For Just One Week

Well, it was a messy goal and I did miss two days, but otherwise it was a success. Sweet Terror and I made blueberry muffins, chocolate chip cookies, no bake cookies (is that cheating?), lemon bars, and meringue cookies. We had a lot of fun together and she was so excited every time we started a new recipe. My floor is sticky, and I think I have a cavity, but it was worth it for all the times she said, "Thanks for letting me help you mom, I love to cook because I'm a great helper. Ooooo, the sugar is so sparkly and pretty, mom."

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For this next week I'm going to step waaaaay out of my comfort zone. WAY out. I hate talking on the phone. I hate it so much that I would rather be seen as rude than return a phone call. It is a bad thing. I talk too fast, I interrupt, I laugh too loud, and I never know quite how to end it. So, for my next challenge I'm going to call someone special, besides my sister and my mom, everyday. The people will be (in no particular order):

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Tiffany

Grandpa

Jami

Wendy

Laura S. T.

Rachel S. P.

and Rochelle E.

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There are many more people who could easily be on this list but I feel that these 7 people are those who have gone out of their way to reach out to me but who I have been too timid to reach back to, and they all mean a lot to me. Hopefully this goal will help me become a bit more comfortable with using modern technology. Just don't expect me to use the video phone on my computer anytime soon. That is whole other ball of insecurities.

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What can you make yourself do For Just One Week?

Pardon Me Boys....

is that the Pennsylvania Station?

It was a cold, windy day at Gettysburg Field. We climbed this watch tower to look over the battlefield and spent the rest of the day laughing about how out of shape we are. Nothing like climbing 3 flights of stairs to show your friend the real you. =)

Everyone I see asks me, "So, how was your trip?" And I smile, and I sigh, and I say, "It was absolutely wonderful." It really was. It was also surreal, sad, fulfilling, validating, fun, educational, and beyond expectation. It was not your typical meet and greet, that's for sure.

On the plane I should have been all giddy anticipation, but really I was a tight ball of nerves. I couldn't help but wonder, "Will Tiffany like me after all these years? Will we really have anything in common, will our personalities clash?" Carrying my extremely heavy carry-on through the airport I heard a little squeal before I even saw her. Before she can even reach me I scream, "You are my size!" (After the onslaught of puberty it was obvious that Tiffany and I would no longer be exact twins because she was much teenier than me. But apparently sometime in her 20s she grew an extra 2 inches and suddenly we are close to the same height. What happened to my "Little Tiffany?") Then I pick her up in a tight hug and we jump around like school girls while her husband makes it obvious that he thinks we are crazy. And we are. Crazy in love with each other, even after all these years.

I had to apologize to Tiffany because I was finally willing to admit why we had fallen so far apart from each other. It had nothing to do with her and everything to do with my insane jealousy and insecurities. You see, when I was 15-16 my older, very pretty, sister went to live with Tiffany's family for a year. I had issues with this sister... lots of issues, and I don't think she even knew I had issues with her. It was the typical ugly sister/pretty sister psycho-mess. I felt that she took everything away from me as a kid, but really she didn't. I just never spoke up for myself and she was kind of the squeaky wheel. So I wove this bizarre internal reality in my head where people could either be on my side or her side. Well then my dad got sick with cancer so my sister came back home and then Tiffany came to visit for Thanksgiving (My father's last Thanksgiving) and, can you believe it, she was nice to my sister. NICE I tell you!!! So in my twisted head (which was in terrible shape going through puberty and the slow loss of my father) she had jumped ship and swam over to the dark side. How dare she. How dare she have an inside joke with my sister after living together for a whole year. HOW DARE SHE! I was polite but suspicious of her the rest of that visit. Bless her heart, she had no idea and just assumed I was being quiet out of sadness for my father. And then for years I just assumed she was one of "those" kind of girls. You know... "pretty."

