Non flowing conversation.

Sam: Mom, bad news. I broke my backpack zipper.
Me: Huh. We'll just look downstairs for another one.
Sam: Mom, guess what. I'm lucky. I only have 2 homework papers.
Me: Great! You'll fly right through them.
Sam: Mom, guess what!?! (this one was said with a brilliant smile). I just counted to 210 while going to bathroom. By 5's!
Me: Wow! Great job!
Sam: Mom? Can I have a W.H.O.L.E. cupcake for dessert tonight?
Me: sure.
Sam: For snack can I have peanut butter on strawberry frosted mini wheats?
Me: Ummm....if you want to?
Sam: Will I die? If I mix them, will they make poison?
Me: No.
Sam: Do you want some? Have you ever tried it?
Me: Uhh...no thanks.

1 pair of white socks.
1 pair of wool socks.
1 pair of slippers.
1 pair of long johns.
1 pair of sweat pants.
1 long john top.
1 thick sweat shirt.
1 button up heavy shirt.
1 fleece blanket.
1 rocking chair by
1 lit fireplace.
1 broken furnace.
1 adventerous night!

test 3

Last night I made this. Warm snow pea and chicken salad. It could've used a bit less of the sauce (tahini, light soy, rice vingar, and sesame oil (but i used olive oil as I had no sesame oil)). It took forever to slice the snow peas into thin pieces, but Alina helped in putting them in the bowl (and eating the peas out of them). It was three out of four thumbs up. Sam didn't care for it. He said he liked broccoli better than this dish. I told him that was good to know as I'd make something with broccoli in it for the next dinner. His words, "I like this! Never mind!" I explained to him that it will give him lots of energy in gym.

Today he came home and said, "Mom, I'm glad I ate that last night! It gave me lots of energy in gym today. I ran one lap and ran out of gas, but I rested and filled right up again and I kept running and running!"

Can't beat that.. :)

Test one. test two.

A few weeks ago, I said that some new recipes were going to be whipped up in my kitchen. Two have taken place.

The first was taco's. I used this recipe for taco meat and this recipe for shells.

The seasoning for the meat was cumin, oregano and chili powder. Beats all the salt in a packet of seasoning (and was less expensive)! It was SO very yummy and so very good for you. I used ground chicken instead of ground beef. Threw in a can of diced tomatoes with chili's and that was it. Three out of four thumbs up (it was a bit too spicy for the princess).

The taco shells were corn tortilla's, with some olive oil sprayed on them, sprinkled with chili powder and laid over two grates on the oven rack and baked. Again, very yummy.

Second was Cucumber and Black-eyed Pea Salad. I was a bit skeptical about this one, but there was barely any left after the four of us were done with it. Cucumbers, black-eyed peas, red pepper, onions, black olives, feta cheese and an olive oil/lemon juice/oregano/ground pepper dressing. Four out of four thumbs up. I will definitely be making this again. Maybe throw in some cut up chicken breasts for some extra protein.

Tonight is either going to be Warm Snow Pea and Chicken Salad or Pasta with Creamy Mushroom Pea Sauce. Will give results after consumption.

memorieeeees....all alone in the moonliiiiight

This weekend we cleaned out our storage room. 1st off, how we've accumulated SO much since living here is beyond me. We've bought next to nothing, but yet still have so much STUFF! Ed's car is packed full and ready for a trip to Goodwill today. One of the many things I had to go through was a large bag of stuffed animals. Some I kept, some I packed in the car, some I gave to Alina. The hardest thing to get rid of was this:


I won this stuffed six foot neon pink flamingo at Cedar Point back in high school during the yearly youth group trip. I carried it on my shoulders around the park until we left. I've not been able to part with it. But now with having to think about packing our entire house and moving 2000 miles, I knew it was time to let it go. If you by chance want a six foot neon pink stuffed flamingo, let me know. Ed won't be going to Goodwill until this afternoon. Sigh....



