Yeah. I got nothing.
Wait, not true.
I have a 2 yo you loves to take the poop out of his diaper and bring it to me.
I have a 4 yo who is doing great in school scholastically but is unable to settle down and behave.
I have a 15 yo who just took the PSAT test today.... and makes me feel old.
I have a husband who is pretty fab but NOT HERE. These 12 - 14 hour days are killing me.... and him!
I have a broken AC unit in my living room, a toilet that has been running for 4 days and a living room overhead light that decided it was on strike this morning.
I have dirty laundry, clean laundry and wrinkled laundry awaiting my attention.
I have to do lists and menu plans and coupon clipping and ten million other house wifely things to take care of.
I have a NEED.... desperate and unattainable.... for a stiff drink....
It's been one of those days, folks. Time to go play in the rain, eat ice cream and jump on the bed. I think I am tired of being an adult today!!!!!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Is It Monday Again???
This weekend flew by. The boys were typical overactive and rambunctious boys and kept us hopping! So, with no more than a blink of an eye, here I am back at Monday again! Today's post may be kind of long, so hold onto your hats!
I had to attend a nutrition class today as part of a new WIC program. For those who do not know, WIC (Women, Infants and Children) is a food program geared to help out low income families and feed young children healthy food. They have made some major changes in the food packages we receive each month and have instituted mandatory nutrition classes every three months. It wasn't a big deal, only a 30 minute class. Today they talked about Fiber and how important it can be. I honestly did not learn anything new but several other women int he class seemed to. So, it is a good thing!
The new food package that we recived today was great! It includes a choice of 3 of the following: Fresh fruits and vegetables (choice of bags of apples, oranges, sweet potatoes or carrots) and canned fruit and vegetables (choice of 2 cans of diced tomatoes, green beans, peaches and pears, maybe more) , a choice of either whole wheat bread, brown rice or tortillas, a choice of cheese (American, string, Cheddar and others), a choice of cereals (grits, oatmeal and various healthy cold cereals) a choice of peanut butter or dried peas or beans, shelf stable milk, eggs and juices. They only had apples available this month for fresh fruits, though.
So, we get a food package for each of the boys. We ended up with two cases of milk, enough apple juice concentrate to make about 4 gallons of juice, 8 juice boxes, a package of string cheese, a package of American slices, 2 cartons of eggs, 6 boxes of Kashi Mighty Bites cereal (LOVE this!), 2 bags of apples, 2 cans of green beans, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, 2 cans of peaches, 2 cans of pears, 2 jars of peanut butter, 2 bags of brown rice and 2 loaves of whole wheat bread. I felt like I had gone shopping! What a great blessing WIC is to our family. Honestly, it is so helpful when it comes to stretching our grocery budget. Next month, I plan to get more fresh veggies and fruits rather than canned. And more bread since that is generally more expensive to buy than rice is.
Anyway. If you or someone you know is pregnant, breastfeeding or has a child under 5 years old, WIC can be helpful. It never hurts to apply! Not everyone who receives WIC is low income, some people have other risk factors that make them eligible.
So, after I finished with my WIC appointment, I did my menu planning. I have NO money to do any shopping this week. AT all. So, everything on this week's menu has to be made from things in my pantry and freezer. Hopefully it all turns out wonderfully!
Monday - Pork Chops with Creamy Orzo
Tuesday - Homemade baked beans with whole wheat biscuits
Wednesday - Spaghetti Pie and salad
Thursday - Curried Beef and Apple Couscous
Friday - Leftovers
Saturday - Red Beans and brown rice with Cajun sausage
I am participating in the 30-Day Encouragement Challenge over at Laughing Family. It is a challenge geared towards enhancing and enriching a marriage. As part of the challenge, I am supposed to say no negative things about my husband for the next 30 days. And am also supposed to say one positive thing about AND to him each day. I will be posting a positive message about my husband here on the blog each day that I blog over the next month. Since so many of my posts do complain about him and his foibles, I figured it was only fair to share the good things as well!