But she wasn't, and she isn't. Oh, don't get me wrong, she is indeed pretty. In fact she is cute, hot, gorgeous, and skinny all rolled into one. I could hate her just for the fact that she's had 4 kids and no stretch marks alone. But I can't. And you couldn't either if you met her. She is just too real, too humble, too loving to ever make you think of her as a "pretty." By the way, I love my sister and am so over the whole my side her side thing... really I am. =)

And so we talked. We talked and talked and talked and filled each other in on all the missing and unknown pieces of our lives. And I was shocked. Shocked because I had always just assumed that we led parallel lives, that we had the same upbringing, that I knew everything about her childhood. But I didn't. We went through many similar things in life but if you take my life's troubles and magnify them by 1000 then you have Tiffany's life. And I never knew. This is another thing I love so much about my "little Tiffany." She was always a small child, she was always kind of quiet, and she had an adorable shy little laugh, more of a giggle really. And she grew into a gorgeous, confident, sassy woman, and a caring mother, who only shows the slightest signs of the trials she has had in life. And she can cook! Her kids thought I was joking when I said I would eat her Gumbo for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Well, I proved them wrong. And she is a fantastic artist and photographer. In fact, if you take all my talents and magnify them by 1000 then you have Tiffany. I'm serious.

I fell in love with her kids who are perfect doppelgangers for my kids. She is only missing a Cheeks and I'm missing a cute little dog or we would be perfectly matched. And I even got along with her husband, surprise, surprise. (Adam, you know I love you.)

(On the Gettysburg look out tower: Lillian (a female Pablo), Tori (a tiny version of Cookie), little Sabrina who can almost out perform Sweet Terror, and Dillon who can melt a heart as fast as Monster Man and get in trouble just as fast too. I MISS YOU GUYS!!!)

There was never any awkwardness between us, and we kept saying there should be some, but there wasn't. We were perfectly content to be ourselves around each other and just love each other for who we are. See? I even let her see my MORNING FACE. GAAAAAAAAA!

(Here Tiffany and I are enjoying our very last day together by lazily staying in her super niiiiice bed all day. Ok, so really I stayed in bed and made Tiffany go through all her boxes showing me all her memory keepsakes. But ya gotta love a girl who doesn't mind hanging out in her jammies all day.)

The only down side to the whole trip was saying goodbye. I didn't expect it to be so hard. I clung to her like a little girl saying goodbye to her 6 year old best friend all over again. I sobbed like a little girl, too. Friends like us should never ever have to be apart, it just doesn't seem fair. I love you Tiffany, with all my heart. Please come see me soon.

Tiff and Me

She has come a long way from those chubby cheeks and little pony tails, hasn't she? This is my friend Tiffany and I love her to bits. We have spent every waking moment reliving old memories and getting caught up on each other's lives. I mentioned earlier that we were raised like twins and have a lot of those uncanny twin parallels in our lives so here is a list I'm making of all the things we've recently found we have in common:
1. We both were "waiting for missionaries" when we met and married our husbands.
2. We both skipped the dating period and had very short engagements to our husbands.
3. Ok, in order to avoid redundancy just pretend that each sentence following begins with, "We both..." have Registered Nurses for Mother-in-laws and husbands who work with computers.
4. Gave birth naturally.
5. Have a ten year old and an 8 year old (and the rest of our kids are very close in age)
6. Had to care for our families when our mothers were depressed (mine after my dad's death, and hers after her mom's divorce) and then chew our moms out for not doing their job.
7. Married at 19
8. Both movie fanatics (In a very big way).
9. We both struggle with changing out of our pajamas before our husbands get home from work.
10. We both have super smart 1st children and then learning disabled 2nd children.
11. We both like to look nice but don't think our lives need to revolve around, or be determined by our looks or fashion (this is unique for Tiffany in her family).
12. When Tiffany saw the lizard tattoo on my foot she started laughing because she has always wanted a lizard tattoo on her foot.

There are many more but I'm off to play so I will try to add to this list later. But the best part of all is that after 16 years apart we feel as comfortable with each other as if we were never apart.

