chris' mom can't travel much & we can't afford to.
23. Who kissed who first? It was kinda mutual but he pulled the "do you want a neck rub?" move on me - totally knew where that was heading!
24. Who asked who out? He drove a very long way to take me out...one of these days I'm gonna blog about how we met.
25. Who proposed? He did.
26. Who is most sensitive? He is e.x.t.r.e.m.e.l.y sensitive & I'm e.x.t.r.e.m.e.l.y sarcastic - not a great combo sometimes!
27. Who has the most friends? Me - definitely me.
28. Who has more siblings? Chris.
29. Who wears the pants in the family? Chris cos he's the head of the family...but I'm the neck that turns the head, woo-hoo!
30. How did you meet? On the internet.

Spellcheck is my friend

2008-09-03T11:10:00.000-07:00

Your Common Spelling Mistake Score: 65% Correct

Your spelling is decent, but you do make quite a few mistakes.

Let's just say you won't be winning a spelling bee anytime soon!

Do You Make Common Spelling Mistakes?

Oh yeah, this is so me. I'm always spelling things wrong, there's just some words I can't keep in my head right. Yup, I love my spellcheck I do.

Weekend events

2008-09-02T15:02:00.000-07:00

Hey y'all, hope ya had a good & restful labor day weekend.

We went for a brief visit to my sister M, who lives in the tri-cities - about a 2 hour drive South of us. It was a fun time, we arrived Sunday afternoon so M could watch the kids while we went to a party hosted by the foreman on Chris's current job site.

Their house was insane - big, beautiful & perfect for entertaining. We were waaaaay out of our element! They throw a party like this every year & invite co-workers, friends & their kids friends. The booze was flowing freely & a live band was set to play later in the evening.

But back to the house. 3 br 2 ba, huge kitchen with all stainless steel appliances, double oven, ceramic cook top...pretty much anything you could ask for in a kitchen, they had it. The house also had a great room, office, formal dining & living rooms, 2 car garage & a 2 car/RV garage/shop with all the toys big boys want. They had parking for about 100 cars (extended their driveway across the front of the shop & combined with the neighbor.) The patio was flawlessly landscaped with 2 fountains flowing down rocky mounds, a gazebo with a koi pond inhabited by 2 huge koi & beyond that a ginormous lawn.

We had fun but knew few people there. Actually only Chris knew any of them, I didn't know anyone until after we arrived. Bricklayers are an interesting bunch & Chris told me our host (a very charming & friendly guy) has a completely different vocabulary when he's on the job. I got ticked off at one of the guys. Chris really likes working with him & says he makes his kids top priority & all, but he was wearing this shirt. This shirt with a big-breasted-perfect-body model on the back, wearing a barely-there string bikini. Every time he turned around I cringed & what really got me was there were little kids there!!! Maybe I'm judgemental but I don't think that's appropriate attire around children. Luckily I was able to keep my big mouth shut & I was very glad our kids weren't around to see it!

We didn't stay long, just enough to mingle a bit & eat dinner - we aren't into watching a bunch of drunk people try to dance -been there, done that & over it thankyouverymuch!

After we got back to M's house we hung out with her boys & watched a movie. Monday morning M made positively sinful Cinnamon rolls for breakfast - we each had 2 & paid for it with tummy aches later - can't eat that much butter without repercussions! Then M took me over to the salon she works at & cut my hair - we took about 4 inches off & gave me bangs again. I'm not used to it yet but I like it. My hair has been growing for too long & it was time to chop! Next time I'll go shorter...have to take it gradually for the hubby's sake, he's a die-hard long hair lover & does not like change. I'll post a pic in a few days...gatta get the hang of drying & styling again.

The kids were all mad we had to leave, as they always are. They think M hung the moon & have a great time playing with their older cousins & uncle. But once they calmed down we had a nice drive home & got there in plenty of time to get ready for the week ahead.

Chris only has 2 days left at this job site & the next one should be closer to home. Only 1 hour away instead of 2+. He might have some energy left for us at the end of the day - amazing!!

Well, I hope you all had a great weekend...I'll be around to visit everyone later today or tomorrow.

Don't forget about the kids!

2008-09-01T08:00:00.000-07:00

Walking in the king castle.

2008-08-30T08:17:00.000-07:00

This morning we were discussing marriage at breakfast.

Sam: "I'm going to marry Adah."
Mom: "Might not be a good idea bub."
Dad: "Ewww, groooos!"
Adah: "Girls only marry girls."
(Zoinks!)
Dad: "No, girls don't marry girls honey, girls marry boys."
Mom: "Boys & girls marry each other."
Mom: "Sam, you could marry D or M or K or A from school."
Sam: "No mom, they are 1st graders, I can't marry them."
Mom: "Well, D & M aren't 1st graders, they are k-kids like you."
Sam, looking at me like I'm nuts: "Ewwww!"
(I went into the kitchen to clean up - Eli comes in a minute later.)
Eli: "Mom, I'm going to marry you & give you flowers & you can walk in the king castle!"

Awwwwwwww...

Bear with me...

2008-08-29T00:59:00.001-07:00

This is the first time I've ever messed with templates. Technically I didn't mess with it, I just downloaded & uploaded it but hey, I'm an html idiot so this is a major accomplishment!
I've now spent about 4 hours messing with it & trying to get all the stuff in my sidebar back...during the time I planned on blogging. Whoops!
BTW, anybody know where to get the Facebook code? I want my button back but can't find it over there - girrrrr.
So it's wayyy past time for bed & I'm going to crash now.
I'll get back to this tomorrow.
If I can keep my eyes open.

Hey Jereth, blow a bubble my way will ya?

2008-08-24T13:57:00.000-07:00

I could watch this all day long...mesmerizing!

100 things part 3

2008-08-23T14:53:00.000-07:00

I have been a very bad blogger this week. I haven't written a thing & while I've read most of the blogs I follow, I've not commented much. I thrive on comments, it's like getting a hug or a gift from you so when I'm not giving them out I feel like a looser. I'm hoping with the twins in school 3 mornings a week I'll have some me time & get more consistent.

Life's been busy, getting kids ready for school next week (yay!) & dealing with money (ugh!) has taken it out of me...not to mention issues of the female variety. Oh yeah, and my babies (Adah & Eli) turned 5 yesterday. I'll have pics coming soon - my dad has a way cool fancy camera so he was in charge of pics at their party last weekend & I have to wait for him to send them. Those retired people are soooo busy you know. (Yes dad, I know you really are busy :))

I can't wait for Wednesday, when the kids start back to school. I think I'll drive the twins the first day, they are going into preschool so I don't want to just throw them on the bus their first time out. Don't know if Sam will want to ride the bus or come with me - he was very proud of being a bus rider last year. Sam is repeating kindergarten so things might be interesting until he settles in. It's the best thing for him but I'm not sure how he will handle seeing his pals from last years class on the other side of the room. (K & 1st are in the same room for half the day.) Anyway, I'm very much looking forward to 6 hours alone every week.

~~~

Ok so I'm very thankful that nobody pointed out what a dork I was in my previous 100 things post. I completely forgot that when you end with 20 your next list should begin with 21- duh!! I never claimed to be the quickest woman around but that was just sad. My excuse is that I gave my brain cells to the kids. Yeah.

41. My love language is receiving gifts.

42. And I'm a pack rat - not a good combo - I even have a hard time throwing out greeting cards.

43. I'm a perfectionist that is completely disorganized (no wonder I'm such a mess!)

44. I like things that are unusual, extreme or silly.

45. Example of #44 - My favorite dog breeds are the Yorkie & the Great Dane. I once had a snake as a pet - her name was Phoebe. I'd love to have a female bulldog named something really girly like Penelope or Abagail - just cos' bulldogs are not cutsie or girly at all!

46. My mind is SO blank right now.

47. I was once robbed at work.

48. I love to sing - it's kinda like breathing for me. Chris & I once had a conversation on which we'd rather be, deaf or blind - I picked blind because I can't imagine not singing along with any music I hear.

49. I just joined Facebook - it's almost as addicting as blogging. This is not good people!!

50. But I did find some old pals from my HS. It's fun to see how they are doing & see pics of them & their families.

51. If I could only stay away from all those fun applications I'd be ok.

52. But hey, maybe I can lure them over here.

53. I love to get mani/pedi's but rarely can we afford them.

54. A Friend of mine in town will be graduating from beauty school in September, and she's doing nails - Woo Hoo!

55. Next year, when the twins are in school full time & I can get a job I'm SO getting my nails done. I love to have pretty nails but my natural ones are wimpy & break all the time.

56. In HS I had a pair of lavender hi-top Converse with purple laces. I wore them all through HS & they were covered with drawings of Daisy's, smiley faces, peace signs & many versions of "I love __." They eventually were held together with layers of duct tape after the soles started coming off.

57. My mother hated those shoes - she tried to throw them away multiple times & I rescued them as many times. I hauled them around for years after I quit wearing them. I wish I still had them, it would be fun to show them to my kids someday.

57. I wore holey jeans in HS. So holey I shouldn't have been left out of the house. One pair had a hole in the thigh that was roughly the size of a football. Another had no butt anymore, just the seam. I wore boxers or long johns with those ones.

59. When I got a new pair of jeans I would lay them out on our patio & spray them with bleach to accelerate the holes. My favorite pair was one I slit the side seams out of, then punched holes & laced them up the sides - so cool!

60. My mom hated the jeans as much (if not more) as the shoes. She also hated the fact that my sisters thought that was a good idea too. (love those 80's fashions!)

~~~

Hope y'all'r havinn a great weekend!

Do not throw the cat!!!

2008-08-15T13:00:00.000-07:00

I need help people!

My dear, darling son Eli who professes to love our kitty keeps hurting him instead.

As I was getting Adah cleaned up in the bathroom last night, (don't ask) I spied Eli holding smudge in the air one handed & throwing him like he was competing for the shot put medal or something.

This kid holds my cat sweetly (at times) and tells me how cute smudge is & what a good kitty he is & "oh I love our smudgie" & then pulls a stunt like this.

We are forever at all the kids to not harass the cat - they dearly love to scoop him up from a nap saying 'he wants me to hold him mommy" while smudge meows pitifully, plainly asking me to rescue him from being mauled. They want him to play when he's napping & snuggle when he's on the prowl, yada yada yada.

But Eli takes the cake. I've seen him hold smudge hanging in the air from his front legs, drop him hard on the floor, push him forcefully off the couch & now this.

I did not react well last night. I threw the washcloth onto the counter & blasted into the living room at him, yelling at the top of my lungs "what the HELL are you doing to my cat?" Then I grabbed him by the arm, yanked him over to my recliner & smacked that lil booty (in anger) several times. I know it didn't hurt that much, he's used to getting a spoon but I know I scared the dickens out of him & I know I was not spanking him in the right frame of mind.

Then I sent him to his room while I finished getting the others ready for bed. I made him stay in his room while I read a story to Sam & Adah - he cried at that - but I called him in for prayer time.

I talked to him at length afterwards, I apologised for flying off the handle & tried to get him to understand what he did. I asked him if some huge guy threw him like that how would he feel. Eli said he would be sad, scared & cry & that would be a very bad guy & he would go to jail. I asked him if he felt sad about what he did to smudge & he said "no mom, I feel good."

Wha???

I know he's little & he doesn't get it but he just can't do this to an animal! He's stomped on our dog's feet & tail before, just cos he wanted to. I'm at my wits end & don't know what to do.

Got any ideas?

Just stay away from that dryer lint frugal franny!

2008-08-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

I have a confession to make...
I'm a penny pincher.
I rip my dryer sheets in half & wash & sometimes reuse plastic bags.
It's a sickness really - shhh, don't tell anyone!
But some of my frugal-franny ways are useful & we can all use an extra buck so I'ma let you in on a secret every now & then.

I love coffee.
Specifically I love expensive coffee - Starbucks coffee frappacino with vanilla, and make that a venti if you please. Ohhh, heaven in a cup!

Not good when you are a family of 5 living on one blue collar income.

My sister turned me onto this frappe freeze stuff she found at Costco, which I loved & drank heartily until I realized I was spending way too much on the stuff & decided I could make it cheaper.

Thus was born my frugal frappe - fancy coffee for gals on a budget.

Into a blender place desired amount of hot chocolate mix.
Add desired amount of instant coffee.
Add desired amount of water.
Add a few ice cubes & blend - adding cubes until drink is desired consistency.

Yum-o & the fact that I'm saving money makes it taste even better!

I like a big coffee so I make a lot - my version makes enough for a venti and then some. I almost cover the blades in my blender with HC, put in 1 small spoon of coffee (I'm sensitive to caffeine so you might want more), add water to the 2 cup mark & blend with ice until very thick. I prefer store brand HC but use Swiss Miss instead, it's what Costco carries & cheaper per ounce. It would taste even better if powdered creamer was added...but of course it would add to the cost.

Stairs & bedding & closets & rods & kids...oh my!

2008-08-14T12:37:00.000-07:00

My kids are way to creative.

Sam: "Mom, we slid on the covers!"
Mom: "Uh, where did you slide?"
S: "On the covers."
M: "Yes, you told me that but what did you slide down?"
S: "With Adah & Eli."
M: "Ok Sam I get that but where in the house did you slide?"
S: "Down the stairs."
M: "So that's why Eli is crying."
S: "Yeah, I bonked his head." (laughs)

I then make them (while listening to the whining apparently required of the task) take the comforter back upstairs & put it on the bed where it belongs. And explain why it's not such a good idea to slide together down the stairs on the (expensive) comforter (that grama bought) but that it is ok to 'bump' down the stairs one at a time.

I'm such a killjoy.

~~~

While I was finishing up the above I began to hear screaming & crying from upstairs.
Oh goody.

Mom: "What is going on up here?"
Kids: "We were swinging in the closet & it fell & bonked."
M: "Swinging in the closet & it fell? How exactly were you swinging in the closet?" (already knowing the answer but needing to hear if from the culprits mouths.)
K: "The stick in the closet."
M: "The stick eh?"
K: "Yeah, the big heavy stick."
M: Not such a good idea then, was it?

I should explain that the 'stick' they were referring to is actually a huge metal rod. While they were swinging from the 'stick' the thingy attached to the wall that holds it up there got worked around until it turned upside down & the 'stick fell right out.
Whoops!
No serious injuries thankfully. Just a few Small bonks & bruises.
Kinda poetic justice if you ask me :)

~~~

Did I mention that one of the shower doors fell off from a broken screw this morning...before I took my shower?

Can I go back to bed now?

Snort!

2008-08-12T15:42:00.000-07:00

You Are Gymnastics

You are agile, expressive, and precise.

You have the drive to practice until you get something perfectly right.

And you have the confidence to perform difficult moves when under pressure.

What Olympic Sport Are You?

Bwaaa'hahahahahaha!!!

This one kills me cos I'm about the least flexible person on the earth.

Seriously!

When I sit on the floor & try to touch my toes I can only get a couple of inches past my knees.

It's quite sad really.

I shoulda been Greek!

2008-08-11T18:25:00.000-07:00

I have been remiss in my Whip it up recipe postings & I aim to catch up so you'll be seeing a lot more food here for awhile.

This recipe I actually made a few weeks ago but just have not had (or made) the time to post about it. But it's worth the wait if you like Greek food - I was SO happy when I tried this one.

