Day 391 - Overdue

Luke decided today that he wanted to get a haircut. After school, we drove straight to the nearest $4.99 haircut joint and got it done, no hesitations.

Before. Wavy. Wild. Rock-star.

In the chair ordering up a short cut he can "brush forward".

The end product plus some chocolate pudding face.
5 pounds lighter, ya think?

Day 383 - I'll Figure it out Later - Whew!

I'm behind. Way. Behind.

Things have been beyond busy.

Mostly, I have been busy being the "co-chair" of the school carnival (which was yesterday, which is why I have time today to actually write a bit here.)

"Co-chair" is how to passive-aggressively say, I did way more than 50%.

"Co-chair" also means I don't have any power and couldn't do anything other than "this is the way we've always done it."

"Co-chair" means you "get" to do everything the other person doesn't want to.

"Co-chair" means you have to communicate with another person over every little decision, yet it is extremely hard because they don't return your calls or e-mails for weeks.

So, "co-chair" was a pretty sucky job.

And it shouldn't have been, because the school carnival is such an iconic part of my childhood. (Except for that year that I missed it since I had the chicken pox.)

So, for anyone that has been around me the last few weeks - I'm sorry that I complained about every last detail of carnival hell. I have not been pleasant. (Plus, I've had strep throat.)

I'd like to find my smile again in the near future.

Day 382 - Food Revolution

Last night I stayed up so late watching TV. I got sucked into Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. I loved it. I'm hooked. I'm a sucker for British accents, but the message was even more captivating.

Fast forward to today - my day with no kids and extra time to prep a good nutritious meal. It didn't go as planned...the chicken wasn't thawed so it took forever to cook. By the time it was ready, Maria had already devoured the left over Kraft Mac & Cheese, and Luke had a peanut butter and jelly. {Disclaimer - I only use 1 Tb. of butter and not the whole seasoning packet in the mac & cheese. And the jam is homemade by us...raspberry freezer jam - super low sugar.}

The chicken dish will make a lovely dinner for tomorrow.


I took some nibbles and it was scrumptious. Healthy? It's relative. It's homemade and doesn't have a million scary foreign ingredients in it. Maybe Jamie would think it was a step in the right direction.

Chicken Angelo

Ingredients

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
• 12 ounces Muenster cheese, sliced
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Rinse chicken breasts and pat dry. Dip chicken breasts in egg, then roll in bread crumbs to coat. Lay in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. Layer cheese on top of chicken. Spread soup on top of cheese. Bake covered in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake another 20 to 30 minutes more, until juices run clear.

Days 380 & 381 - Weekend

We bought Chris a plane ticket so he could come home this weekend. (Do you know it costs $25 a bag on United Airlines? Insane! You'd think you'd give a guy with a sea bag a deal...)

He came especially for the kid's Odyssey of the Mind performance. Glad he saw it because the kids did a fantastic job - the best they've ever done. It was months of work boiled down to a 5 minute performance. I am now free of any after school obligations!! Yippee!!

The OM problem this year was "Surprise Party." The group had to give a surprise party for something that doesn't usually have one. Then they had to give that person 3 gifts that fit the type of party. They also had to make noisemakers and a song.

Luke and Maria's group were things in a closet. Luke was a pair of pants. Other kids were things like shirts, underwear, socks, and shoes. Maria was a dog, and a little girl was a cat.

After the pants get scratched by the cat (because of a dog chasing it), the other members of the closet throw it a surprise party for getting worn for the first time. They gave the pants a belt, a patch, and an iron. The noise makers were made from hangers, buttons, and safety pins. The kids had to do everything themselves, from brainstorming the idea, writing the dialog, making the costumes, and background, and then of course, performing it. Well done everyone!

So, back to Chris being home.

This weekend, because he was home, I got out of:

changing at least 2 dirty diapers
plunging one toilet
changing one light bulb
taking out batteries out of an annoying toy
driving
folding 1/2 of the laundry
some dishes

However, I did miss my chance to sleep in, and take a long shower. I will have to wait until next weekend I guess. That's when he will be flying back again. (I hope he brings carry-on luggage this time!)

Days 376-379 - Knee Deep

I'm still here. Well, in body - not in mind. Because I have officially crossed over to the insane way of life.

This week I've been so busy with school carnival planning, Odyssey of the Mind dress rehearsal shuttling and costume making, basketball pool hustling, getting 84 baby things into a local consignment sale, and then the normal cooking, cleaning, laundry sort of thing.

So, this is the last place I've been. But after all of this craziness goes away, I'll be back.

Days 374 & 375 - Another Bout of Funk

I can't seem to snap out of my grumpy mood lately. The last few days have been surrounded by stress (about silly things), poop (and other various messes), and death (a husband of a teacher at school). Pile on a load of various aches and pains, zero weight loss, and a complete lack of sleep and you have one cranky me.

Hopefully the sun will come back out to play and lift the funk.

April will be better.

Days 372 & 373 - Ewww

There is something stinky in Luke's room.

I can't unclog the toilet. I've been working on it for 2 days. (Thank goodness we have 2 others.)

I just realized I haven't taken a shower in 48 hours.

I've been cleaning all morning and the house is still a mess.

{Hurry home honey. Things are going downhill fast.}

Days 370 & 371 - That's Lucky

Yesterday morning I had my usual Wednesday tennis and adult chat time at the gym. I wasn't in too big of a hurry to get home because I knew the cleaning lady would still be there finishing up. (Wednesdays are always my favorite days of the week.)