I'm Leaving, On A Jet Plane

I have a very wonderful husband. My wonderful man is so wonderful that he is going to watch all 5 kids, by himself, for 5 days so that I can fly to Pennsylvania to stay with my oldest, dearest friend, Tiffany. He is so amazing that he let me do this on a mere whim. Tiffany and I haven't seen each other in 16 years and have had little contact in that time. A few weeks ago we were chatting on facebook and she mentioned that she missed me, and I realized how much I missed her, and then I was just daydreaming and looked at airline prices. The tickets were amazingly cheap, AMAZINGLY!!! It is cheaper for me to fly cross country than it is to fly to Idaho. I got excited and Mr. Hotness said yes (I LOVE YOU MR. HOTNESS) and then he said I should maximize my return by going without the baby and for staying as long as I could. Is he not the best??? No, you can't have him! He's mine forever, whether he likes it or not.

This is Tiffany and me when we were 2-3 years old. We were raised like twins, always getting matching haircuts, practically living at each other's houses. Her mom had no problem spanking me, heck, our moms would even nurse us interchangeably when babysitting us. When Tiffany turned 4 I was so distraught that we weren't 4 at the same time I convinced my mother to have my birthday 2 1/2 months early. When I was 6 and Tiffany had to move clear across the country to Pennsylvania I was sure my life would end, but we followed soon after to NY and were reconnected. When my dad died and my family moved back to Idaho I lost touch with Tiffany (I lost touch with a lot of people at that time) but every time we reconnect we are always amazed at how much we live our lives alike. I named one of my girls Lilliana and she named hers Lillian, we both chose to homeschool our children at various times, and we tend to have the same length hair whether really long or really short. I am so excited to see her and see what else we have in common and to strengthen that lifelong bond that we both believe has existed since before birth.

Oops, Mr. Hotness says it is time to go catch my plane. See you all later!

I Need More of These

Next time I'm just going to bring my camera and have a waiter take our photo while we are being silly because I've tried for 3 days to find a google image that would fit this post. Apparently only wrinkly old ladies or skinny, drunk (and sometimes bikini clad) models can be found when you image search "girls night out" or "laughing women." The closest I could come to thirty-something women, fully dressed, with motherly figures, non imbibing, and laughing together was this pic from a weight loss website. (Hmmmmm.) It's a great photo, but it just doesn't capture the level of frivolity and enjoyment we had. But then it is probably hard to capture a good photo of someone laughing so hard she sprays her friends with water after taking a drink. When someone looses their ability to control their fluids, you know you are having one heckuva good time, and I need more moments like that in my life.
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My friend, Hope, facebooked me to let me know that I had no choice, she was coming to get me. I love her for this because otherwise I would have just said I was too busy, too tired, and didn't have anything nice to wear. We met up with Lucy, The Duchess, 32 Flavors, Alisa and her new friend, Teresa at a nearby Cheesecake Factory. It started as a simple, innocent, moms night out, you know a bunch of moms who really needed to get out of the house and talk to other moms while consuming things that are definitely NOT on their diet plan. But before we were even seated at our table it was looking like something else. Instead of the cursory, "How is your husband's work/thesis/job hunt going?" or, "So, how are the kids?" we delved right into some

fun and funny topics, like the pasties in the new Coraline movie, and husband's opinions on circumcision. After being seated the conversation continued on to even better things such as unexpected lactation experiences, how we were taught the birds and the bees (everything from anatomical pop up books to brochures from the 1950's), and how much men really don't know about women before they get married, and all the things we have learned not to say in front of our kids and why.
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Oh yeah, this was some amazing girls talk, let me tell you! We were laughing so hard I felt no need to go to the gym next day because my abs were so sore. Towards the end of the night the tables around us started to empty and we all new why. Everyone that came in that place took one look at the loud and obnoxious mom table and promptly asked to be seated elsewhere. I seriously think we were being more annoying than a table full of screaming, food flinging, poopy diaper, toddlers. And the best part was that not a single one of us were drinking or on drugs. Apparently all we needed to loosen up and have so much fun was some good friends, a small taste of freedom, a lot of sleep deprivation, and the right subject matter.
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I seriously need more nights like this in my life.
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So, call some women up, they don't have to be best friends, tell them they have no choice, you are coming to get them, go out somewhere fun, talk about silly things, and laugh till your sides hurt, or something comes out your nose, and enjoy an amazing bond between women. Trust me, it is a beautiful thing.