So, today's Encoragement is: I love that my husband will eat whatever I put in front of him! He never complains, he never turns his nose up and he rarely eats only one serving of anything I cook! This is a wonderful thing for me as I learn to cook new foods and experiment with recipes that do not always turn out as I anticipate! Thank you, honey, for always being willing to be my guinea pig!
I had to attend a nutrition class today as part of a new WIC program. For those who do not know, WIC (Women, Infants and Children) is a food program geared to help out low income families and feed young children healthy food. They have made some major changes in the food packages we receive each month and have instituted mandatory nutrition classes every three months. It wasn't a big deal, only a 30 minute class. Today they talked about Fiber and how important it can be. I honestly did not learn anything new but several other women int he class seemed to. So, it is a good thing!
The new food package that we recived today was great! It includes a choice of 3 of the following: Fresh fruits and vegetables (choice of bags of apples, oranges, sweet potatoes or carrots) and canned fruit and vegetables (choice of 2 cans of diced tomatoes, green beans, peaches and pears, maybe more) , a choice of either whole wheat bread, brown rice or tortillas, a choice of cheese (American, string, Cheddar and others), a choice of cereals (grits, oatmeal and various healthy cold cereals) a choice of peanut butter or dried peas or beans, shelf stable milk, eggs and juices. They only had apples available this month for fresh fruits, though.
So, we get a food package for each of the boys. We ended up with two cases of milk, enough apple juice concentrate to make about 4 gallons of juice, 8 juice boxes, a package of string cheese, a package of American slices, 2 cartons of eggs, 6 boxes of Kashi Mighty Bites cereal (LOVE this!), 2 bags of apples, 2 cans of green beans, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, 2 cans of peaches, 2 cans of pears, 2 jars of peanut butter, 2 bags of brown rice and 2 loaves of whole wheat bread. I felt like I had gone shopping! What a great blessing WIC is to our family. Honestly, it is so helpful when it comes to stretching our grocery budget. Next month, I plan to get more fresh veggies and fruits rather than canned. And more bread since that is generally more expensive to buy than rice is.
Anyway. If you or someone you know is pregnant, breastfeeding or has a child under 5 years old, WIC can be helpful. It never hurts to apply! Not everyone who receives WIC is low income, some people have other risk factors that make them eligible.
So, after I finished with my WIC appointment, I did my menu planning. I have NO money to do any shopping this week. AT all. So, everything on this week's menu has to be made from things in my pantry and freezer. Hopefully it all turns out wonderfully!
Monday - Pork Chops with Creamy Orzo
Tuesday - Homemade baked beans with whole wheat biscuits
Wednesday - Spaghetti Pie and salad
Thursday - Curried Beef and Apple Couscous
Friday - Leftovers
Saturday - Red Beans and brown rice with Cajun sausage
I am participating in the 30-Day Encouragement Challenge over at Laughing Family. It is a challenge geared towards enhancing and enriching a marriage. As part of the challenge, I am supposed to say no negative things about my husband for the next 30 days. And am also supposed to say one positive thing about AND to him each day. I will be posting a positive message about my husband here on the blog each day that I blog over the next month. Since so many of my posts do complain about him and his foibles, I figured it was only fair to share the good things as well!
So, today's Encoragement is: I love that my husband will eat whatever I put in front of him! He never complains, he never turns his nose up and he rarely eats only one serving of anything I cook! This is a wonderful thing for me as I learn to cook new foods and experiment with recipes that do not always turn out as I anticipate! Thank you, honey, for always being willing to be my guinea pig!
Friday, October 9, 2009
Home Management and Company Girl Coffee!
Welcome and thanks for stopping by to any of you Company Girls who amble over! Hunker down and grab some chamomile tea. The coffee is on hiatus from the Castle right now, I am trying to wean off of caffeine! Plus, you know, chamomile.... all comforting and soothing and stuff. With the way things have been around here lately, that is just what I need!
The kids are being typical kids, one of them acting out in school, one playing with poop and the eldest having moments of true anxiety. "Gah! Senior next year! Gah! College! Gah! Senior project! Gah! OMG! Gah!" And other teenagerly angsty type pronouncements abound here lately! LOL For more from that quarter, feel free to check out either one of The Girl's blogs. She writes over at The Delusional and at As The Plot Thickens. She also owns and moderates a writer's forum at Quill and Ink. She rocks pretty hardcore, really. Even if I do complain about the teenage crap. She just needs some time to get past all of the hormonal and horrible 15 - 21 year old horror. I'm sure you all remember that time!