Chicken Souvlaki Salad

2 tsp bottled minced garlic, divided
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast
3 cups cubed peeled cucumber (about 3 cukes)
½ cup vertically sliced red onion
½ cup (2 oz) crumbled feta cheese
2 tbsp chopped pitted kalamata olives
2 ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into 1 inch pieces (about 1 lb)
½ cup plain fat free yogurt
¼ cup grated peeled cucumber
1 tsp white wine vinegar
½ tsp garlic powder ¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp red pepper
¼ tsp black pepper
Preheat grill or broiler

Combine 1 tsp garlic & next 6 ingredients (garlic to chicken) in a large zip top plastic bag
Seal the bag and shake to coat
Remove chicken from the bag
Grill or broil chicken 5 minutes on each side or until done
Cut chicken into 1 inch pieces
Combine chicken, cubed cucumber, and the next 4 ingredients (cubed cucumber to tomatoes) in a large bowl
Combine yogurt and remaining ingredients in a small bowl
Pour over chicken mixture; toss well

Was the recipe easy to follow?

Yup.

Did the dish taste good?

I thought I'd died & gone to Greek heaven!

Would you make this again?

Already have - a note on that though...make sure you have plain yogurt, using vanilla by mistake does not ruin it but it's just not quite the same. Not that I'd know by experience or anything. (ahem)

Or I'll give you something to cry about!

2008-08-08T12:13:00.000-07:00

Hey y'all, grab your depends & go enter (or just read) the funniest contest ever at My Semblance of Sanity.
I laughed, I cried...I almost peed my pants!!

"Mom, can we just go home?"

2008-08-07T09:29:00.000-07:00

We left for Wallowa lake Thursday afternoon at about 1:30 and got there somewhere in the neighborhood of 7ish. The kids did surprisingly well, but I did get the title of this post from what Sam asked me repeatedly during the last 2 hours of the trip.

The route there was a new one for me & stunningly beautiful. I spent a lot of time praising God for giving us such a wonderful place to inhabit.

View Larger Map

My favorite parts were going down & back up again the winding roads into Lewston/Clarkston & at the WA/OR border. You can't see it on this map but if you zoom way in it shows the fun curvy roads that have stunning views everywhere you look. Another favorite was approaching Enterprise & Joseph with the Wallowa Mountains rising in the distance - it is just stunning.
Here's a slide show of the pictures I took on the way there...I'll tell you more about the drive when I get to Monday & our trip home. I didn't take as many pictures getting there, as I was trying to arrive before dark. Good thing too, finding our house was quite confusing in the daylight - I don't think I'd have found it after dark!

2008-08-05T08:47:00.000-07:00

Hi y'all, I'm back!
We had a wonderful time, we played, rested & just all around had lots of fun. It was great to see all the cousins there, from my 3 week old second cousin twice removed (I think) to my dad's cousin (my second cousin once removed) who is the oldest in the clan now. (love you Audry!!) Some I'd never met before & others I've not seen for 20+ years. We honored those who are gone now & missed those that couldn't make it.
The drive there & back was long, hot & absolutely beautiful - I'll be making a side show & posting more about the fun things we got to do & my numerous pics of the scenery.
Now I've got to catch up on my blog reading & get some laundry done!
Have a great day y'all :)

Awww, shucks George, thanks!

2008-08-04T08:06:00.000-07:00

My blog is worth $5,645.40.
How much is your blog worth?

This is comforting! Yesterday (ok, Tuesday, this is a scheduled post) when I did this it told me my blog was worth nothing! I was going to post it anyway but sheesh, how embarrassing right? Kinda fun to see what some widget thinks this place is worth, but no matter what it comes up with for you, I think your blog is priceless!

Just don't give me the finger!

2008-08-03T08:01:00.000-07:00

You Are an "A-OK"

Your life philosophy can be summed up as, "Whatever will be, will be."

Your greatest wish is to live each day a little better than the next.

You are naturally calm and stable. Some people would call you a rock.

You feel one with the world. You are a spiritual person, though no one who knows you would guess it.

What Hand Gesture Are You?

I agree with the gesture but nosomuch the description. I am calm & stable...sometimes. Dunno if I could be called a rock! Whatever God wills, will be is more my thoughts than whatever will be will be. And I am a spiritual person although I don't like the worlds perception of spiritual these days. And I would like to think that my love of the Lord shines through so it can clearly be seen!

The kids - oh, those dang kids!

2008-08-02T07:58:00.000-07:00

You Sometimes Know When Someone's Lying

You can spot a liar if the liar slips up, but you're not always aware of other people's dishonesty.

Eventually a liar will reveal himself, and you usually will figure out if you've been lied to.

However, someone could be duping you without you knowing it. So watch out for the telltale signs of lying!

Can You Spot a Liar?

Milk toast baby

2008-08-01T07:50:00.000-07:00

You Are Occasionally a Wimp

You're pretty tough in every day life. You don't back down easily.

However, you can be a wimp at times, especially in stressful situations.

You can be overwhelmed or intimidated or just plain scared when life gets rough.

While these are natural reactions, you may want to face your fears a little more.

Are You a Wimp?

I think I'm a wimp way more often than occasionally. Lift intimidates me, to be honest. I don't like to be in new situations & I strongly (and wrongly) fear others impressions of me. Something I struggle with daily and need to work on more.

Love me just a little

2008-07-31T07:42:00.000-07:00

You Are Occasionally a Narcissist

While you have healthy self esteem, you're really not that full of yourself.

Compared to most people, you're quite humble!

Though occasionally, you can't help and reflect on how great you are.

There's nothing wrong with being proud of yourself - as long as you don't let it go to your head!

Are You a Narcissist?

The times I think a little too highly of myself are when I think back to my High School days. I was part of an award winning choir & I remember them as my 'glory days.' It's easy to get full of yourself when hundreds of people are clapping a & they give you a trophy!

Thank you, thank you & a million thanks to you!

2008-07-30T10:23:00.001-07:00

Oh you guys are great, thanks so much for praying. It took me 4 hours to do all my running around but I was able to get our account into positive territory again & our financial butt is saved. I love the Ellensburg WAMU branch - they actually called & offered to waive the fees if I could bring it positive yesterday. We would have had over 200 in fees so now we actually have enough for gas the rest of the week - yay!

~~~

In the middle of all the money hoopla yesterday I got a call that put another urgent item on my list. I am part of a community group in Sprague & recently inherited the responsibility of the blog. It's been on the back burner, I actually have not touched it until yesterday's call. I found out that the blog is more important than I thought. Turns out that our group needed me to post on a couple of new things in the community for a grant. A grant that must be completed today! Oh fiddlesticks!!

I had no idea the blog was that important, I wish the lady that passed it on to me had let me know that the grant writers used it - I would have done this weeks ago!

Oh well, it's done now & if you want to check out the Sprague Horizons Community Blog you can see what took me a ridiculous amount of time to do.

I had never messed with slide shows & was not sure what site to use. I knew the other lady used Flickr for pictures so I worked for a long time uploading & editing there...only to find I couldn't make a slide show using the free service. Then I checked my notes & found she used Slide to do the shows. Girrr! At that point, it was time for Chris to get up for work (that would be 2:30 in the morning folks) he gave me a good scolding & sent me to bed.

I had to finish this morning so first thing I made myself about a gallon of coffee & got going. I'm so glad to have the weight of it off my shoulders, from now on I'm posting there more often!

~~~

We are leaving on vacation tomorrow, hopefully right after Sam gets out of summer school. That's the goal anyway, with all my detours yesterday we'll see if I can get ready in time. I've been really looking forward to this vacation, it's a family reunion & I haven't been to one on that side of the family since I was in High School. I'm going to find a lot of changes!

Here is a picture of the founding members of this reunion...

(L to R) Uncle Bruce, Aunt Ruth, Grampa M, Grama M, & Aunt Jane.

They have all gone to be with the Lord & are all greatly missed, this picture is of the last reunion they were together (and the last one I attended) in the late 80's. We have had them every 3 years for as long as I can remember.

So I'm very excited to get out of town & have fun with a whole lotta 1st, 2nd, 3rd and who knows how many other cousins. It's going to be loud & crazy & above all fun, fun, fun!

We are going to Wallowa Lake Resort in NE Oregon & I hope to have a lot of pics for you next week.

Have a fabulous weekend everyone & thanks again!!

Prayers pretty please

2008-07-29T12:39:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have a million things to do today, we are going to a family reunion on Thursday & I have a lot to get done before the trip.
So this morning I gave my email a quick check before attacking my list & found a message from our bank that we are overdrawn -by almost 400 bucks.
Jumpin Jehoshaphat, dagnabbit, frickin' frackin, and a big oh poop!
I went over my grocery receipts for items I can return & raided the coin jar - that plus the money I can take out of my other bank (vacation fund, emergency fund) will just barely make up the difference.
This took me forever, between finding stuff & just sitting here stunned & now I have even less time to get the new emergency stuff I must do plus me to do list done.
I would appreciate any prayers you could send our way. That we won't get in the hole again before Chris gets paid on Thursday, that we will have enough for our vacation (we ARE going no matter what!!) and that I won't kill Chris for not keeping up with the accounts. Oh, and that I can get my list done & the kids won't be a problem today.
Thanks guys, you are the best...I'm off to put a band aid on a severed limb :)

Adah on wildlife, bike savings & my kitty blogs in his sleep.

2008-07-25T17:09:00.000-07:00

I had a funny conversation with Adah this morning while we were lounging around in bed.

"Dragonfly is going to come in & get us. They fly, they’re birds."
"But they don’t have feathers, only birds have feathers."
"Yes they do!"
"No, birds have feathers but not dragonflies. God made them with wings but no feathers."
"Well, we will have to take the feathers from the birds & give them to the dragonflies."

Isn't she sweet? Poor naked birdies!

~~~

It’s a great start to your day when you have to wring out a load of laundry by hand to put into the dryer. Our WM has been on the fritz for awhile & it’s starting to drive me nuts. Sometimes the spin cycle does not work all the way. I open the thing & the clothes are just sitting in the bottom, not all stuck to the walls like they normally are. It’s especially great when there are towels in the load, most especially, bath towels. Then it takes 2 cycles in the dryer to get them dry. Fun!

~~~

I got to thinking about the bike today. (BTW, my pal over at Organized Doodles asked a few particulars about this gem. It's a Suzuki SV1000 2003, 996cc's, top speed of 177) Seems like every time Chris gets home I ask him how his ride was & he says "my butt hurts."

I so want to smack him for that, he's the one who wanted the dang thing in the first place! I go through moments when I'm ok with it but most of the time I resent the dagnabbed thing.

So I thought I'd figure out how much we've spent on the thing so far. (Cos' I needed to fuel this fire, right?) These are all approx figures but I think a lot of them are on the low side.

Down 300

Insurance 30

Jacket 100

Helmet 80

Backpack 50

Rear tire 300 (!)

Front tire (2 weeks later) 150

Total 1010

Hmmm, what was it we spent on his gas pre-bike? 800 if I remember correctly, and the above list does not count gas for the bike so far. I didn't feel like looking all that up so I left it off the list. Yes most of these expenses are a one time deal. (I don't know how long tires last on this baby but I hope it's a looong time!) And we must remember that he will only be able to ride until mid to late October here. I'm NOT letting him ride once the frosts hit. So all winter we will be paying insurance & payments (about 190 total) for something sitting in the garage. Kind of like we're doing for his car right now.

So as of now we are over 200 in the hole for this thing plus gas.

Ha-rumph!

~~~

My sweet lil smudgie was watching me blog & fell asleep - I keep the laptop propped up. In my head it won't get quite as hot that way :)

Isn't he cute? He's grown a lot since we got him, it will be fun to see how much he weighs at his next vet visit.

Then Sam came over asking if he was awake & 'had' to pet him. Woke him up just enough to switch positions.

And he ended up like this.

All in all, not a bad blogging companion. He sure doesn't interrupt like the kids do!!

~~~

Have a wonderful weekend y'all!

Much ado about...

2008-07-24T22:25:00.000-07:00

K, planned on posting my recipe today but time got away from me. I'll post 2 next week to make up for it.

Today was a busy day - much more than usual. I should state for the record my goal in life is to NOT be busy. Granted, I have 3 kids & the older they get the busier I'm going to be but I can still dream right?
So morning was normal, kids wake me up & beg for breakfast for 20 minutes while I'm a ~~good example~~ lesson on what not to do by laying in bed until the last minute possible.
(I'm so proud!)
Took Sam to summer school, came home, set the twins up with a movie & jumped in the shower.
Started cleaning up the kitchen (holy cow, I think every dish was in the sink or counter) & picking up the house. I felt like poo-poo yesterday so I laid on the couch as much as possible. I think I only got up to attend children (fix food, & change movies) & use the bathroom. The house was a mess!
Go pick up Sam from summer school.
Get call from BFF asking if I'm going to reading program. Ummm, I should but I don't wanna. Oh phooey, I'll go already. There's only 1 week after this & we've only gone 3 times.
Make lunch, eat lunch, go to library.
Endure chaos that is summer reading program (I might just blog on this another day - it's, to put it nicely, not planned well.)
BFF asks if I want to do dinner together - yupper-do! Her hubby works swing shift & it's Chris's night at my sisters so perfect timing.
Go to ~~extremely overpriced small town grocery~~ store to get more dinner fixins.
BFF arrives with kids, we shoo all but the baby out to play in the sprinkler.
Kids play, we talk. Kids fight, we yell. Kids play, we talk...ok you get the idea.
We eat, the kids run around the house chasing each other & yelling, we shoo them upstairs so we can hear each other talk.
Kids fight.
"Ok movie time kids, everyone on the couch!"
We talk until movie is over & it's 30 minutes past bedtime.
They go, but we wish for a sitter.

Wow, that ended up a lot longer than I thought and all to tell you I didn't have time to post my recipe. Don't you feel informed now? Yeah, I wouldn't either :)

Whew!

Lather, rinse, repeat.

2008-07-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

I spent approximately 1 hour, 45 minutes grocery shopping with my kids today. I'm sure that's all I'm required to say but I will elaborate (as I'm apt to do) just so you can get the full effect.

We had a marathon trip today, all in the pursuit of saving a buck.

Of course I negated that savings by forgetting my list (and I need my list) and having to drive the 25 miles home & turn right around & drive 25 miles back to Cheney. I just love running in circles, don't you?

So we are finally back in town & I stopped by the first 2 stores to pick up the sale fliers. These stores are relatively small & don't do mailers (which annoys me to no end) so to find the best deals I have to do it this way.

Then we were off & running in Safeway (much to the delight of the kids, who were very sick of their carseats by this time. "Why do we hafta go back mom? "Mom I wanna get out of my seat." "Mom, she's touching me again.")

I have a new rule for grocery shopping which, depending on one's point of view, makes me look like a drill sergeant (minus the swearing) or an overbearing evil mom. (I know this from the looks I got from other moms, the ones with 1 child under walking age were the funniest ones. They just looked scared they'd have to do this someday too - HA!)

Before I started this new thing, my shopping consisted of my kids all doing things they are not supposed to, different things that is, all at the same time. Sam would be wandering on ahead, eventually turning the corner & on his way down the next isle. Adah would be standing on the side of the cart, the front of the cart, 'helping' me push (aka getting in the way & tripping me), or standing in front of the cart impeding my progress. Eli would be dawdling behind, inspecting things on the shelves (preferably in glass jars) & freaking out when I got too far ahead.

Meanwhile I'd be attempting to yell at all of them at once. "Sam come...Adah knock it...Eli put that...Sam I said..." while simultaneously shopping for the best deals. (Mom's head explodes.)

Sound like fun? Yeah, notsomuch.

So now I make them line up behind me & stay there the whole time. This consists of me repeating my orders approximately 1364 times during each hour spent in the store.