Magic Munch

Dear Friend,
You knocked at my door knowing I desperately needed something to make me smile. With baby in hand I opened the door. You handed me two bags labeled Magic Munchy Popcorn, smiled at me, and left to get back to your family and busy life. I thought, "How sweet. Now, what is Magic Munchy Popcorn?" And as I walked away from the door and popped that first crunchy sweet bite in my mouth the tears began to pour. With each bite of Magic Munch more tears dripped from my chin onto my shirt. Tears of gratitude for the time that you took, for the dishes you sullied, for the drive to my house even though you have small children, for the sugar shock I'm now feeling, for the smile you gave me that didn't require me to say anything I didn't want to say, for not asking me "is there anything I can do?" so I didn't have to smile and lie. You did for me what I wish I would have done for you when you were having your very bad day(s). I can't thank you enough for giving me what I would never dare to ask for but secretly wanted, some special attention with no strings attached. Your Magic Munchy Popcorn worked its special magic and made me feel special. Thank you.

Now, I expect a recipe for this lovely sugar laden magic on your blog post haste! =)

And thanks to everyone else for the kind comments, the phone calls, and cookies. Blogging should have been invented years ago.

Purple Carrots

Blogging sometimes feels like a magic Genie in a lamp. Forget the Secret, I could send messages out into the universe all day and never see any results, but send a message out into the blogosphere and who knows what will show up at your door. I've been given so many wonderful things from the amazing women I blog with and yesterday was no exception. Yesterday I found a bag by my front door containing these rare jems: Purple, white, yellow, and orange carrots. A friend of mine mentioned that she grew them in her garden this year and I mentioned on her blog that Cookie and I had once read about and were dying to try multi colored carrots. Ding ding, nose twitch, wand swish, fold your arms and blink, bibbity bobbity boo and there they were, at my front door.

Now a person has to ask themselves, what kind of a person grows purple carrots? You will just have to find that out yourself by visiting 32 Flavors.

Thanks again, J, for the lovely carrots! The purple ones were not only the coolest but the yummiest. I ate 5 last night instead of dinner. =)

Prepare To Be Jealous

How do you totally surprise someone for their birthday? Act like you are going to totally surprise them for 4-6 years before you actually do. =)

WARNING: Despite years of my mother telling me it isn't nice to brag I'm about to brag my brains out here. If you don't like braggy people, please do not read this post and try to continue thinking of me as a humble person. Thank you.

For years now, Mr. Hotness has wanted to throw me a party or do something really cool for my birthday, but every year something got in his way: he forgot to plan ahead, we didn't have the money, or he just didn't know how to do it. So, I've had simple birthdays. Last year I opted to just stay home, watch SpongeBob, and eat cheesecake and pizza because having happy kids meant having a happy mommy. This year I turned 30 and Mr. Hotness kept telling me we had to do something big to celebrate (but he said the same thing when I was turning 29). I am so pregnant, my hair is so out of control, and my feet are so fat, that I really didn't feel like doing anything at all. I kept telling him I just wanted to see a movie, eat my favorite birthday dinner, and that was it (and I wasn't even expecting those to happen because we've had a tough time getting our babysitter now that she works). He kept telling me not to schedule anything on my birthday (just like he has for the past 6 years), but wouldn't tell me anything else.

My birthday comes and Mr. Hotness doesn't get up for work, so I figure he has taken the day off. I get up to make breakfast, school lunches, and to get the kids ready for school and the babysitter, while Mr. Hotness enjoys sleeping a little longer. I am serving the kids their french toast when Mr. Hotness comes out and says, "You haven't eaten breakfast, have you?!?!"


"No, not yet, why?"

"I'm not telling you why, just don't eat breakfast."

"Ooookay."

"What do you have planned for today?"

"Well, I'm taking the kids to school, then I have to drop the other kids off at the babysitter while I go to a doctor's appointment. Around 3 I will pick the kids up from school, and then I'm just going to enjoy my birthday."

"Why did you schedule a doctor appointment??? I told you not to schedule anything."

"Well, I didn't know you weren't going to work so I thought you meant not to schedule anything for the time that you are usually home."

"It's ok, this will still work."