When I finally returned home, the cleaning lady said that the kids' school was trying to get a hold of me because Luke was sick. Uh-oh. Bad mom.

I zipped back out to pick up the boy with the 99 degree fever who had been waiting on me for 2 hours. Oops.

The fever went away quickly, and he was fairly perky (but bored) for the rest of the day. But, all day I thought ahead to today...do I send him or not? The policy is "fever free for 24 hours." Hmmm...that's going to be a close call.

Luck was on my side today. I looked out the window and saw a nice thick 2 hour delay layer of fog out there. I flipped on the TV to confirm and (yippee!) there was a delay! So, that meant when I sent him to school at 10:30 it was exactly 24 hours. Perfect. I love how things just work out sometimes.

Day 369 - Ache

In all of the history of canker sores, I have hosted the most painful one ever the last few days. This thing has literally hit a nerve. Thankfully, Chris hooked me up with some super powered ibuprofen that took the edge off the last few days. Those also came in extra handy today with the mother of all headaches that had her way with me. I think headaches are in the air today as some of my favorite people have suffered from them. Too much sun perhaps??

Day 366 - 368 - The Weekend

Chris wanted to come home this weekend for our anniversary even though it was an 8 hour drive on Friday and an 8 hour drive back on Sunday. So it was short and sweet, but totally worth it.

First he brought me chocolate covered strawberries. They were for sure plumped up with steroids...look at these crazy things. They took about 4 bites each to devour. But they were perfect.


Then he played with the kids. Helicopter time with Luke and girly time with Maria.


My favorite part of the weekend was our annual trip to the Melting Pot. I never get tired of that place, even though I still have to cook my own food. At least I don't have to do the dishes there.

After Chris left on Sunday, Luke lost his other front tooth. Now he talkth hilariouthly. Not an "s" sound to be made.


Today I took the kids to a local museum which was a lot of fun. (I'm glad I forgot my camera, because both of them were having serious bad hair days.) Luke reads everything now, so he soaks up so much more than he used to. We get to take our time now because of that.

So that was our weekend, plus one. Back to the grind tomorrow.

Day 365 - A Year Has Come and Gone

It's hard to believe that a year has come and gone already. To me, it now seems like a blink of an eye, but to the kids it must feel like an eternity. A year is more than 1/2 of Elise's whole life, and 1/5 of Maria's.

But we are still here, still standing, still functioning.

There are so many things that have helped me get through this past year without too much misery. So, I made a list - one of my favorite things to do. (Insert drum roll...)

#5 The Computer - This little piece of gear has kept me connected to the outside world for the past year. It's been a good addiction, I mean, distraction. Having cyber-friends is a good thing.

# 4 The Extras - I've been fortunate to get to have Elise go to day care once a week. That gave me a day to get things done, like grocery shop, go to the doctor/dentist, or splurge and take a nap. Elise is also benefiting by being in a structured social setting. The other extra (best thing ever) is our cleaning lady. Although, within 24 hours there is not much evidence that she's been here, I do appreciate not having to clean toilets. I'm too spoiled now...will Chris be able to take over the duties?

#3 The Family - Always willing and able to babysitting even though they live hours away.

#2 The Kids - Life would be pretty boring without them. Who needs sleeping in anyways?

#1 The Gym - Biggest savior ever. Going there and beating out my frustrations, spending time on me, and being able to talk to real live grown ups...it's a wonder I didn't live there. Plus, there is a hot tub. And showers...ones where I don't have little people trying to interrupt me.

2 more months of this. Thankfully Chris' visits are more frequent now and the weather is starting to break. Hibernation season is almost over! Then life can get back to "normal."

Day 364 - Happy Anniversary

10 years ago, on a sunny warm day like today, I married Chris. Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart.

My present to you is to share the 10 songs from the past 10 years that make me think of you when I hear them. Enjoy! I think they will put a smile on your face like they did mine.

yellow

sabotage

peaches

ode to my family

fade into you

guerilla radio

spoonman

the man comes around

hotel yorba

cowboy take me away

Day 300something - Are You Smarter Than A 1st Grader?

Luke is getting too smart. Smart in that I have to run to Google many times a day. Way to make me feel like an idiot.

Here is a sample from today. I'll put my non-knowledge right out there for you.

Example #1

Luke: How can the dinosaurs have lived millions of years ago when it's 2010?

Me: The years have to do with Jesus. It's like positive and negative numbers. People have been around a million years, but some lived before Jesus and some lived after - like the Romans...who lived in say, 900 BC.

Luke: How did they know they were living in 900 BC when Jesus hadn't been born yet? What numbers were the years back then?

Me: I'm going to have to Google that.

Example #2

While reading a page out of a dinosaur book it mentioned that a somethingasaurus was 20 tons. Luke asked me how much that weighed. I tried to channel 6th grade math...but I couldn't blow the dust off that one. 2000 lbs. x ton or 4000 lbs. x ton. "I'm going to have to Google that."

Then he broke out into the diarrhea song, and all was balanced again.

Day 300something - I Survived

I just survived

a party

that was 3 hours long

for 75 boy wrestlers under the age of 10

and their families

at a bowling alley

that doesn't serve drinks

but plays a lot of Lady Gaga songs meaning a medley of "Poker Face" and "Bad Romance" will be living in my head the rest of the night

along with a killer headache

and sheer exhaustion.

But, the kids had fun.

Luke got his trophy.



They got to dance, bowl, and do the "YMCA."

Just a word of caution...it's a full moon out there. Be wary of crazy kids on slush puppy sugar highs.