Have I mentioned that my throat hurts? (Chocolate ice cream goes a long way in soothing a sore throat. Just in case you are wondering, that is.)

Ok (I know, I know, on with the story already) so to give you a glimpse of my shopping ~~nightmare~~ fun I'll tell you what you would see if you were a fellow shopper ~~doomed to~~ lucky enough to be in the same store as my lovely family.

A mom, looking very grim with 3 kids straggling behind her. This mom occasionally asks in a very gruff tone, "Adah, why are you walking next to me? "Where are you supposed to be walking?" after which Adah would reply "behind you mom." and fall back with her brothers. At other times you might hear, "Sam let go of my shirt." "Sam let go." "NOW SAM!" or, "Eli, stop pushing Sam." "Eli stop touching the pickles." "Eli do not touch anything other than your own body!"

Now repeat this scenario for the next hour & forty five minutes (spanning 3 stores) and you've got the picture. Kind of reminds me of the back of the shampoo bottle I bought today - lather, rinse, repeat. Lather, rinse, repeat. Lather, rinse, rep...

*sigh*

By the third store I was beginning to think about alcohol despite the fact I usually drink only once a year on my birthday. (Mexican restaurant+strawberry margarita+birthday=one happy me!)

Hey, maybe some rich TV producer could come up with a reality show that involves grocery shopping with crazy kids & frazzled moms. I'd clean up with that...unless I was competing with BECAUSE I SAID SO that is.

Now I'm home, the kids are in bed & I'm happily blogging while ~~eating a pile of ice cream~~ soothing my throat.

So...how was your day?

Doodolie-do

2008-07-23T02:08:00.000-07:00

I just love Rick over at Organized Doodles. He's such a fun artist & always has me on the hunt for eggy. (And I love eggy in this doodle...too perfect.)

My plan this evening was to watch an episode of Extreme Makeover Home Edition online (which I did) and then take the laptop to my room & watch a movie in bed. Then I thought, "I should check blogs for a minute." and now it's 2 AM.

Whoops.

Yup, going to bed now. I mean, now. Uh, now. Ok after I turn off the dang computer - get off my back already, geez!

More 'news' & the weekend

2008-07-22T08:07:00.000-07:00

Read about a new baggy pants law in Chicago here.
And a drunken practical joke gone up in flames here.
And a couple of dumb crooks getting rudely awakened here.

The Chicago law needs to go nationwide. Although not as prevalent as it used to be, I hate that style. To all those young men out there who wear their pants around their ankles...I get a very strong desire to pants you when I see you. Of course, my style back in HS was to wear holey jeans...extremely holey jeans! My mom was always trying to throw them out & I was always saving them. I had one pair that had no butt anymore, just the seam. I wore boxer shorts under them & they were my favorite jeans (& probably the favorite of all the guys, I had a pretty hot bod back in the day.) I can't believe my mom let me out of the house!

~~

This weekend was a roller coaster ride full of fighting and fun. Chris & I started arguing almost the minute he got home. Stupid arguments all of them, but passionately stated by both parties. I swear, sometimes I get the picture of a couple of rams fighting when we do this. Just run full tilt & slam into each other, over & over again. We are both so stubborn & very good at miscommunicating. Often we agree on the end result of something but argue about the process. Or if I say something & he takes it the wrong way or vice versa, which happens all the time with us. We can go many rounds with that one. I think he needs to pay more attention to what I said & understand me better & he thinks I need to say it better & think of his reaction more, bla bla bla to infinity.
I lost my mind & totally freaked out as I've done before. Having him gone all week is just very hard on me & I can't do it for long. This was only for 2 weeks but that's all it took. I just feel like everybody wants a piece of me until there is nothing left. All week it's the kids, on the weekend it's Chris & I don't get any time for myself.
I tend to do things a little different while he's gone, just to get through the week & that is hard on him. Having ADD, he needs routine & when I change things he feels left out & gets frustrated. Plus he looks like the bad guy when he gets things back to normal. My changes usually involve letting the kids do stuff they don't normally get to or whatever.
So that was Friday.
On Saturday we argued a bit more in the morning & then went to see The Dark Night This was a big thing, neither of us can remember the last time we got to see a movie in the theatre. And holy cow is it spendy!! The movie was awesome, just as we expected. I was more in the mood for Wall-e after all the hubbub from Friday but we were late for it & The Dark Night worked out better. Heath Ledger's joker was amazing. So creepily funny, the perfect psychopath. I'm just glad I'm not afraid of clowns or anything, that would put you over the edge for sure! For those who have seen it (there are no spoilers here for those who haven't) my favorite moment with the Joker was when he walked out of the hospital & had to click the remote...too funny & that outfit was hilarious! My favorite part of the whole movie was the convict on the boat, that was simply awesome - you know what I'm talking about.
It was a bit sad to watch though, knowing about Heath's death. I can see why he was taking anti anxiety & sleeping medications, becoming that character would be hard to take emotionally. I wonder what his daughter will think of it when she gets older. Will she be proud of his amazing performance or might she resent the film for being part of the reason he died? Only time will tell but obviously I hope it's the former.
After we got home we played with the kids & argued, ate dinner and argued some more.
Sunday we went to church (argued beforehand,) came home & cleaned the house. Chris made up a plan for cleaning that involved all of us & it worked great. I cleaned off the surfaces & dusted, Sam picked up toys, Adah picked up papers & trash, Eli put books away & Chris supervised & did the floors. We went room by room & got most of the house cleaned. I think we are going to make this a regular weekend event. We actually had fun...imagine that!
So overall the weekend was not horrible & not fabulous, just good & bad in it's own special way.
My plan this week is to work on my huge backlog of laundry & start to plan my packing list for next weekend. We have a family reunion coming that I've been looking forward to for a year. More on that in another post though.

Something 'fishy' about the news today

2008-07-21T13:33:00.000-07:00

My web browser opens with a page of the latest news. I check out any stories that are interesting to me then check to see if there's any interesting entertainment stories. A few days ago I discovered a link to a strange news page & today this story is at the top of the list.
I think it sounds kinda fun...how bout you?

A buncha nonsense

2008-07-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

Your Fitness Type: Playful

You enjoy exercise as long as it doesn't feel like work.

Working out is your playtime, and you're up for any exercise that's fun.

Try exercise that involves a little friendly competition, like basketball, softball, or volleyball.

Or you may even like exercising with a fitness video game. Anything that makes you feel like a kid again.

How Should You Get Fit?

This is so not me! I like to walk, I like to swim and I (used to) like to dance. Team sports? Hate em! I was always the last kid picked for the team, and I sucked at them all. Friendly competition? Ugh, all I felt was pressure to perform at games I sucked at. I also loathe balls flying in my direction at high velocity (or even medium velocity for pete's sake - they hurt if they hit you dagnabit!) and I don't like to sweat - could be the reason I'm waaaaay overweight. Ya think?

You Are Ready, Willing, and Able to Commit

You are not scared of commitment in the least.

In fact, there's a good chance that you're already committed to someone you love.

You are willing to give up a little freedom for relationship stability.

And once you're in a relationship, you'll do almost anything to make things work.

Are You Afraid of Commitment?

Gee, ya think? Being married for 10 years might just have something to do with these results. Although the last line of that was a bad thing for me back in the day. A very, very bad thing!

What Your Sunglasses Say About You

You are spontaneous, open minded, and optimistic.

You are very youthful and free wheeling, no matter what your age happens to be.

You need to be shaded from the darker, more depressing aspects of life.

You feel sunniest when everyone around you is up for a good time.

The Sunglasses Test

This was was pretty close although I don't need to be shaded from anything. But I couldn't choose just one of those shades so here's the other one...

What Your Sunglasses Say About You

You are funky, freaky, and as weird as weird can be.

Your taste in everything is unusual and downright counter cultural.

You need to be shaded from uptight, judgmental people.

You feel sunniest when you can kick back and relax... without a care in the world.

The Sunglasses Test

Right on the money baby. Not-a-care-in-the-world sounds fabulous to me. Problem is, I'm married with children so we all know it's not happening anytime soon.
*sigh*

4 year olds write the best lyrics

2008-07-17T10:00:00.000-07:00

I was ~~doing important research on the computer~~ reading blogs the other day & I overheard this from the other room:

"And it goes like this:"
"bottom, bottom, bottom."
"I have a poop coming out of my bottom."
"A really cute bottom."
"I have a bottom sticking on my bottom."

(I was hoping for more but evidently the muse left him.)

Of course, he was sitting at the table while singing this lovely tune. I'm just glad we finished dinner a few minutes before his inspiration struck.

You never know what's going to come out of that kid's mouth.

Whippin up some grub

2008-07-17T08:00:00.000-07:00

Brown and Wild Rice Chicken Salad (from Family Circle Cookbook)
Serves 6

1 6-oz. box brown and wild rice mix
3 Tbs. tarragon-flavored vinegar (I used red wine vinegar and added a pinch of tarragon)
1 Tbs. honey-Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbs. canola oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/4-inch strips
1 Gala apple, cored and chopped
6 scallions, trimmed and chopped
2 large ribs celery, sliced
1/2 cup toasted pecan pieces
1/2 cup dried cranberries
Lettuce leaves for garnish (optional)

Prepare rice mix following package directions. In a small bowl, mix vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Whisk in 1/4 cup oil. Set aside. In a large skillet, heat 1 Tbs. oil over high heat. Add chicken strips; saute for 4 to 6 minutes, until lighltly browned. Place chicken on a plate; cover and set aside.
In a bowl, combine apple, scallions, celery, pecans and cranberries. Add rice, vinegar mixture and chicken. Line a serving bowl with lettuce leaves (optional); spoon in salad. Serve immediately or refrigerate and serve cold.
435 calories
21 g protein
38 g carbohydrates
23 g fat (2 g saturated)
4 g fiber

My path to finding this recipe was a 6 degrees of seperation thing - only it was 3 degrees instead of 6. I found Life with Three via FriedOkra's post, sizzlin summer recipes, back in May & this baby has been on my list ever since.

I made a few changes (as I almost always do) to suit our tastes. I found I was out of tarragon so couldn't put that in, used a fuji apple instead of a gala, left out the scallions, & used pine nuts instead of pecans.

Now on to the questions:

Was the recipe easy to follow?

Yup.

Did the dish taste good?

I loved it. The rest of my family were ummm, less than thrilled. Chris has an aversion to anything with veggies+fruit &/or fruit+meat mixed together, so this was a double whammy for him. I knew this going into it but I had to try, it just sounded so good! My kids picked out the fruit to eat & wouldn't touch the rest - even with the loss of dessert hanging over their heads (pernickity things!)

Would you make it again?

I would make it for a potluck or make a smaller version just for myself. No reason to waste great food on picky people!!

If you want to check out the rest of the Whip it Up entries, come on over here Friday & click on the Whip it up button in my sidebar. C'mon, you know you want to :)

Some forks & a Dixie wanna-be

2008-07-16T10:51:00.000-07:00

You Are a Fork

You are truthful, direct, and straight forward.

People find your honesty to be a bit piercing at times.

You are driven and wildly ambitious.

You know what you want, and you take the most direct path to getting it.

What Utensil Are You?

I very much resemble this. Unfortunately, my piercing honesty gets reserved for those close to me, not people in general. I'm too worried about what complete strangers think of me to be that honest with them, much to my husbands dismay :)

You Are 40% Yankee, 60% Dixie

You're a pretty even split of Yankee and Dixie. You've probably traveled around a lot in your life.

Are You a Yankee or Dixie?

I was born & raised in WA but I love, love, love the South. I love the people, the food, the accents, the scenery...the only things I don't love are the humidity & the storms (hurricanes & tornadoes freak me out!) Sometimes I think I was born in the wrong part of the country - but I can't imagine leaving good ole WA, even with all it's faults.

The great bathroom adventure

2008-07-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

I gave you a hint of this story a couple weeks ago when I blogged about my fabulous day. Be warned though, it's not a pretty story. Well, I guess you could say it's pretty, as in pretty dang smelly - but however you put it, it's not for the faint of heart. Might be effective birth control though!

I was out on a grocery trip at one of my favorite retailers, Fred Meyer. I love Freddy's cos they have playland, where I can deposit 2 of my kids to play while I ~~spend quality time~~ argue with Sam & shop for groceries.

We hadn't gotten the best start on the day but after having lunch things were looking up. Until, that was, I got the dreaded page over the intercom system to 'come to playland.'

I figured it was just cos' I was late picking them up (never happens - HA!) but when I arrived I noticed Adah walking a little um, funny.

The attendant told me she had said she needed to go potty but that she could wait. *alarm bells ringing in my head*

So I hurry them into the bathroom only Adah is trying hard not to hurry & is walking even funnier.

Yup, you guessed it, by the time we got into the stall she had poop dripping down her leg.

Now, I've been past the diaper bag stage for some time, so there I am without wipes & extra clothes, with Adah dripping onto her feet.

So I begin the dash back & forth between the towel dispenser, sink & stall - round & round we go, when I can stop nobody knows.

Meanwhile, the boys have the run of the bathroom. Danger, Will Robinson, danger! I hear them greeting & saying goodbye to several ladies. I witness the greeting to one woman, who seems less than thrilled to see 2 boys in the woman's room. A minute or 2 later, I hear her talking to them, & saying something about them being rude. "What are they doing?" I ask. "Looking through the crack." she grimly replies.

Wonderful boys, just flipping wonderful! As if I'm not having enough fun already, I have to deal with my peeping-tom's-in-training now. Why did they have to choose her to spy on? Couldn't they have picked someone with a sense of humor? Oh no, not my boys.

I profusely apologise to the woman, and make the boys do so as well. Then I give them a big lecture of why that is wrong & make them stand against the wall for awhile. But that only lasts until I venture back into the stall with Adah. (I later found out Eli was in the hall for awhile, yikes!)

Adah is not happy to be cleaned off with cold, rough paper towels & lets me know in no uncertain terms. It takes at least 4 trips back for more towels to get her clean, the stuff is everywhere! I ended up just tossing the undies but had to wash out her shorts as best I could & make her wear them. Yeah, she was not big on that idea but we don't have money to buy shorts on a whim & I wasn't letting her walk around naked! (Although she would have liked that I'm sure.)

We finally got out of the bathroom, completed the shopping & got everyone in the car. (I almost forgot my favorite comment of the day. While in line at the checkout Sam said, "moooom, Adah still stinks!" at top volume. Thanks for telling everyone Sam...girrrr) Our little detour took so long we had to rely on ~~gross~~ good ole Mickey D's for dinner. I was so tired I could hardly keep my eyes open & desperately needed some caffeine for the drive home.

I managed to get us home, groceries in the house, Adah bathed & kids to bed without loosing my cool. After all was quiet I collapsed into bed with my laptop, a movie & lots of junk food to salve my injured soul.

And of course, through it all I kept thinking, "This is going to make one heck of a blog post!"

100 things, part 2

2008-07-15T11:59:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for a new installment of things about me? I don't think I'm all that interesting but I started this crazy thing & I'm-a-gonna finish it! Personally, I'd rather hear about you - but since I'm the one writing this blog, I guess it's up to me.

20. When I was a kid I always wanted to be a wife & mother.

21. I thought I'd be married right out of High School but my boyfriend(s) at that time did not agree, much to my disappointment. (For which I am now extremely grateful.)

22. I didn't get married until I was 28 - 4 years after my little sisters, who were 21 when they married.

23. My sisters are twins & 3 years younger than me, they got married in the same year, 1 month apart. We all lived at home at the time & it was all wedding, all the time. Dad & I seriously thought about getting an apartment until it was all over.