"What will still work?"

"Nothing."

"Ooookaaaay."

Turns out he is taking me to breakfast. I think, "Aw, how sweet. This is my surprise." My friend was willing to watch the kids earlier so that we could eat before my appointment. I normally don't like going out for breakfast because breakfast is easy to make at home, but the place we went to actually served a fantastic breakfast. I had Swedish pancakes with loganberry butter and compote.

Then we picked up the kids and Mr. Hotness says, "Ok, now you get to choose between seeing Iron Man or going to McCormick and Schmicks for stuffed salmon."

"What about the kids?"

"I have that all taken care of." I started to panic because I am very very paranoid about who I let watch my kids. But Mr. Hotness did great and picked one of my very trusted, and best friends to watch them. It was a tough choice between the two but I settled on the salmon because it won't be coming out on DVD later. This salmon is my usual birthday treat. A big hunk of fresh salmon, stuffed with crab, shrimp, and brie cheese. Absolutely decadent! Even the mashed potatoes and veggies were cooked and seasoned perfectly. The weather was gorgeous! The restaurant overlooks lake Union and so we sat and watched water planes taking off and landing while I licked my plate clean. Mmmmm. They even gave me a free slice of scrumptious key lime cheese cake, but we took it to go because I was stuffed. I was so happy driving back to get the kids, telling my hubby how happy he had made me on my birthday, and thanks for arranging the babysitter and for all the yummy treats. I figured this was the surprise.

We get to my friend's house to get the kids and Mr. Hotness tells me I'm staying there. "What?" My friend, Jamie, pulls me into her house and says, "I'm babysitting you." Hmmmm, what is going on here? I'm worried that he might actually be planning a surprise party for me because I left the house with wet hair which was now all over the place, my breath was nasty after 2 meals, and my clothes were also a bit dirty after two meals (I can't eat without spilling when pregnant). I asked her for a curling iron and she said, "No." What kind of friend would deny a girl a curl? We sit and talk till her babysitter shows up and then she says, "Time to go." I was really worried now that I was going to have to face people looking so scrudgy (which happened to me the only other time I've had a surprise party thrown for me). But Jamie didn't take me home. She took me to the Gene Juarez Beauty salon. I start crying, just a bit and then stop before my face puffs up. Mr. Hotness has arranged for me to get my hair done, my face done, and my nails done. I've been so badly in need of a haircut but am way too cheap to get one. This place was amazing. They have you remove your shirt and put on a robe, they ask you what you want to drink, and then you sit by the fireplace till it is time for your appointment. This was one of the very very few times I've liked, no... loved, going to a beauty salon. The guy who did my hair actually listened to me and gave me a perfect cut. I have funky hair so a perfect cut is very hard for me to get. Then I went to the makeup counter and asked the lady if she could somehow hide all my embarrassing acne scars and pregnant blochyness. She did!!! And without making me look like a Glamour Shots photo. I looked in the mirror and actually had normal skin looking back at me. YAY! I asked her how much the "camouflage" paste and powder cost. It was too much. But then I cancelled the manicure (my nails are so short and I don't like the way my fingers look when wearing nail polish anyway) so I figured I would break even with buying the makeup. Now I'm excited to go out again, or to even get a family photo taken after the baby is born because I can hide my blemishes rather than photo shop them out (which I do). I came out happy. THIS was the big surprise!

But then Jamie grabs my arm, "We aren't done yet." There is more? She takes me to Motherhood and tells me that Mr. Hotness has instructed her not to let me leave until I find some outfits that makes me feel sexy. With everything I tried on she asked, "Do you feel sexy?" If I said no I wasn't allowed to buy it, no matter how cheap or practical it was. I came away with three new shirts (I wore the one in the picture out of the store), a super cute and comfy pair of cuffed capri jeans, and nursing pajamas with a matching onesie for the baby. "Ok, Liz, do your shoes make you feel sexy?" I tried to convince her that there was no way we were going to find shoes that could pull of such a miracle with my marshmallow feet, but like a good friend she insisted. We went to Payless (I didn't want to waste too much money on a pair of shoes that I hopefully won't be able to wear once my feet go back to normal) and we actually found a roomy, comfy, cute, as-sexy-as marshmallows-can-get, pair of shoes. Then we stopped into another store and I found some sexy, affordable, stretchy camisoles that I can use even after I've had the baby. They are extra long so I can wear them under all the shirts that don't quite cover the panel on my maternity pants. LOVE THEM! And they are lacey so I feel sexy when I wear them. I feel so completely spoiled at this point that I have to try really hard not to return all the clothing in a fit of humble frugality or cry and ruin my perfectly spackled face. This was the best surprise I've ever had. I was so overwhelmed and ready to get back to my Mr. Hotness to thank him for my wonderful day.