I did, though, keep the baby neon stuffed pink flamingo and gave it to Alina.

A rare find!

I found a true treasure digging through an old box of stuff.
Circa 7th grade.

Jean's autograph book: Signed by other kids (a bunch of notebook paper stapled together to form a book)

Jean,
Good luck in the future and the guys! Don't wait for them go get'em! Make 'heart' not war! Nicki

Jean,
Hi. I hope you have a great summer. Maybe I will see you this summer. Well good luck with that boy of yours. bff. Karisa

Have a fun summer, good luck with the guys. Eric

Jean,
Have a great summer. I will never forget you and I will miss you. Call me every other weekend. Not on week days because I will be gone.

Jean,
Hi and bye! the year went so fast! Remember me when you're eating a banana! See ya in Big Bad 8th! Surfers smile sexy so smile surfers style. Roketa "Chaquita"

Jean,
B.Y.O.G. Bring your own gum. Chris

Hey Babe! Miss me! Love, Steve

Jean,
Have a great year in "88" and may the guys be with you! It's been fun this year being a friend of yours and have fun with Eric B! Call me if you want. Ryan

And I didn't include the "explicit" ones as who knows what kind of people I'd get reading this!

So there you have it. I must've been guy crazy in 7th grade and I must have had a GREAT summer with all those well wishes.

changed my mind

Today I went to work on my list of to-do's. One was to scratch the tape off the handrail and sand it a bit so it can be painted. It's full of black marks, paint, indentations, scratches, gouges and you name it. A thought flashed through my brain. "I wonder if I could sand all this stuff out?" So I got the tape off and started sanding. And kept sanding. And more sanding. Oh....the beautiful wood underneath the who knows how many years of use. Luckily I stopped and told Ed over IM and his sensible brain suggested I stop and finish painting the last coat on that wall so no paint drips on the newly sanded part.

I know it's just a handrail, but with not having really re-done any woodwork before, this is very exciting for me. I started having flashes of scouring estates sales and finding gems to refinish. This is very, very scary mind you. A new hobby is a dangerous thing...

Now I need to go blow my nose to get all the sand-dust out.

New recipes

This week I'm going to be trying some new recipes that I found in the Eating Well magazine I was receiving.

Cucumber and black eye pea salad.
Home made taco's with baked corn tortilla's and meat with spices out of the cupboard instead of out of a packet.
Thai pizza.
Warm snow pea and chicken salad.

We'll see how each turns out. I'm excited as all contain lots of veggies and good-for-you ingredients. We'll see how the judges (aka husband, son and daughter) vote.

Tonight was a fast and super duper yummy meatless stewish type dish. Black beans (which the kids love), corn and diced tomatoes. I threw in some oregano, chili powder and cumin. Stirred it up and viola. Dinner.

what a 3 year old can teach you

So last night on the way to church, Alina was singing a make up song and Sam was talking to his Leapster in the backseat. I wasn't really paying any attention to what they were saying until I honed in to what Alina was actually singing. "I love being meeee!!!" over and over again. Then she said, "Mom! Say 'I love being me!!'". I aquiessed and then asked her if she loved being her. "Yes! Do you love being you Mom?" Ahhh....what a great question. I know the 'right' answer. But really, deep down? Do I love being me? How many times do I want to be like someone else? So many I've lost count. Why can't I be joyful for the way my Creator has made me? I'm not like any one else in the entire world. And yet I become dissatisfied with how He made me. Discontent that so and so is better at such and such a thing. How many times I say, "I'm not good enough." or "I wish I was...." In a way it's telling God that He didn't do a good enough job.

And an off shoot of that is what kind of example am I setting for her? If I'm not satisfied with who I am, will she be satisfied with who she growing up in the world we live in? More than likely no.

So thank you my sweet princess for the 2x4 in the head to knock some sense into me that I need to LOVE BEING ME!