24. A lot of people asked me if I was jealous they were getting married. My pat response was "Why would I be jealous? I have no desire to marry T or N!"

25. Then Grama got into the act at a family dinner with out of town relatives. The talk inevitably turned to wedding stuff & I said "Ugh, all I ever hear is wedding, wedding, wedding, could we please talk about something other than the weddings?" My dear beloved Grama said in front of God & everybody, "Don't worry dear, your time will come." Wha??? So NOT what I meant Grama, thank you very much for embarrassing me & making me look like a pathetic looser!!!

26. I met my hubby on AOL. Sometime I'll blog about it but the short story is this: Met online late Oct, face to face early Dec, he moved to WA early Jan, married early May. Not something I recommend but it's worked for us :)

27. I lived in the same house until I was 20 & lived there again from age 22-26. My parents still live there.

28. Nicknames I've had: Alien, Laney, Laney-poo, Hota-lou, Lane, Al, Laners, Norm, Roomie, Pookie, & my all time fave, Precious, which is what Chris has always called me.

29. I've never lived anywhere but WA state & only in 5 different cities. Kirkland (2 locations), Seattle (5 locations), Cle Elum, Kittitas & Sprague.

30. I sang in an award winning jazz choir in High School but never learned to read music.

31. I have learning disabilities that were not diagnosed until 10th grade.

32. Most of my house is 103 years old - the newer part is from the 1970's.

33. We live 2 miles from one of the best fishing lakes around & don't even own a pole. *sigh*

34. I have had 4 best friends in my life & was rejected by or grew away from 3 of them. (1) Stacy from Elementary school got too 'cool' for me after we hit Jr High age & broke my heart. I still think of her parents as mama & papa C - in my heart they will always be my other parents. (2) I met Micki at a family camp & we were glued at the hip all through High School. We grew away from each other at the end & I don't know if I'll ever understand what happened to us. I still miss her & wonder if we will ever be in contact again. (3) Jenn was my pal during my mid to late 20's. We worked together & were roommates for awhile but our friendship was doomed by a lot of lies & deception. We won't go there though, all has been forgiven & I still hear from her now & then. (4) I have been so blessed to find my current BFF Leah right here in the lil town of Sprague - she is a real God-send & like a sister to me. We hit it off from day one & can completely depend on each other. Leah, I love you & thanks for the Oreos today!

35. I have never been to a foreign country except Canada (which doesn't really count if you ask me.)

36. I have been to all but 13 states but don't ask me what they are! I don't remember most of them cos' I was too little. The only ones I know for sure I haven't been to are Hawaii & Alaska.

37. With my hubby I have been to Oregon, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa & Missouri. And WA if you want to count my home state :)

38. We would like to visit each state someday. I want to travel internationally too but I think it's important to get to know this great Country of ours first.

39. When we retire we plan to see the world via short term mission trips. I just think that would be a great way to really get to know the people of other nations. We want to do the tourist stuff too but want to make a difference while we're there.

40. I got saved in 1994 In Spokane at an Amway major function.

Well, there you go, there you have it, items 20-40 of my 100 things - hope you like reading it as much as I liked writing it!

Whip it good!

2008-07-10T08:00:00.000-07:00

I totally could not resist that title. I'm a child of the 80's y'all!

Alright folks, I've got my first installment of the Whip It Up recipe challenge for you. I found this gem on All Recipes & it's fantastic. I'm a sucker for a summery pasta salad & when you add sausage & pesto? Seconds please!
This was a hit with my whole family although I admit the kids picked around what they deemed to be gross - that is until I broke out my trusty if-you-don't-eat-all-your-dinner-you-won't-get-any-dessert ploy. Works almost every time.

Pasta Salad with Pesto

Yields: 8 servings

1 (19 ounce) package Bob
Evans® Italian Grilling
Sausage
1 pound uncooked penne pasta
1 tablespoon butter or
margarine
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 cups fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup freshly grated
Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups seeded and diced
Roma tomatoes
1 small green bell pepper,
chopped
1 cup whole ripe olives
1 cup cubed mozzarella
cheese
Red leaf lettuce for garnish
(optional)

DIRECTIONS:
1.
Cook sausage in large skillet or on grill until browned; let cool. Cut in half lengthwise; cut each half into 1/4 inch slices and set aside. Cook penne according to package directions; drain. Toss in large bowl with butter to prevent sticking.
2.
To prepare pesto sauce, place garlic cloves in food processor with metal blade or in blender; process until smooth. Add basil and parsley; process until finely chopped. Add pine nuts; process until finely chopped. With motor running, slowly add olive oil in fine, steady stream. Add Parmesan cheese and black pepper; process until well blended, scraping down side as needed.
3.
To assemble salad, toss sausage, tomatoes, bell pepper, olives and mozzarella cheese with penne. Gradually stir in pesto until salad is moist but not saturated. Serve salad on lettuce-lined platter, if desired. Refrigerate leftovers.

I used Hilshire farms sausage instead of Bob Evans (whoever he is) & it tasted just delish. I cut mine up before I browned it...I like getting the crusty browned flavor on as many surfaces of that sausage as possible. I used ye old Parmesan-in-a-can instead of freshly grated cos' we don't have the $$ for the good stuff and it just takes less time to shake from a can rather than grate it yerself. I also used red bell pepper in place of the green - I just don't like those green ones much.
The only thing I didn't like about this is that making pesto in a blender takes for-freakin-ever. Someday I'll get me a food processor & my pesto-making efficiency will be what I wish it to be but until then...totally worth taking the time with the blender. Fresh pesto just can't be beat.

The 8 people they say this recipe serves would be rather large people, this makes a huge bowl of salad & would be perfect for your next potluck.

So.

Was the recipe easy to follow?

Yup.

Did the dish taste good?

Yum, yum, yum, yum and yum (that's one yum per family member y'all.)

Would you make it again?

Oh yeah, I think my hubby might hurt me if I don't :)

Can't wait to see what my fellow recipe-tryer-outers came up with for their first entry.

If I were Catholic I'd say like 900 hail Mary's.

2008-07-10T01:08:00.000-07:00

Bless me bloggers for I have sinned. It's been one entire week since my last blog entry.
Yes I totally know that's lame, lame, LAME!
Forgive me?

K. This week it was determined by the hubby's boss that they will start work an hour earlier to 'beat the heat.' Let us remember this particular job is 2 hours away from home & hubby already gets up at 3:30 to make it there on time. Getting up at 2:30 is not going to work for him so now I'm back to where I began, a pseudo-single mom with a weekender hubby. I'm headed for a white shirt with some reeeeeealy long sleeves if this goes on very long...last time this happened I was very close to a nervous breakdown. NOT a good thing y'all.
Hubby says the job will be over soon so I'm praying the next job is a scosh closer to home. Care to join me? Please??

On a lighter note...

We have a new family member & not of the mechanical variety this time (phew!)
He is the cutest thing ever & I'm completely in love with this lil bit o fluff-n-bones.

I present to you smudge,

the cutest puddy-tat on 4 paws in my extremely humble (a'hem) opinion.

The only problem is that smudge is driving this guy

and these guys

crazy with the desire to ~~chase, control & squish~~ play hold & cuddle 24/7. Smudge has other ideas...he'd rather explore & attack innocent pieces of paper & clothing he finds on his (very few) unmolested jaunts around the house. The result of this is that I'm hearing an unprecedented amount of whining/crying from them and honestly, I can't decide who is worse, the kids or the dog!
So the excuse for my bloggy deficiencies is that my household companions have required more policing of late & thus, more time. Well, that and my addiction to watching season 9 of Big Brother online. But I only allow myself to watch 10 2 episodes a day. Yeah.

A fabulous day in 12 easy steps

2008-07-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

1. Stay up really really late the night before.
2. Let kids watch movies non-stop all morning.
3. Decide to take kids out for lunch an hour after you normally eat.
4. Make sure kids delay leaving for at least an hour - clothes, shoes, potty...
5. Have a relaxing lunch with your ~~crazy, insane, manic, whiny~~ wonderful children.
6. Spend 45 minutes in a tiny restaurant bathroom with 3 kids, 2 of whom have to poop.
7. Go grocery shopping.
8. Find that your daughter has created something wonderful when you ~~get paged by~~ pick up your kids from the grocery childcare center.
9. Experience another lovely trip to the bathroom with your children.
10. Make your way home with your ~~crazy, insane, manic, whiny~~ wonderful children.
11. Spend at least an hour ~~coaxing, pleading, yelling~~ bonding with your kids while getting them ready for bed.
And last but not least...
12. Be sure to spill a giant container of watermelon on the floor before you head to bed.

to be continued...

Please care

2008-07-02T23:31:00.000-07:00

Nate posted this video a few days ago over on his blog. Please watch it, please let it hurt your heart. Please go visit Nate, Tricia & Gwyneth. Read their story and consider donating to their Great Strides walk. And please, please register to be an organ donor - I've made it easy for you, just look over at my sidebar for Worthy Websites & click on Donate Life America. It's easy & it only takes a few minutes - just think of what a gift you could give to hurting families, what a legacy you could leave.

Thanks for watching, God bless you!

100 things, part 1

2008-07-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

I feel so cool that I can do one of these now - I'm like a real blogger now baby!

O' course I'm not going to come up with them all now but at least I'll get a start on it.

First and foremost...

1. I love the Lord my God with all my heart and all my soul and all my strength.

2. But I'm still very much a sinner & fail Him all the time!

3. I thank God for His grace & mercy every day - without His giving me those all day every day I would be sunk for sure.

4. My 'vertical alignment' is this: God first, family second, friends third, & me last - although I don't always achieve this...see # 2.

5. I would have job in #4 but as a SAHM, my family is my job so I didn't list it.

Some favorites:

6. I love daisy's - I like them (& most flowers shaped like them) above all others. They just make me smile every time.

7. Blue is my fave color. I like all the shades but a deep iridescent cobalt really does it for me.

8. My favorite flavor is vanilla.

9. My favorite smell is the top of each of my kids' heads.

10. My next favorite smell is vanilla.

11. I have 2 things that tie as my favorite thing to do in my spare time. One is reading & I bet you can guess what the other is...and yes, I'm doing it right now!

12. My favorite blogs are, in alphabetical order: BECAUSE I SAID SO, Confessions of a CF Husband, FriedOkra, and Scribbit. I love love love all the blogs I read but these are my absolute, if-I-had-to-cut-out-all-but-4-which-would-they-be list.

13. I'd tell you what my favorite food is but it changes frequently.

14. My favorite movie of all time is the Wizard of Oz. It was the first movie I saw in the theatre & the first time I saw anything in color. It made a huge impression on me and although I've seen it approximately 947 times I never get sick of it.

15. I do not have a favorite animal - I love just about everything that breathes be it mammal, reptile, amphibian...you name it, I like it. I don't like many bugs (the hollyhock weevil is my current nemesis) but bugs like the praying mantis or walking stick are extremely cool.

16. My favorite place to vacation is the Oregon coast. I love Washington state but the coast? Oh man, Oregon has it beat hands down! The area around Newport & Depoe Bay is the best in my opinion, I could go on & on but that would be a whole post in itself.

17. My favorite place we've lived is Cle Elum.

18. My favorite genre of music is jazz & my favorite genre of jazz is swing/big band.

19. An amendment to #15 - my favorite bird is the hyacinth macaw.

20. My other favorite movie is Labyrinth. In my teen years I watched it (with my BFF of the time) just about every weekend. We both had a thing for David Bowie and the relationship between Jareth & Sarah. I still know every line in the film but can no longer do it without watching the movie. I have also lost the ability to do Ludo, Hoggle, & assorted other characters I was good at mimicking.

Whew, that's hard work! I'm going to do this in several installments & after I get to 100 I'll put them together & link it in my sidebar. It might take me forever though, just in case you were wondering.

The big boy's new toy

2008-07-01T14:31:00.000-07:00

This is our latest acquisition. Chris is having fun with it although that's not why he bought the thing. The plan is that it's going to save us oodles of money on gasoline. The jury is still out as it's financed & we are paying for 2, and insuring 3 vehicles. Of course, this means that we will always have something sitting in the garage, not being used, but because we still owe on it we can't drop the insurance. *sigh*

Can you tell I'm not 100% on board with this thing? I think it would have been more prudent to keep saving until we could put like half down on one...but that's just me. Chris was convinced this is the only way we can save on his commute - cutting expenses in other areas just won't be enough in his opinion. We don't have a choice as to how far he must drive, he has to go where the job is, that's just the nature of construction. Also, living in a rural area means we typically pay more for gas than city dwellers and we have to drive more/farther than they do. Chris figured that we paid out over $800 in the past 30 days - zoinks!

So he's like superman in the kids eyes now, they were SO excited when he rode up the driveway. Eyes as big as saucers & squealing like crazy. Of course they all want a ride but it's going to be a few years until that happens. None of them are reliable enough to hold on & lean into turns etc.

I'm looking forward to getting a ride too - but I'm going to wait until I'm satisfied he's experienced enough. Most likely that will be after he thinks he's experienced enough...I tend to be nervous on those things & I need to completely trust & be sure in my mind the driver is ready to handle a passenger. But I do love to ride, the freedom, the power, the...well the speed is what really does it for me!

We still plan to get our fun bike when we're older. I wanna be a Harley chick someday. Subaru chick just doesn't sound the same.

Here's Sam sitting with daddy

And Adah

And Eli

And me looking quite dorky in the helmet.

Princess charming

2008-07-01T09:57:00.001-07:00

You Are Pretty Charming

While you're not a natural charmer, you can be charming when you want to be.
And lucky for those around you, you usually feel like turning on the charm.

You project a happy, calm image - even when you're feeling the exact opposite.
You make people feel great about being around you... though you're not always up for putting in the effort.

http://www.blogthings.com/areyoucharmingquiz/">Are You Charming?

Sacrificial love

2008-06-26T09:58:00.000-07:00

A friend sent this to me via email today and God told me to share it with you, it's a truly beautiful story. Break out the Kleenex ladies!

A Father's love...

What a father wouldn't do for his son, with God's divine interference..
A son asked his father, 'Dad, will you take part in a marathon with me?' The father who, despite having a heart condition, says 'Yes'. They went on to complete the marathon together. Father and son went on to join other marathons, the father always saying 'Yes' to his son's request of going through the race together. One day, the son asked his father, 'Dad, let's join the Iron man together. 'To which, his father said 'Yes' too. For those who don't know, Iron man is the toughest triathlon ever. The race encompasses three endurance events of a 2.4 mile(3.86 kilometer) ocean swim, followed by a 112 mile (180.2kilometer) bike ride, and ending with a 26.2 mile (42.195kilometer) marathon along the coast of the Big Island. Father and son went on to complete the race together.

101

2008-06-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

While out reading blogs today (well ok, it was actually like, 12:01 or something) I ran across this funny fellow. (Who, incidentally, reminds me of looking in the mirror some days - only I have more hair.)

I totally forgot to mention yesterday that it was my 100th post. I'm thinkin' the day I had just might have killed a few brain cells & that's why I forgot. (Or maybe lack of sleep...ya think?) I was really excited about it - I see that 100 things link on a lot of blogs & I want to join the club - but like the dingbat I am, I forgot amid all the humor of posting on my offspring.

Funny thing is that Rick posted this guy on his 200th post so I thought it would be the perfect way to commemorate the occasion.

Go check out more of his artwork, he's really great & even famous in the blogging community...he drew Dawn's blog header after all!

Thanks Rick for sharing your work with us crazy bloggers out here :)

A mamma's pride

2008-06-25T14:23:00.000-07:00

Today in a nutshell.