I have spent my day today doing typical household chores, In between the dirty clothes, dishes and changing diapers, I have been working on setting up a Home Management Binder. I really hope that I can train myself to use it because I think it will be a real help in getting me organized. If I use it. Big if. I always have big plans and usually end up having problems with the follow through. Any of y'all use a binder/ planner to stay organized and on task? Any advice on setting it up and remembering to use it?
I have plans to try to plant some fall crops in my garden... since we stay warm here for so long, I am hoping I might get some actual veggies to grow! The garden was eaten by bugs and killed by horrendously hot weather this Summer. Right now, the only things living in there are some red and yellow peppers, some cucumber plants I planted (again) a few weeks ago and some butternut squash that I planted a few weeks ago. I have some spinach seeds and I may have some green beans up in my gardening cabinet.... I hope they produce something before we get frost here! The weather does not usually get to freezing until December, sometimes close to Christmas around here. Fingers crossed! I certainly want cooler weather, but i also want some actual food to be produced from my garden this year!!
The Girl just got home and informed me that she got a 71 on her 9 weeks test in AP US History. That means she is bringing home a C for the 9 weeks. We had told her that if she brought home a C that she would be grounded. But, she did work hard to bring her grade up from earlier in the 9 weeks. I really am not sure if I should ground her or not. Perhaps just some slight restrictions? Or maybe having her stay after for one day each week and do extra work in class. Her teacher is available every day for extra help/ extra credit work. I will have to discuss with my husband exactly how we should handle this. Her on restrictions from her laptop is basically punishing ME since I will have to listen to her complaining! LOL
Seriously, if this is the worst I have to deal with from her this year, I will be a happy camper. But don't tell her that, 'kay? (Jenna, you did not read that!)
I hope everyone has had a fabulous week and is healthy and happy. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you stop by again soon!!
The kids are being typical kids, one of them acting out in school, one playing with poop and the eldest having moments of true anxiety. "Gah! Senior next year! Gah! College! Gah! Senior project! Gah! OMG! Gah!" And other teenagerly angsty type pronouncements abound here lately! LOL For more from that quarter, feel free to check out either one of The Girl's blogs. She writes over at The Delusional and at As The Plot Thickens. She also owns and moderates a writer's forum at Quill and Ink. She rocks pretty hardcore, really. Even if I do complain about the teenage crap. She just needs some time to get past all of the hormonal and horrible 15 - 21 year old horror. I'm sure you all remember that time!
I have spent my day today doing typical household chores, In between the dirty clothes, dishes and changing diapers, I have been working on setting up a Home Management Binder. I really hope that I can train myself to use it because I think it will be a real help in getting me organized. If I use it. Big if. I always have big plans and usually end up having problems with the follow through. Any of y'all use a binder/ planner to stay organized and on task? Any advice on setting it up and remembering to use it?
I have plans to try to plant some fall crops in my garden... since we stay warm here for so long, I am hoping I might get some actual veggies to grow! The garden was eaten by bugs and killed by horrendously hot weather this Summer. Right now, the only things living in there are some red and yellow peppers, some cucumber plants I planted (again) a few weeks ago and some butternut squash that I planted a few weeks ago. I have some spinach seeds and I may have some green beans up in my gardening cabinet.... I hope they produce something before we get frost here! The weather does not usually get to freezing until December, sometimes close to Christmas around here. Fingers crossed! I certainly want cooler weather, but i also want some actual food to be produced from my garden this year!!