Mid morning:
Adah pooped in her underwear (on purpose) again. This is a child that will turn 5 at the end of the summer. She gets badly constipated & the doctor put her on Mirilax for 6 months. The first goal is to get her cleaned out. (Isn't that a nice thought?) The second is to allow her muscles to return to normal function. So I'm expecting some gross undies for awhile but this girl would walk around all day in poop filled undies if you let her. I am completely serious about this...a few times she's done her deed while playing outside & we don't smell her until later in the day & the undies are crusted onto her lil butt. That can't feel good can it? I just don't get this girl!!!

Just before lunch:
The kids are all outside playing. Adah comes in yelling something at me about boys & the mail so I go look out the slider door & they are over by the road. I ~~say calmly~~ yell at them "Get back here, don't you go to that mailbox!" Sam says "well, there isn't any mom." Isn't any what? "Are you telling me there isn't any mail?" After further investigation it becomes clear to me that my boys, ages 6 & almost 5, walked past the neighbors house to the busy road where our mailbox stands. Fantastic! They got a nice big lecture and a time out in which they were to think on said lecture. Most likely they thought about the dead bugs on the windowsill instead but hey, I tried.

Right before nap time:
As I'm talking to Adah, Eli comes up to me with a wet hand & says "Mom, Sam peed on my hand." "What??? Did you wash it?" Sam interjects "I didn't pee on his hand, I peed on his shirt!" Like that's better or something. "Sam were you peeing outside again?" "NO! I peed in the toilet mom, not outside." "So you peed on Eli in the bathroom?" "Yes, in the bathroom." "Eli, why where you so close to Sam in the bathroom that he could pee on you?" (It would be hard to do that in our bathroom, the toilet is in a corner with walls on either side.) *sigh* "Ok, Eli, do not go in the bathroom while someone is using it and Sam, don't pee on anyone please." BOYS!!

I started writing this during nap time & gave Sam a small writing assignment to keep him busy. I've now had approximately 536 arguments with him about it as apparently I do everything wrong. "No mom, that's not how Mrs. A does it, it's wrong mom!" I learned that when he says 'mom' I'm to say 'what' nicely. I'm also rude, mean & I don't love him. I sound like an absolute ogre - who knew?

The imagination of kids or planes, trains & automobiles

2008-06-21T09:09:00.000-07:00

As I was saying goodnight to Sam a train went by, prompting this conversation:
Sam "Mom look at that train."
Mom "Yup, they go by all day long don't they."
S "I rode on that train."
M "You did huh?"
S "Yeah, I rode on it when I was 100 years old."
M "When you were 100 years old! When were you 100 years old?"
S " When I was 164, 2, 68!"
M "Wow!"

Then I moved on to Eli, after dragging him from the window (watching the train) & wrestling him into the bottom bunk.
E "Mom I don't wanna sleep in my bed, it scares me. I wanna sleep with Sam!"
M "No Eli, you need to learn to be brave & face your fears. Mommy & daddy are right downstairs, Sam is above you in his bed, Adah is in the next room and Jesus is always with you."
E "Mom, you have to bring your bed up here."
M "There's nowhere to put it Eli."
E "Yes it will, you can put it in the toy room."
M "No, it won't fit in the toy room."
E "Put it on the stairs mom."
M "That would be silly wouldn't it!"
E "You can put it in the road."
M "What?"
E "You can put it in the road & it will rain. That will be silly!"
M "That would be very silly."
E "And then a car will come & break that bed and then it will squash your head & jump right in this house."
M "I think you are very silly Eli."

Next was Adah's turn.
A "Mom where's grama?"
M "On the airplane going to France."
A "A big airplane."
M "Yes, very big and & they will be on it for a long time. They will eat on the airplane, and maybe read a book and even sleep right there in their seats."
A "Grama's on the big airplane going to her vacation."
M "Just like grampa & grama told you."
A "Grama will have cheeseburgers for dinner."
M "I don't know what they will have but maybe a cheeseburger."
A "A cheeseburger and macaroni and cheese."
M "Wow, that would make for an interesting dinner."
A "Can we have macaroni and cheese mom?"
M "Nope, it's time for sleeping.

Then came my favorite part, the part in which I head down the stairs, anticipating the quiet peacefulness of a house with sleeping kids. But then the chorus began:

"Goodnight mom!"
"Goodnight mom!"
"Goodnight mom!"
"Goodnight mom!"
"Goodnight mom!!!!!"

Which they will continue until I respond with: "I can't hear you anymore!!"

Ahhh, peace.

In which I climb out of my culinary rut

2008-06-20T16:14:00.000-07:00

Do you get stuck in a rut of using the same old recipes week after week? I do! Every now & then I get a wild hair to try something new and it ~~gets rave reviews~~ doesn't produce a loud chorus of "Ewww, groooss, & what is that!" from my family. (That's what I call a keeper y'all!)So I add that something new to my rotation & it's soon treading round-n-round in that rut with me. *sigh*

Do you want to climb out with me? Sure you do! If you take a lil look-see over at my sidebar, I've got a nifty new button over there that'll take you to Whip It Up, A New Recipe Challenge. It's a contest based on using a new recipe each week & blogging about it. The fine ladies hosting Whip It Up (see them here and here) will post a weekly round up of the recipes tried by all us contestants. Go on now, you know you want to join in, it'll be fun! Ok well, at least go check it out will ya?

If you do decide to jump on the new recipe ladder (and you know you should), please tell them who sent you there.

I've been known as sweet, tart & always fruity...what am I?

2008-06-19T19:34:00.000-07:00

A summer dessert with fruit, of course!

My dear Fried Okra is hosting her Top Recipe Thursday & as usual I'm adding my 13 cents. No not 2 but 13 as that's the number of recipes I came up with! Not all of them use fresh from the tree fruit but I think they're worthy of mention nonetheless. (What does nonetheless mean anyway? Sheesh, people who use words they don't know are annoying aren't they? *a'hem*)

My favorite way to eat fruit is fresh picked. Although I didn't grow up in Georgia or anything my gramma had a couple of peach trees & I grew up eating peaches over the sink cos they dripped so much. I can't hardly look at what they call a 'large peach' at the grocery. They're hardly bigger than a golf ball & about as hard, which I think is a crime. I know a victim of such crimes, my poor husband, who thinks that peaches taste best crunchy.
I know!!

But as much as I love fruit in all it's perfect, juicy, ripeness, this would not be a recipe post without recipes so here's a smattering of my faves.

Fruit Cream Cheese Dessert

Crust
¼ + 1 tbsp butter
1-cup flour - sifted
1 tbsp sugar

Mix & press into bottom of 9 x 13 pan
Bake @ 300 for 30 minutes or until brown

Filling
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 container of whipped topping (12 oz)

Mix cream cheese with powdered sugar
Fold in whipped topping
Spread on cooled crust

Fruit topping
Fruit, 3 packages frozen strawberries or fresh blackberries or raspberries (berries work best)
3 tbsp cornstarch
Drain fruit & reserve juice
Cook juice with cornstarch until thick
Combine fruit with juice mixture & spread on top of filling

This is Chris's favorite dessert. His mom makes it every time we visit & it's soooo yum.

Applesauce

5 lbs apples
¼ (heaping) honey
½ tsp (scant) nutmeg
½ tsp (scant) cinnamon
8 whole cloves

Peel & slice apples
Cover ½ way with water
Add honey & spices
Bring to a boil
Simmer covered 10 minutes
Mash with potato masher until reaches desired consistency
Leave cloves in but check each day to see how strong it is, take out after reaches desired strength. Freeze sauce you won't use in a week or so, this recipe makes plenty of extras.

I know I know, this is more of a fallish thing but it's a fruit recipe that I love so there ya go. I tweaked this from my MIL's recipe, she is the one who taught me it's ok to experiment & make a recipe your own. I love my MIL!!

The rest of these I haven't tried yet but the recipes sound like winners. I will try to give credit where credit is due but true to form, I did not write down my sources when I copied these.

Rhubarb Dream Bars (from Leah)

Crust
2 sticks butter
2/3 cup powdered sugar
2 cups flour

Mix together & pat into jelly roll pan. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes

Topping
4 eggs
½ cup flour
1 ½ tsp salt
3 cups sugar
4 cups rhubarb diced small

Beat eggs
Add flour & salt, mix
Mix sugar & rhubarb, add to egg mixture & stir
Bake at 350 for 50 minutes

I've had a lot of these lately thanks to Leah, who loves to bake them & ~~force them on others~~ give them away. Well, my taste buds love them but my fat cells love them more. (Get it? More as in more of them? HA - I kill me!) Really they are to die for, reminiscent of a lemon square. If there were just one left I might just fight someone for it - that's how good they are.
I've always loved rhubarb, my mom used to give us each a stalk for an all day snack/toy. (It's a fruit, it's an umbrella, it's rhubarb!) I think my parents have a picture of my sisters & I holding them with the leaves over our heads. Hours of entertainment!

~Disclaimer. Mom did make sure we understood in no uncertain terms that the tops are poisonous. Although I'm sure there were times she wished she hadn't! End disclaimer~

Blueberry angel food cake

Angel food cake mix
1 ½ cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice
Prepare cake according to directions, folding in blueberries
Bake & cool cake according to directions
Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice, stir well with a whisk
Drizzle over cooled cake

Not sure where the heck I found this one but it sounds good don't it?

Cranberry and pineapple desert

Drain juice from a large can of crushed pineapple and add 1 can of whole berry cranberry sauce, 3/4 cup chopped walnuts and 1 small container of cool whip. Mix together and freeze. Remove 1/2 hr. before serving

My mom made this for Thanksgiving dinner last year & it seemed like it would be a difficult recipe but it only takes like 5 minutes. Who knew?

Crepes with bananas and hazelnut chocolate sauce

1-cup flour
1 tbsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ cups fat free milk
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
¼ cup nutella
2 tbsp fat free milk
¼ tsp vanilla extract
2 large firm unpeeled bananas (about 1 ¾ pounds)
Powdered sugar

Place flour, sugar and salt in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk
Combine 1 ½ cups milk and eggs, stirring with a whisk
Add milk mixture to flour mixture, stirring with a whisk just until smooth
Cover batter; chill for 15 minutes
Heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium high heat
Remove pan from heat
Pour a scant ¼ cup batter into pan; quickly tilt pan in all directions so batter covers pan with a thin film
Cook about 1 minute
Carefully lift edge of crepe with a spatula
The crepe is ready to turn when it can be shaken loose from the pan and the underside is lightly browned
Turn crepe over; cook 30 seconds
Place crepe on a towel; keep warm
Repeat procedure until all the batter is used
Stack crepes between single layers of wax paper or paper towels to prevent sticking
Combine the nutella 2 tbsp milk, and vanilla in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring with a whisk until smooth, keep warm
Peel bananas and cut in half lengthwise; cut each half crosswise into 2 pieces
Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium high heat
Arrange 4 banana pieces in a single layer in pan
Cook 1 minute or until lightly browned
Turn pieces over; cook 1 minute
Remove banana pieces from pan; keep warm
Repeat procedure with remaining banana pieces
Place 1 banana piece in center of each crepe; fold sides and ends over, and place, seam side down on clean surface
Repeat procedure with remaining banana pieces and crepes
Spoon about 1 tbsp sauce onto each of 4 plates, spreading to cover center of plates
Arrange 2 crepes on each plate
Sprinkle with powdered sugar

I think this is from Cooking Light.

Fresh peach croustades

¼ cup sugar
¼ cup water
¼ cup small mint leaves
1 sheet puff pastry
2 cups sliced peeled peaches

Preheat oven to 400
Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan
Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute or until sugar dissolves
Cool completely
Place sugar mixture and mint in a blender; process until smooth
Combine mint mixture and sliced peaches in a bowl
Cut 4 (2 inch) circles in puff pastry using a sharp round Cookie cutter
Roll each circle of dough into a 4-inch circle on a floured surface
Place on a baking sheet
Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown
Top with peach mixture

Sounds so fluffy & full of peachy yumminess. Most likely from Cooking Light.

Harvest pear crisp

6 cups Anjou* or Bartlett pears, cored and cut lengthwise into ½ inch thick slices (about 3 pounds)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon, divided
1/3 cup all purpose flour
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ tsp salt
3 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup regular oats
¼ cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375
Combine pears and lemon juice in a 2-quart baking dish, toss gently to coat
Combine granulated sugar, cornstarch, and 1 tsp cinnamon; stir with a whisk
Add cornstarch mixture to pear mixture; toss well to coat
Place flour, ½ tsp cinnamon, brown sugar, and salt in a food processor; pulse 2 times or until combined
Add chilled butter; pulse 6 times or until mixture resembles coarse meal
Add oats and walnuts; pulse 2 times
Sprinkle flour mixture evenly over pear mixture
Bake for 40 minutes or until pears are tender and topping is golden brown
Cool 20 minutes on a wire rack; serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream if desired
*Anjou pears hold up best

Like the applesauce, this is more of a fall thing but worth the wait I think. Cooking Light again.

Honey peach and blackberry cobbler

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, divided
8 cups chopped peeled peaches (about 4 lb)
¼ cup honey
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
¾ tsp salt, divided
3 cups blackberries
Cooking spray
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp grated lemon rind
1 tsp baking powder
6 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1 ¼ cups low fat buttermilk
2 tbsp turbinado sugar

Preheat oven to 400
Combine ¼ cup flour, peaches, honey, juice and ¼ tsp salt in a large bowl
Toss gently & let stand 15 minutes
Fold in blackberries
Spoon mixture into 13 x 9 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray
Combine 2 cups flour, ½ tsp salt, granulated sugar and baking powder in a medium bowl
Stir with a whisk
Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal
Add buttermilk and stir until just moist
Drop dough onto peach mixture to form 12 mounds
Sprinkle mounds with turbinado sugar
Bake for 40 minutes or until bubbly and golden

Peach cobbler with a cinnamon crust

¼ cup all purpose flour
1-cup sugar
¾ tsp ground cinnamon, divided
6 cups sliced peeled fresh ripe peaches or 2 (16 oz) packages frozen sliced peaches
Cooking spray
2 tbsp sugar
1 (15 oz) package refrigerated pie dough
1 large egg white, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350
Combine flour, sugar, and ½ tsp cinnamon in a small bowl
Place the peaches in an 11X7 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray
Sprinkle with sugar mixture & let stand 30 minutes
Combine ¼ tsp cinnamon and 2 tbsp sugar in a small bowl
Unfold 1 pie dough, reserving remaining dough for another use
Brush with egg white & sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar mixture
Cut the dough into 16 wedges
Place the dough wedges coated sides up on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray
Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown, set aside
Bake beaches for 30 minutes or until bubbly
Arrange crust over peaches, serve warm

I'm remembering now an edition of Cooking Light with an article about fresh peaches. I remember getting very hungry while reading it. Right now I can't wait for peach season. Think I might have to visit my sis in Richland & get me some peaches from an orchard.

Peach ginger crisp

½ cup all purpose flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup packed brown sugar
3 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
2 tbsp sliced almonds, toasted
6 cups sliced peeled peaches (about 3 lbs)
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp lemon juice
¾ tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
Preheat oven to 375
Combine flour, ¼ cup granulated sugar and brown sugar in a bowl
Cut in butter with a pastry blender until crumbly
Stir in almonds
Combine peaches and remaining ingredients in a bowl
Spoon peach mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish
Sprinkle with flour mixture
Bake for 45 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly

Sounds like a Cooking Light recipe to me.