The Girl just got home and informed me that she got a 71 on her 9 weeks test in AP US History. That means she is bringing home a C for the 9 weeks. We had told her that if she brought home a C that she would be grounded. But, she did work hard to bring her grade up from earlier in the 9 weeks. I really am not sure if I should ground her or not. Perhaps just some slight restrictions? Or maybe having her stay after for one day each week and do extra work in class. Her teacher is available every day for extra help/ extra credit work. I will have to discuss with my husband exactly how we should handle this. Her on restrictions from her laptop is basically punishing ME since I will have to listen to her complaining! LOL
Seriously, if this is the worst I have to deal with from her this year, I will be a happy camper. But don't tell her that, 'kay? (Jenna, you did not read that!)
I hope everyone has had a fabulous week and is healthy and happy. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you stop by again soon!!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
The Soundtrack of My Life
I have been very intensely into music lately. And as I have found new artists and revisited old favorites I have noticed a trend. All of these songs that I have been obsessing over lately seem to be reflecting some of the best and worst times of my life. It made me feel like I must be writing a screenplay for the movie of my life! So, for any who feel like exploring my life through music.... click on any of the below links to be taken to a song that reflects a time and place in my life. Let me know what you think.....
Miss Invisible by Marie Digby
Dream by Priscilla Ahn
32 Flavors by Ani DiFranco
Girlfriend by Marie Digby
Not A Pretty Girl by Ani DiFranco
Hand In My Pocket by Alanis Morissette
Daddy I'm Fine by Sinead O'Connor
You outta know by Alanis Morrissette
Survive by Lacuna Coil
Just The Two Of Us by Wil Smith
Where I stood by Missy Higgins
Near to You by A Fine Frenzy
Heavens A Lie by Lacuna Coil
No More Drama by Mary J. Blige
Unfold by Marie Digby
Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson
Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield
Tri Me by Abby Ahmad
The Healing Room by Sinead O'Connor
Exactly by Amy Steinberg
Dream by Priscilla Ahn
32 Flavors by Ani DiFranco
Girlfriend by Marie Digby
Not A Pretty Girl by Ani DiFranco
Hand In My Pocket by Alanis Morissette
Daddy I'm Fine by Sinead O'Connor
You outta know by Alanis Morrissette
Survive by Lacuna Coil
Just The Two Of Us by Wil Smith
Where I stood by Missy Higgins
Near to You by A Fine Frenzy
Heavens A Lie by Lacuna Coil
No More Drama by Mary J. Blige
Unfold by Marie Digby
Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson
Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield
Tri Me by Abby Ahmad
The Healing Room by Sinead O'Connor
Exactly by Amy Steinberg
Monday, October 5, 2009
Turd Crayons of Doom
It has certainly been a craptastic couple of weeks here at the Castle! We all have been sick, Jenna more than anyone else. When I took her to the doctor, they tested her for strp and for the swine flu. Both tests came back negative. Then, 6 days later, they called me and told me they had overlooked her test results and she was positive for strep. So, both boys went in for tests. All showing negative at this time. But I am not sure how much I trust their lab right now! AND, I am pretty sure the swine flu test was not accurate. We had classic symptoms.... and now hubby is sick. Yuck.
So, overall, we have just been so blech that blogging was at the bottom of my list of things to do.
And then today, my youngest child did something so gross that I just had to share it with you!
He made a turd crayon. Really. His older brother decided to shit on the floor. I know. Gross. His potty training is doing great with pee but not so hot in the poop department! Anyway... Malachai picked up the turd, rolled it into a ball and came to find me. He then proceeded to draw on my arm with the turd ball. Yes, I freaked as soon as I realized what he was doing. Yes, I then proceeded to disinfect my arm, his hands and anything else I could reach!
Aren't you glad I shared that with you?
Promise to do better blogging now that I am feeling better!
So, overall, we have just been so blech that blogging was at the bottom of my list of things to do.
And then today, my youngest child did something so gross that I just had to share it with you!
He made a turd crayon. Really. His older brother decided to shit on the floor. I know. Gross. His potty training is doing great with pee but not so hot in the poop department! Anyway... Malachai picked up the turd, rolled it into a ball and came to find me. He then proceeded to draw on my arm with the turd ball. Yes, I freaked as soon as I realized what he was doing. Yes, I then proceeded to disinfect my arm, his hands and anything else I could reach!
Aren't you glad I shared that with you?
Promise to do better blogging now that I am feeling better!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)