Peach raspberry sorbet

1 16 oz can sliced peaches in heavy syrup
¾ cup fresh raspberries, frozen
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp superfine sugar
Freeze unopened can of peaches until solid, at least 18 hours
Submerge can of peaches in hot water 1 minute
Open can and pour any syrup that has melted into food processor bowl
Slide frozen peaches from can and cut into chunks
Place in processor with remaining ingredients
Process, pulsing on and off until smooth
Serve immediately or transfer to a bowl and freeze until ready to serve

I know this one isn't Cooking Light but it is from a magazine. Don't remember which one of course!

Rhubarb custard bars

Crust
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt
9 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350
Combine flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl
Cut butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal
Press mixture into a 13x9 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray
Bake for 15 minutes or until crust is golden brown

Filling
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 ½ cup sugar
1 ½ cups 1% milk
3 large eggs
5 cups (1/2 in) slices fresh or frozen rhubarb (un-thawed)

Combine flour and sugar in a large bowl add mild and eggs stirring with a whisk until well blended
Stir in rhubarb; pour rhubarb mixture over crust
Bake for 40 minutes or until set
Cool to room temp

Topping
½ cup sugar
½ cup (4 oz) block style fat free cream cheese
½ cup (4 oz) block style 1/3 less fat cream cheese
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 cup frozen fat free whipped topping, thawed

Place sugar, cheeses, and vanilla in a bowl, beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth
Gently fold in whipped topping, spread evenly over baked custard
Cover and chill at least 1 hour

And back to Cooking Light. (Do ya think I liked that magazine?)

There you go, there you have it, my favorite summer fruit desserts. Feel free to copy & paste at will but if you use any of these please let me know how it turned out.

Happy cooking y'all!

Warrior princess Kennedy

2008-06-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

Please check out this video of Kennedy, a most courageous girl. Let it touch your heart & pass it on. Everyone needs to know what these kids go through!

CANCER YEAR~ DON'T LOOK AWAY!

Prayers needed!

2008-06-14T01:41:00.000-07:00

Please go check out the last couple of days on Nate's blog & pray for his family. Tricia is having health challenges that are very scary. They need all the prayers & support they can get.
Thanks,
Alane

Yee-haw, I'm outie-here

2008-06-13T14:34:00.000-07:00

I'm taking off in a few minutes for a weekend with the crazy church ladies in Cle Elum & I'm sooooo excited!
I'm sure I'll get some pics for you, someone always has a camera & one lady in particular is notorious for getting those shots you wish she hadn't.
Oh I love them so.
The kids are going to my BFF's house until Chris gets home. He is bummed he won't see me until Sunday (he stayed at my sisters last night) but at least I'm leaving him a crock pot full-o-chicken & a pot of brown rice in the fridge.
Good wifey, good good wifey.
HA! You know better than that don'tcha?

Have a great weekend y'all!

Love those 80's

2008-06-13T00:32:00.000-07:00

After only the 329th time of humming the Golden Girls theme to myself today I thought: "Hey, 80's sitccom theme's would make for a great blog post!"

Yeah I know, I'm a quick one I am.

Anyway, tonight I'm-a have-a A-Z sitcoms party & drag you along with me into the 80's. (Just think of it as a vacation without all that aquanet.) My sisters & I used to sit in front of the tv & sing the songs in harmony. Fun times those...at least when we weren't fighting over which show to watch!

So here's the theme for Golden Girls. I know I'm not starting with A but since I had it in my head all day I think it's fitting I start with it.

Sofia was always my favorite, so sassy & cute!

I thought this one was so funny!

And how can you resist Tom Hanks in a dress?

I always thought the other guy was cute...check out those legs!

Ok dumb show but I sure wanted Charles in charge of me!!

This was a household fave for years. I think it's got one of the best theme songs ever, my sisters & I always harmonized this one.

I was sad to find that every (and I mean every) Cosby show theme had the code disabeled so I cannot share with you the 80's sitcom. If you are so inclined, go to youtube and look up the cosby show opening season __ and you can find all of them. (My faves are season 4 & 5) loved this show & still do. Most of the 80's show's that I've seen re-runs of I've not liked as much as I did back in the day but this one? Just as good as the first time. I've got the first season on my netflix queue & I can't wait for them to work up to the top of the list.

So my consolation prize is this

I SO wanted those shades!

I love Judd Hirsch, such a funny guy.

I couldn't find a theme song for this one but this is a great clip.

That woman could tell someone off like I've never seen before or since! And the hair, oh the hair! I swear those ladies had the biggest hair you could fiind on TV! Bit of trivia for you, Jean Smart (Charlene) lives in WA state & I got to shake her hand at an alzheimers walk fundraier - she's a lovely lady & so passionate about alzheimers research. I told Chris I met her & he had no clue who she was or what show I was talking about - men!

What chu talkin bout Willis?

I liked this one a lot. The fact that I wanted to be Kristie McNichol had a lot to do with it.

So I'm thinking that since I already have 10 clips here and I've only gotten through the letter D, this is going to be a multi part post. I just don't have enough time to ~~do the intense research required of such an important post~~ sit on my butt for hours on end looking at sitcom clips & missing out on sleep. Youtube is like chips, you can't stop at one (or 2 or 387). Yup, I'm going to bed a tad late tonight!

Stay tuned for the next installment & have a dandy day today!

Happy kids = happy mom!

2008-06-12T18:03:00.000-07:00

My kids declared I'm the coolest mom ever and frankly I agree. (Like I'd deny that!)
I made them grahm cracker ice cream sandwiches for snack time.
Yummmmmers baby!
I would recommend thinking ahead & giving the sandwiches some time in the freezer. Graham cracker ice cream sandwiches are much easier consumed when the crackers are a tad soft - ours just squished the ice cream out the sides. But hey, I served ice cream for a snack today & that's what really matters!

Summertime

2008-06-10T21:36:00.000-07:00

Mari did a cute lil summertime meme & I'm jumping on board with it.

5 things I love about summer:
1. Swimming
2. Gardening (fresh veggies mmmmm)
3. Playing in the yard with the kids
4. Flowers, especially of the wild variety
5. Long, lazy evenings

5 things I hate about summer:
1. Temps above 85
2. Trouble sleeping cos I'm too hot
3. Sausage toes (aka swelling from the heat)
4. Kids that want to be held in temps above 85
5. It's too dang hot y'all

I think I had a theme going with the last 5 things. I do not do well in extreme heat & it gets pretty dang hot over here in the Inland Northwest. But although it's hot, I'm still happier here in 90+ weather than over on the coast at 80 with humidity. Now, I know Washington state is not known for it's humidity but I can feel it nonetheless. I have been to SE Nebraska/NW Missouri in late June & to Tennessee in August so I do understand what real humidity is about. But there's a big difference between humidity on a vacation & humidity in your daily life. I just turn into a human puddle & have a hard time even thinking when it gets hot & humid. So although my mom likes to tell me how much cooler it is over there in Western Washington, I'm secure in the knowledge that it feels cooler here despite the heat.

Like Mari, I'm not going to tag anybody. If ya wanna do it go on ahead & if ya don't, well then don't!

The weekend, a birthday & BBB day 3-4

2008-06-09T09:00:00.000-07:00

Day 3 - Do what we have already done (shine sink, dressed to shoes, read 2 minutes of messages) - check!

Day 4 - Write these things down (on sticky notes) and continue shining sink & getting dressed to shoes - not going to do the sticky notes...it's the beginning of the control journal which I already have done from before

I didn't do any 15 minute decluttering but did get the house sparkling clean for Sam's birthday party.

My parents came for his party. We invited all 9 kids in his kindergarten class & we had 5 come plus 2 little siblings. I was kind of disappointed for Sam, he really wanted everyone here. But that made for a total of 10 kids & man was it loud!!

We had blast but were relieved when it was over. I'm not inviting that many kids again unless we are meeting at the park or something. We got through it with games & stuff but when we let them play upstairs for a bit we had kids throwing toys & one jumping off of the top bunk! Yeah, put a stop to that quick!

So my baby is 6 years old now. *sniff, sniff* He likes to tell us about every half an hour. "Hey mom, guess what?" "What?" "I'm 6!" But today it's changed a bit. "Hey mom, I'm almost 7!" He's so sweet! I wish I had gotten a shot of his face when we were all singing happy birthday to him. I've never seen him so excited. I just can't believe he's gotten so big! I have never been sad to have him grow up before this. Now he's such a boy, such a kid and my lil chubby cheeked baby lives only in memory. I love to see him develop & learn new things but he's just changed so much this past year, school makes a huge difference. But he will always be my snuggly boy. He thrives on psycal contact & prefers to be all squished together in the recliner for it. I cherish those times more than anything!

We had a good visit with my folks. After the kids went to bed Saturday night they introduced us to the game of farkle. It's a blast to play even when mom wins 2 games in a row. I think farkle makes a good alternative cuss word too!

My parents & I took the kids for a nice long walk Sunday morning. We went on my usual route but mom & the kids picked wildflowers & grasses the whole way so it took about twice as long. Now I have 4 tiny bouquets of pretty weeds in my kitchen. I love the fields around here. There's lots of bachelors buttons, wild lupine, and assorted who knows what scattered all over.

After the walk my dad's hay fever went nuts & they had to leave early. The kids were sad but we worked/played outside for the rest of the day so they got over it soon. I got another lil flower bed dug up & will plant it this week. I also planted another pot of string beans & spent a good hour laying with the kids in the grass looking for bugs in my new flower bed.

We managed to keep the house clean all weekend so this morning is easy-cheesy for me. I don't have too much on my list for today 'cept for a lot of errands. We'll see how it goes with all 3 kids in tow. Sam's school is out for the year so it's time to get used to having 3 kids home all day.

Well I hope y'all had a fabulous weekend. I gotta get hopping on my list-o-stuff & head out for ~~hours of torture~~ my running around with the kids.

Have a great day!!

Some people will stoop to anything!

2008-06-08T11:26:00.000-07:00

Check out this e-mail I got in my junk folder this morning.

From Mrs Susan Morgan
N�[38 Rue Des Martyrs Cocody
Abidjan,Cote d'Ivoire
ATTN
DEAREST ONE OF GOD

I am the above named person from Kuwait. I am married to Mr.Abram Morgan, who worked with Kuwait embassy in Ivory Coast for nine years before he died in the year 2004. We were married for eleven years without a child. He died after a brief illness that lasted for only four days.

Before his death we were both born again Christian. Since his death I decided not to remarry or get a child outside my matrimonial home which the Bible is against. When my late husband was alive he deposited the sum of $2. 5 Million (Two Million Five Hundred U.S. Dollars) in the bank here in Abidjan in suspense account.

Presently, the fund is still with the bank. Recently, my Doctor told me that i have serious sickness which is cancer problem. The one that disturbs me most is my stroke sickness. Having known my condition I decided to donate this fund to a church or individual that will utilize this money the way I am going to instruct herein. I want a church that will use this fund for orphanages, widows, propagating the word of God and to endeavour that the house of God is maintained.

The Bible made us to understand that blessed is the hand that giveth. I took this decision because I don’t have any child that will inherit this money and my husband relatives are not Christians and I don’t want my husband’s efforts to be used by unbelievers. I don’t want a situation where this money will be used in an ungodly way. This is why I am taking this decision. I am not afraid of death hence i know where I am going. I know that I am going to be in the bosom of the Lord. Exodus 14 VS 14 says that the Lord will fight my case and I shall hold my peace.

I don’t need any telephone communication in this regard because of my health hence the presence of my husband’s relatives is around me always I don't want them to know about this development. With God all things are possible. As soon as I receive your reply I shall give you the contact of the bank here in Abidjan. I want you and the church to always pray for me because the Lord is my shepherd. My happiness is that I lived a life of a worthy Christian. Whoever that wants to serve the Lord must serve him in spirit and Truth. Please always be prayerful all through your life.

Contact me on the above e-mail address for more information’s, any delay in your reply will give me room in sourcing another church or individual for this same purpose. Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I Stated herein. Hoping to receive yourreply.

Remain blessed in the Lord.
Yours in Christ,
Mrs susan morgan

This makes me sick! I’ve seen this kind of message before…I think we’ve all heard about the one from Nigeria…but to go so far as to call themselves Christians? I don’t think so!!! This is a scam, pure & simple, preying on (mostly elderly, gullible & generous) believers who don’t know better & ruining lives in the process.
Honestly, I don’t know how these people can look themselves in the mirror. How do they sleep at night? How can they feel good about themselves at all?
It’s a whole mindset I just don’t get & hope I never do.
Please, pass this information on to those who might not have heard of this scam. Please educate all those you can so we can put these people out of business & behind bars. If you get a message like this, please contact your state attorney general. They want to know about this, it can help them in the fight against this kind of despicable scam.

Sam on kissing

2008-06-07T10:55:00.000-07:00

I asked Sam what happens when you kiss.

"Puts glue on your lips."
"What does that mean?"
"You put the red glue on & when you touch lips you get the glue on your face."
"Who has the glue?"
"Mom & Adah. Red glue. The girls have the glue. Not Sam & Daddy & Eli."
"Is the glue good or bad?"
"It's good."
"So when you kiss somebody it's good?"
"Yeah, it's good."
"Why do you kiss someone?"
"Because you love them!"

Now if that ain't cute I don't know what is!

BBB day 2.2

2008-06-05T14:48:00.000-07:00

Do over day today!!

From now on I'm only concentrating on my babystep & my de-cluttering. I need to keep it simple right now & throwing in the pressure of doing my whole to-do list (no matter how small) was just too much for my poor damaged psyche.

So BBB day 2 is Get dressed to lace up shoes & read 2 minutes of her e-mails. (There are a lot of e-mails with FlyLady.) Check. Except that you're supposed to do this in the morning. I did it at about 2:30 PM. She also includes do your hair & face in this...hair done, face is done all the time as I don't wear makeup (I know, weird) except for Sundays & special occasions.

I am walking with BFF today but not until after the last tee ball game. I'm picking up the boys from school in a few minutes (so I better get this done quick) and we're gonna eat early at her house before the game. She is taking my place tonight at a meet-n-greet for the committee that is trying to get some kind of health care clinic here in town (Woo-hoo!) We both wanted to go to both things but since that's impossible we shall devide and conquer.

I'm doing my 15 min de-clutter after the walk.

And PTL, I'm having a MUCH better day today :)

Snack attack!

2008-06-05T13:19:00.000-07:00

Megan took my suggestion to do a post about snacks in her series on recipes. Isn't she sweet? I struggle to keep my picky kids happy in the snack department. I'm afriaid I end up doing ye old graham crackers with peanut butter on most days. Or there's my wildly inventive ritz crackers version. And sometimes I get really crazy & throw in some raisins.
I'm just that cool.

Every now & then I get a wild hair and actually bake something...here's my giant list-o-recipes.

Multigrain fruit bars
2 cups rolled oats
2 cups crispy rice cereal
1/3 cup wheat germ
¼ cup sunflower seeds
1 cup chopped dried apricots
1 cup dried cranberries
¾ cup corn syrup
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
½ tsp cinnamon
Heat oven to 350
Spread oats, rice cereal, wheat germ and sunflower seeds in a greased 9x13 pan
Bake, stirring until oats are toasted, about 20 minutes
In a bowl, combine apricots, cranberries & the oat mixture
In a saucepan, combine corn syrup and sugar, heat to a boil
Remove from heat & stir in vanilla & cinnamon
Pour syrup mixture over oat mixture & mix well
Coat hands with cooking spray, and spread mixture in prepared pan
Chill until firm & cut into 24 bars

These are very good but tend to fall apart.

90 minute soft pretzels
7 Cups all purpose flour
4 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
2 pk active dry yeast
2 cups water
2 tbsp margarine
2 tbsp water
2 egg yolks, beaten
Salt
Mix 2 cups flour, sugar salt and un-dissolved yeast
Heat 2 cups water and margarine to 120 to 130 degrees
Gradually add to dry ingredients
Beat 2 minutes at medium speed
Add 1-cup flour
Beat at high speed 2 minutes
Stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough
On floured board, knead 5 minutes
Set in greased bowl & turn to grease top
Cover and let rise in warm, draft free place 40 minutes
Divide dough into 24 equal pieces
Roll each into a 20-inch rope
Shape into pretzels or other shapes
Place on greased baking sheets
Cover; let rest 5 minutes
Mix egg yolk and 1 tbsp water & brush on pretzels
Sprinkle with salt
Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or until done
Cool on racks

My mom used to make pretzels with us as kids. This is not her recipe, I found it online somewhere but my kids love playing with the dough as much as I did.

So there you have it, my giant contribution to the snack lovers of America. Go check out FriedOkra for more great ideas.

Isn't it ironic

2008-06-05T09:25:00.000-07:00

You Are a Positive Person

No one would accuse you of being too negative!

You're a naturally upbeat and optimistic person.

Like everyone else, you come across things you can't stand every day.

But unlike everyone else, you ignore what annoys you and focus on what uplifts you.

Are You Too Negative?

So most of the time this is true but in the light of the post below? HA!

Yesterday was NOT good

2008-06-05T09:14:00.000-07:00

This is what I wrote while bawling my head off after the poop hit the fan.

I want to give up. I am so sick of dealing with problems with the kids. Why do they all have to be so hard? Why do I have to have 3 strong willed kids? Why do I have to have 2 boys with ADD? Why do I have a daughter who is so sassy & whiny & bratty?
I know that God gave me these kids but sometimes I think he screwed up bigtime. I do not handle this well at all. I do not want to deal with it. I don’t want to dance around Sam’s sensitiveness. Sometimes I feel like I just cannot handle it anymore. Why did God do this to me? I know there’s so many people out there desperate for kids who could handle these issues so much better. I get so angry with them. So angry. I do don’t want to deal with it. I just want it to be better. I just want everything to stop.
How could he do this to us if he really loved us. Why did he let me have kids before I got my shit together. I am such a bad mom, I yell at them all the time. I’m flat out mean. I hurt their feelings so much. And when I get angry like today…look out. I spank in anger. I throw things. I yell. I say whatever is going through my mind whether or not I’d actually do it. Like say I want to to throw Adah out the window. Or spank her raw with the metal spatula. Or give her up for adoption. Well, I say these things to Chris but it freaks him out. When I get mad like that I don’t care. I just want everything to stop & I don’t care if I hurt anyone. Until later when I calm down & see how the kids act with me. Then it makes me cry because I know I’ve hurt them in so many ways and they don’t deserve it. They didn’t ask to be born into our family, they just ended up here. Sometimes I just hate life period.

Please excuse the language, that's just where I was at the time.

Yeah, first thing on my list today is to find me a shrinky-dink.

Knock knock

2008-06-04T16:39:00.001-07:00

Yes Sam has discovered the knock knock joke. The first time it was funny & cute:

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Mr. Bear.
Mr. Bear who?
Mr. Bear bananna!
(Sam laughs)
Haha, good job Sam!

Then we get:

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Mr. Bear.
Mr. Bear who?
Mr. Bear butt!
(Sam laughs harder)
Yup, that's a knock knock all right.

And finally my favorite:

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Mr. Bear.
Mr. Bear who?
Mr. Bear poop!
(Sam laughs histerically)
Ok Sam, now you're just ~~acting like a boy~~ being gross.

Then Eli gets into the action:

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
Mr. Bear bananna.
Mr. Bear bananna who?
Say hi!
Hi Mr. Bear bananna.
(Eli laughs histerically)

*sigh*

My Dad is bringing overa book of real knock knock jokes this weekend. Thanks Dad!

We've also been treated to hearing "Hey mom, guess what?" "What?" "That's what HAHAHAHA!" about 97 times a day.
Boys.

BBB day 2

2008-06-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was a 1-step-forward day & today has been a 1-step-back day.

I did not even look at what my babystep was for today.
I did not do my 15 minutes of de-cluttering.
I did do my grocery shopping. (hard to ignore that one)
I did not walk with BFF. (raining or we would have)
I did not do laundry.
I did not clean the bathroom.
I did not work outside. (again, raining)
I did blog. (like I'd miss blogging, duh!)

**sigh**

I was tired, kids were grumpy, it was raining, and I had to do grocery shopping with grumpy kids. So. Not. Fun.

And now here I am, spilling my guts to you. I could lie through my teeth (or would that be fingers?) & tell you I got all my stuff done & hooray for me. But I'm all about being honest & transparent so I'm showing you all my lazy pathetic glory. Yuck!

But tomorrow is another day. A day in which, as FlyLady says, I am not behind!

Warninghusband rant in progressWarning

2008-06-03T21:31:00.001-07:00

Ok so Chris is staying with my sister & her family 1 night a week so we can save on gas money. He's at a new jobsite that's just as far away as the last one but this has the advantage of being an 8 hour day & it's close to my sis.

(begin rant)

I get extremely wiped out when I have to do the night routine with the kids so him being out of town is hard on me. Chris called me at 9:30 this morning to tell me they got rained out today & were sent home. He mentioned how it's a good thing he's staying with sis cos if he had to come home it would be a huge waste of money.

Yes that's true but my selfish wifeyness says "dagnabit that sucks!"

K, got over that, but as I was doing homework with Sam tonight my phone rang repeatedly. I was not about to answer cos Sam was actually concentrating (very unusual) so I forged on & pretended I didn't hear anything.

After we got done I checked my phone & I had ~~437~~ 2 missed calls from Chris. I call him back & he says all sleepy sounding, "Where were you? I called twice."

"Ummm, doing homework with Sam & I'm not going to answer when he's on a roll."

"Oh. Well, I'm totally exhausted so I want to say goodnight to the kids now."

Wha??

I comply like the good wife I am (snicker) and he says an extrememly short good night to the kids.

Now, when he's out of town we always talk right before we go to sleep & read our bible chapter over the phone. Not so tonight.

"Honey? I'm going to say goodnight to you too. I just can't stay awake anymore."

Again, wha??

How the heck is he so tired after hanging out at my sister's all day? I'm here at home, ~~working my fingers to the bone for his children~~ spending meaningful time with our kids, making them ~~waffles with strawberry sauce~~ a highly nutritious, balanced meal for our ~~scream fest~~ nice quiet dinner, and he's tired from sitting around doing nothing?

What-the freak-ever!

(end rant)

I'm SO looking forward to seeing Chris tomorrow night, I've missed him so much!

Love you honey!!

BBB day 1

2008-06-03T09:17:00.000-07:00

So today was babystep #1, Go Shine your sink.
(for the official directions, click here)

Unfortunately my sink will not actually shine. It's a very old porcelain sink & has lots of stains I can't get out now matter what I try (and I've tried everything!) But I went ahead & 'shined' the dang thing & it looks much better now. The stains are still there but overall the sink is much brighter.

Here's my to do list for the day:

Find control journal, do day 1 baby-steps, de-clutter 15 min
Walk with BFF @ 9 - bring invites to Mrs. L’s room
What’s for dinner?
Laundry
Clean bathroom
Work outside, plant beans, water, string on porch
Blogging - Sundays FLY post, fix link to Janae & Kelly, reading, PPP

So what did I get done?

Here I am with my Control Journal, so obviously I found it & I already talked about my sink.

I also did 15 minutes of de-cluttering my desk, walked with BFF, got Sam's invites to his classroom, got dinner planned & worked on Sunday's blog. Not everything on my list but not a bad showing overall. (And I added an unexpected meeting to the day - I'll talk about that more in another post, it's something I'm really excited about.) I did drag my feet on the sink & de-cluttering but when I ~~finally got my butt in gear~~ did them it felt so great. FlyLady would say "I'm so proud of you!"

I need to work on not procrastinating. I would have gotten much more done had I just jumped right in. But I need to remember I'm taking babysteps & working on things 15 minutes at a time.
First day down, now to see what Tuesday brings :)

Feels like I've done a marathon

2008-06-02T18:12:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was clean the house day. We say that every weekend but this time we actually did it. Well, we didn't pay much attention to upstairs or our bedroom but the rest of the house looks great - yay us! I cleaned the kitchen, vacuumed the rugs (& the spiders - eww), picked up the living room & helped to do a detailed sweeping job. Chris picked up the family room, helped with the sweeping, and cleaned most of the bathroom, did you get that? He did the BATHROOM!!

We were motivated to do all this because we are having Sam's birthday party on Saturday, (he turns 6 on Sunday - my baby is getting so big! *sniff*) and we have invited all 9 of his K-kid classmates to the party. (Yes I may need to be committed afterward but I'm sure I'll get lots of blogging material out of it!) I don't know most of the parents so I want the house (at least the part they will see) to be sparkling.

I should add that we got all this done while watching my BFF's 3 boys, ages 6, 3 & 18 mo. For once the kids played nicely together & we had very few fights. I hardly had to get involved with the older kids at all & the lil guy hung out with Chris & I. I always love playing with toddlers...especially if they aren't mine!

I have a few jobs to finish during the week, like scrubbing the toilet (but I'm NOT complaining), picking up the kids rooms and such but other than that it's just upkeep.

Today I'm starting on my beginner babysteps so stay tuned for that tomorrow.

Starting over

2008-06-01T19:20:00.000-07:00

I am not known for my housekeeping skills. I have never been a 'cleanie' & most likely never will. There is always a load of laundry (or 2, or 3...) waiting to be folded on the couch, dishes to be done in the sink, toys, books & assorted stuff strewn all about the floor. I would rather do just about anything (blogging, duh!) but clean. We are clutter hounds, my hubby & I, we don't really like it but we seem to be powerless to keep anything picked up for long and we are passing this fabulous trait on to our children.

(I am being VERY transparent here...please be kind!)

A couple of years ago I stumbled on a website that has the potential to change the life of someone like myself. If you look over at my sidebar & down a smidge, you'll see a cute new button. That lil lady with the wings is the FlyLady & she's one of the most amazing women I know. I (sorta) followed her routines for a few months here, a few weeks there, always falling off the wagon eventually but knowing what I needed to do to jump back on.

Last year when Chris started with the bricklayers union I started to fall apart. The company he worked for was in Spokane, but at that time we lived in Kittitas, 3 hours away. Long story short, for 6 months he spent his weeks in Spokane & his weekends at home which I could not handle. I not only fell off the FlyLady wagon, I lost sight of how to get back on & the will to do so. (By the time we moved here I was very close to having a complete nervous breakdown.)

So now it's 8 months later & my house is seriously driving me nuts. I'm tired of living in a dump. I'm tired of crisis cleaning every time someone visits. I'm tired of living in CHAOS (see previously mentioned cute button.) It's time to get back on that FlyLady wagon. I'm going to dust off my old Control Journal (after I find it), shine my sink & start over again with the Beginner BabySteps.

To keep me accountable, I'm going to blog about my journey. I plan to post about what I did the previous day, how I'm feeling etc. If I miss a day I invite you to ask me ~~why the freak I'm slacking off~~ if something is wrong. I feel like I need someone (other than my husband, he'd just get in trouble haha!) to help me stay on track & who better than my pals out there in bloggy-land?

If you are a SHE (Sidetracked Home Executive) like me, I invite you to join along. For all the BO (Born Organized) ladies out there, you might gain a little insight on how us SHE's operate. And if you know a SHE that could use a little encouragement please share my blog with her - who knows, it just might change her life!

A cracked pitcher

2008-05-30T23:10:00.000-07:00

Please take the time to visit Angie at Bring The Rain and let her latest post move you as it has me.
God brings us beauty in such surprising ways.

Mmmm, mmmm good!

2008-05-29T09:20:00.000-07:00

Ok so I'm not the best sandwich maker. I usually just slap some mayo & mustard on whatever bread I've got on hand (usually 100% whole wheat) with some smoked turkey, cheddar cheese, lettuce & tomato. Good but not much to write home about.
When Megan (of FriedOkra fame) announced her next recipe post was featuring the lowly sandwich, I was surprised to find a couple of recipes in my files. I've never made them but they sound purty good so I'll let you decide if they're all right.

I'm almost sure these are both from Cooking Light magazine.

Eggplant sandwiches with spinach and fontina

2 (1 lb) eggplants, peeled and cut into 28 (1/2 inch thick) slices
1 tsp sea salt, divided
1-cup water
1 (10 oz) package fresh spinach
Cooking spray
1 ½ cups finely chopped onion
½ tsp crushed red pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
¼ tsp black pepper
½ cup (2 oz) shredded fontina cheese
2 tbsp grated fresh Parmesan cheese
¼ cup fat free milk
3 large eggs whites, lightly beaten
1 cup dry polenta
4 tsp olive oil, divided
14 lemon wedges

Preheat broiler
Sprinkle eggplant with ½ tsp salt
Place half of eggplant on a baking sheet; broil 5 minutes on each side or until lightly browned
Repeat procedure with remaining eggplant
Bring water to a boil in a large dutch oven
Add spinach; cover and cook 2 minutes or until wilted
Drain well
Place spinach on several layers of paper towels; cover with additional paper towels
Let stand 5 minutes; pressing down occasionally
Coarsely chop spinach
Heat a medium skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat
Add onion, red pepper and garlic; cook 4 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring occasionally
Stir in lemon juice; cook 30 seconds or until liquid evaporates
Combine onion mixture and chopped spinach in a bowl; stir in ½ tsp salt and black pepper
Combine fontina and Parmesan in a small bowl
Working with 1 eggplant slice at a time, spread about 2 ½ tbsp spinach mixture evenly over each of 14 eggplant slices; sprinkle each with about 2 tsp cheese mixture
Cover with remaining eggplant slices, and gently press together
Combine milk and egg whites in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk
Working with 1 sandwich at a time, brush both sides of each sandwich with milk mixture, and dredge in polenta
Heat 2 tsp oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat
Add half of sandwiches; cook 5 minutes on each side or until browned
Repeat procedure with 2 tsp oil and remaining sandwiches
Serve with lemon wedges

Piadini with Cherry Tomatoes and Smoked Mozzarella

Crust
2 ¼ cups bread flour, divided
1 package dry yeast (about 2 ¼ tsp)
1 cup plus 2 tbsp warm water (100 to 110), divided
½ tsp salt
Cooking spray
¾ cup (3 oz) shredded smoked mozzarella cheese, divided

Dissolve yeast in ½ cup warm water in a large bowl, stir in ½ cup flour
Let stand 30 minutes
Add ½ cup plus 2 tbsp warm water, 1 ½ cups flour, and salt stirring to form a soft dough
Turn dough out onto a floured surface
Knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes)
Add enough of remaining flour, 1 tbsp at a time to prevent dough from sticking to hands
Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top
Cover and let rise in a warm place (85) free from drafts for 45 minutes or until doubled in size
(Gently press 2 fingers into dough, if indentation remains, dough has risen enough)
Punch dough down, cover and let rest 5 minutes
Divide dough into 4 equal portions
Working with 1 portion at a time (cover remaining dough to prevent drying)
Roll each portion into a 7-inch circle on a lightly floured surface
Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium high heat
Place dough circle in pan and sprinkle with 3 tbsp cheese
Cook 3 minutes or until cheese melts and dough is browned on bottom
Repeat procedure with remaining dough and cheese

Filling
1 ½ cups yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
1 ½ cups red cherry tomatoes, halved
½ cup thinly sliced fresh basil
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced

Combine tomatoes and remaining ingredients, toss gently to coat
Spoon ¾ cup tomato mixture into each crust and fold over

You scream, I scream, we all scream for Blogthings!

2008-05-29T07:46:00.000-07:00

Your Ice Cream Personality:

You like to think of yourself as a fairly modest person. And it's true that you don't talk yourself up... but you're also pretty happy with who you are.

You are incredibly cautious. You rather miss out on something than make a mistake. No one would ever call you wild... but they would call you responsible.

You are a somewhat open minded person, but deep down you're fairly conservative. You don't like trying new things very much. And if you do find something new you like, you stick with it.

You tend to have a one track mind. You prefer not to multitask.

You are fun loving and sweet. You tend to enjoy joking around and teasing people.

The Ice Cream Personality Test

Only 1 slight deviation from my personality...I can multi-task very well & don't mind it too much...but I'd rather not :)

My crazy boy

2008-05-28T16:52:00.000-07:00

As I was reading blogs today I heard Eli sing this:

"I'm on my table, I have a bottom and my shorts."
(general humming & la'ing noises)
"I have my shoes, I have a shirt and I have my undies on."
(more humming & la'ing noises)
"and I have another hat."

Gatta have the other hat.
(At least he wasn't talking about this again!)

Then I heard, "mom, look at me!" and he proceded to do the lollypop guild dance. I may be biased and all, but he is extremely cute and much better than the original. (although it is my favorite movie of all time)

And for your viewing pleasure:

We've also been treated to the lullabye league performed by Adah - again, extrmely cute!

Anybody wanna sammich?

2008-05-28T16:00:00.000-07:00

Then go check out the Okra tomorrow. She's gettin' that Southern-fried recipe book out again to wow us with her sammich expertise. Mmmmmm baby, I can taste it now! I might actually get my recipe's up on time for this one. But don't hold your breath -don't want ya to go blue in the face & whack your head on the way to the floor when you pass out. Yeah.

Summer salads

2008-05-24T22:07:00.000-07:00

Ok so I'm a tad (or a week, but who's counting) late on this, but as the saying goes, better late than...oh, you've heard it before.

My pal Megan over at FriedOkra had this awesome post called 'Top Ten Sizzlin' Summer Recipes a la FriedOkra & Family' & she invited us all to get in on the fun with her.

Now to me a sultry summer night calls for a big ole salad with pasta (or the like) and lots of fresh, summery veggies. I adore the soft nuttiness of the al dente pasta and the crunchy, juicy, fresh vegegtablyness (I know, I know, not a word but work with me here will ya?) of out of the garden/farmer's market veggies. Marry those with a yumarific dressing & I am there baby!!

I'm giving you a smattering (ok, a ton) of my faves along with some alluring ones I've not yet tried but I'm sure are fabulous. I have to admit I cannot give credit for most of these recipes. I copied most of the them from magazines & didn't keep track...whoops! I do know that some from Cooking Light (fantastic magazine, by the way) if you see one you know in here please let me know, I'd love to give credit!

Recipes I've made & love

Orzo salad with corn tomatoes and basil

Dressing
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp red wine vinegar
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
3 garlic cloves, crushed
Combine all in a jar, cover tightly and shake vigorously

Salad
1 cup uncooked orzo
2 cups fresh yellow corn kernels (about 4 ears)
2 cups chopped tomato
¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt & fat
Drain and place in a large bowl
Spoon half of dressing over pasta; toss to coat
Cool to room temperature
Add the remaining dressing, corn, tomato, and basil to pasta; toss to coat
Let stand 30 minutes

Pasta tossed with Shrimp, vegetables and pesto

1-½ cups diagonally sliced snow peas
1 ½ cups julienne cut yellow squash
2 tsp olive oil
¾ lb large shrimp, peeled and de-veined
½ cup fat free less sodium chicken broth
4 cups hot cooked farfalle (about 3 cups uncooked)
1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes, halved
¼ cup (1 oz) crumbled feta cheese
¼ cup classic pesto
1 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper

Bring water to a boil in a saucepan; add snow peas and squash
Cook 45 seconds or until crisp tender, drain
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat
Add shrimp; cook 3 minutes or until done
Add snow pea mixture and broth
Cover and cook for 30 seconds or until thoroughly heated
Combine shrimp mixture, pasta and remaining ingredients in a large bowl; toss well

Tortellini with spinach and cherry tomatoes

1 (9 oz) package fresh three cheese (or any flavor) tortellini
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp bottled minced garlic
½ to ¾ tsp crushed red pepper
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
¼ cup fat free, less sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
¼ tsp salt
1 (6 oz) package fresh baby spinach

Cook tortellini according to package directions, omitting salt & fat
While tortellini cooks, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat
Add garlic and red pepper; sauté 30 seconds
Add tomatoes, broth, and basil, salt and baby spinach to pan
Cook 2 minutes or until baby spinach wilts
Stir in tortellini; cook 1 minute

Barley “pasta” salad

2 cups water
½ cup uncooked pearl barley
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp salt
2 cups finely chopped seeded tomato
1 cup thinly sliced spinach
½ cup finely chopped red bell pepper
½ cup chopped seeded peeled cucumber
½ cup (2 oz) diced part skim mozzarella cheese
2 tsp dry oregano

Bring 2 cups water to a boil in a large saucepan
Add barley; cover, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes
Drain and rinse with cold water
Combine the juice, oil and salt in a large bowl & stir well with a whisk
Add barley and remaining ingredients
Toss gently to coat

I just made this the other night, the barley gives it a great flavor & is a yummy substitute for pasta. Gives the salad a nutty chewiness...even my kids ate it!

Zesty Black Bean and Corn Salad

2 tsp vegetable oil
Cooking spray
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 ½ cups fresh corn kernels (about 4 large ears)
¼ cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
¾ tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp salt
1 cup halved grape tomatoes
1 cup diced red bell pepper
¾ cup diced red onion
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp minced seeded jalapeno pepper
1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano
1 (19oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained

Heat vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium high heat
Add garlic, sauté 30 seconds
Add corn sauté 8 minutes or until browned
Remove from pan, cool completely
Combine juice and next 4 ingredients (lime juice to salt) stirring with a whisk
Combine corn mixture, tomatoes and remaining ingredients
Drizzle juice mixture over corn mixture and toss gently to coat

Rice & broccoli salad with sunflower seed dressing
I got this one from my sis - the dressing is so yum!

2-3 cups cooked short brown rice
1 bunch broccoli
1 cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted
½ cup scallion greens
1/3 cup sunflower seeds
4 tsp apple cider vinegar
½ cup flax oil (or canola)
5 tsp toasted sesame oil
Salt to taste
1-cup vegetable stock

Place cooled rice in a bowl
Peel broccoli stems; slice thin
Cut broccoli florets into 1-inch pieces
Steam broccoli 1-3 minutes or until crisp tender
Plunge in ice water to cool
Add broccoli, almonds and scallion greens to rice
Mix well
Puree sunflower seeds with vinegar, oils and salt in a blender
Add vegetable stock in a stream
Blend until emulsified
Toss with salad
(Can use dressing on any salad)

The remainder are from my recipes to try file

Shrimp and corn salad

2 cups fresh corn kernels (from 3 ears) or one 10-ounce package frozen corn, thawed
1-pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 small jicama, cut into thin strips (optional)
1 lb peeled and deveined large cooked shrimp
½ cup (3.5 oz) shelled roasted pumpkin seeds
6 scallions (white and light green parts), thinly sliced
¼ cup fresh orange juice
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp honey
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp olive oil
¾ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper

In a large bowl, combine the corn, tomatoes, jicama, shrimp, pumpkin seeds, and scallions.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the orange and lime juices, honey, cumin, oil, salt, and pepper.
Toss with the shrimp mixture.

Sugar-Snap-Pea Salad with Sweet Ginger-Soy Dressing
5 servings (1 cup)

Dressing
2 tsp dark sesame oil
1 tbsp minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tbsp minced fresh garlic
¼ tsp crushed red pepper
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt

Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium heat
Add ginger; sauté 2 min
Add garlic and crushed red pepper; cook 1 minute
Stir in oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar; and salt; bring to a simmer
Remove from heat & cool

Salad
1 lb sugar-snap peas; trimmed
½ cup julienne cut carrot
½ cup drained, canned sliced water chestnuts
½ cup sliced mushrooms
½ cup julienne cut red bell pepper
2 tsp sesame seeds, toasted

Cook peas in boiling water 30 seconds
Drain and rinse with cold water
Combine peas and remaining ingredients except sesame seeds
Drizzle dressing over salad; toss well
Sprinkle with sesame seeds

Zesty Couscous Salad

1 pkg Couscous, plain
¼ tsp black pepper
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
2 large tomatoes, chopped
1 medium zucchini, halved and thinly sliced
½ cup fresh basil, cut into strips
1/3 cup green onions, sliced
¾ cup feta cheese, crumbled

Prepare couscous according to package directions, except omit fat and add black pepper to water
In large bowl, combine prepared couscous, lemon juice and olive oil
Add tomatoes, zucchini, basil and green onions
Chill 4 hours or overnight
Stir in cheese just before serving

Here's to a yummy salad-filled summer ladies!

What's in my fridge makes me want to run!

2008-05-22T11:25:00.000-07:00

What Your Fridge Says About You

You like to be surrounded by things you love. You aren't exactly greedy, but you can be materialistic at times.

You are a very thrifty person. You don't like to waste money... or food.

You don't tend to be a very adventurous person, but you do surprise everyone now and then. You have a bit of a wild side.

You try to be responsible, but you don't always succeed. Your heart is in the right place though.

You are likely married, possibly with kids.

What Do the Contents of Your Refrigerator Say About You?

For the most part this is right on, I do hate to waste money & food...but I do it anyway & it drives me nuts!

Your Response is: Flight

You rather leave then deal with a dangerous or uncomfortable situation.

You can't deal with too much drama or stress. It's really hard for you to cope.

You are easily scared, freaked out, or intimidated.

And while it's good to be prudent, not everything may be as freaky as it seems!

How Do You Respond: Fight or Flight?

Sadly, this one is right too. I'm a ninny that hates confrontation, what can I say?

How do you rate?

Side effects of Diet Pepsi.

2008-05-20T18:46:00.000-07:00

This meme is courtesy of a ~~crazy~~ funny blogging chick named Swishy.
I am so inclined so here you go.

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people and post a comment to the person who tagged you once you've posted your three sentences.

Cane River by Lalita Tademy
"I have something to show you." He carried a stack of skins by the bundler's knot in one hand, and with the other he pulled Philomene close to him by the waist as they walked to the toolshed. It was a small shed, barely big enough to hold the plow, hoes, pickaxes, and other tools for the farm, but it had a door, and it was out of the weather.

Cane River was not exactly the nearest book, that would be the manual for our new laptop. I'm thinkin' you don't much care about that so instead, I swiped the nearest book off our bookshelf & turns out I haven't read it yet. However, It's an Oprah's Book Club selection that my sweet MIL sent to me, (She sends me books all the time God bless her) & I usually love them so I'm sure it's a dandy.

Here's what the dust cover says:

A unique accomplishment, this is a history never before told, an epic novel of four generations of African-American women, a work based on one family's actual meticulously researched past - and a book with enormous implications for us all.
Lalita Tedemy had always been intensely interested in her family's stories, especially ones about her great-grandmother Emily, a formidable figure who died with her life's savings hidden in her mattress. Probing deeper for her family's roots, Tademy soon found herself swept up in an obsessive two-year odyssey - and leaving her corporate career for the little Louisiana farming community of...
Cane River
It was here, on a medium-sized Creole plantation owned by a family named Derbanne, that author Lalita Tademy found her family's roots - and the stories of four astonishing women who battled vast injustices to create a legacy of hope and achievement. They were women whose lives began in slavery, who weathered the Civil War, and who grappled with the contradictions of emancipation through the turbulent early years of the twentieth century. Through it all, they fought to unite their family and forge success on their own terms.
Here amid small farmhouses and a tightly knit community of French-speaking slaves, free people of color, and whites, Tademy's great-great-great-great grandmother Elisabeth would bear both a proud heritage and the yoke of slavery. Her youngest daughter, Suzette, would be the first to discover the promise - and heartbreak - of freedom. Suzette's strong-willed daughter Philomene would use determination born of tragedy to reunite her family and gain unheard-of-economic independence. And Emily, Philomene's spirited daughter, would fight to secure her children's just due and preserve their future against dangerous odds.
In a novel that combines painstaking historical reconstruction with unforgettable storytelling, Lalita Tademy presents an all too rarely seen part of American history, complete with a provocative portrayal of the complex, unspoken bonds between slaves and slave owners. Most of all, she gives us the saga of real, flesh-and-blood women making hard choices in the face of unimaginable loss, securing their identity and independence in order to face any obstacle, and inspiring all the generations to come.

Sounds purty good to me, I'm-a make this my next read!

To quote Swishy, "If you're so inclined, consider yourself tagged."

(BTW, if you want to know what the heck the title of this post means, you must read this post.)

Confessions of a SAHM

In which my writing skills go out the window...

Girlfriends spell relief!

Sometimes I really should stop & ask for directions.

Spinnin' like a top

Workin' girl

A whole new me or, man do I love technology!

The same age as Sesame Street? Cool!

A heavy heart

I dream of...Michelle?

Now, where is that cell phone?

Hola 2009!

Oh THAT mom.

I hope we don't get fined for this!

The psycology of bed's and umbrella's

For unto us a Child is born

Oh what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day, I've got a wonderful feeling, everything's going my...oh wait, I forgot this is my life!

Forgive me bloggers for I have sinned...

Mimi's poem

The 'We Deserve It Dividend'

Mixed feelings

Wha???

Prayers please

Frugal Franny Friday

Who?

Spellcheck is my friend

Weekend events

Don't forget about the kids!

Walking in the king castle.

Bear with me...

Hey Jereth, blow a bubble my way will ya?

100 things part 3

Do not throw the cat!!!

Just stay away from that dryer lint frugal franny!

Stairs & bedding & closets & rods & kids...oh my!

*Snort!*

I shoulda been Greek!

Or I'll give you something to cry about!

"Mom, can we just go home?"

Awww, shucks George, thanks!

Just don't give me the finger!

The kids - oh, those dang kids!

Milk toast baby

Love me just a little

Thank you, thank you & a million thanks to you!

Prayers pretty please

Adah on wildlife, bike savings & my kitty blogs in his sleep.

Much ado about...

Lather, rinse, repeat.

Doodolie-do

More 'news' & the weekend

Something 'fishy' about the news today

A buncha nonsense

4 year olds write the best lyrics

Whippin up some grub

Some forks & a Dixie wanna-be

The great bathroom adventure

100 things, part 2

Whip it good!

If I were Catholic I'd say like 900 hail Mary's.

A fabulous day in 12 easy steps

Please care

100 things, part 1

The big boy's new toy

Princess charming

Sacrificial love

101

A mamma's pride

The imagination of kids or planes, trains & automobiles

In which I climb out of my culinary rut

I've been known as sweet, tart & always fruity...what am I?

Warrior princess Kennedy

Prayers needed!

Yee-haw, I'm outie-here

Love those 80's

Happy kids = happy mom!

Summertime

The weekend, a birthday & BBB day 3-4

Some people will stoop to anything!

Sam on kissing

Snort!

Warninghusband rant in progressWarning