Jamie takes me home (she also got a fab new haircut and a cute new shirt) and I see cars all over the place. He didn't. Did he? He did!!! I come through the door and everyone shouts "Surprise!" Everyone but Mr. Hotness who was actually out grabbing some last minute things. I hid and when he came back I jumped out and yelled surprise to him. He seemed to like my new "sexy" look and I couldn't help but cry at this point for all he had done for me. And now I have to brag about what a wonderful job he did putting together this party. He thought of everything. He invited all my friends, old and new. He had it catered with Indian food, one of my absolute favorites! He even thought to have pizza and Cheetos on hand for all the kids. Several people brought food too so we also had Brazilian food and more Indian goodies. Mr. Hotness refused to let me do any work (my usual way of surviving parties) and made me socialize, and it was actually very fun being able to talk with everyone. Meanwhile, Mr. H was busting his cute hiney taking out garbage, fetching more cups and plates, making sure the food table was stocked, getting the cakes ready for me, etc. He even thought to put together a pinata, one of my favorite birthday things, and organized the whole whacking set up. We all took turns hitting it till Mr. J finally knocked it clear off the rope and the kids went diving for their candy. Then Mr. Hot brought out the birthday cakes. He had bought 2 gigantic cheesecakes. When he brought one of the cakes to me, with candles lit, and everyone following him singing to me, I started crying again. Monster Man asked why I was crying, "Because, Sweety, mommy just isn't used to all this attention." Cheesecake.... Mmmmmm, (so much for following the doctor's advice to watch what I eat till the baby is born). Food, friends, and fun. What a wonderful surprise. But it STILL isn't over.

Then came the last gift. I had mentioned last month that I would like to get an iPod for my birthday so I could listen to music while cleaning and running (after baby is born), and because my sister has found that her kids are willing to do hours worth of chores when they get to listen to the iPod while cleaning. All I wanted was one that played music and podcasts. Have you seen the new iPod shuffle? It is the size of a pat of butter, and just clips right onto your clothes, and it is only 30 bucks. Perfect! So did I get the iPod shuffle? Nosiree, bob! Mr. Hotness went a bit further and got me the new iPod Touch. Have you seen this thing? It is amazing. I'm not even tech savvy enough to describe it to you, other than to say that I LOVE it and already can't imagine my life without it. Now, when people give me a date for an event, instead of hoping I will remember, or scrounging for a pen and paper, I just plug it into my iPod. Saturday night we met up with six other adults for dinner at a fancy restaurant. We were the only ones that brought our kids, and after my kids had reached their "perfect manners for an hour" limit I turned on my iPod and they watched several episodes of PBS programs for children (Sesame Street and SuperY) quietly while all the adults continued to talk in peace for an extra 2 1/2 hours. And now I'm learning Spanish while I clean.

Come to find out, Mr. Hot had been planning this whole thing for weeks. I even found his "cheat sheet" later and it was even more touching seeing all the work he did putting it together. He even had the whole day planned down to the half hour.

Thank you, Mr. Hotness. You made me feel pampered, special, and completely loved. Thank you for working hard to afford such a day. Thank you for giving up the time it took to plan and put together such a wonderful day. Thank you for making it a complete surprise. Thank you for treating me like a queen. Thank you for making me cry. I love you!

From Apologies To Ice Cream

I am so sorry, and am here on my humble knees hoping you will forgive me. In the past two months I have been awarded quite a lot of lovely awards from people that I am honored to be noticed by. And how do I return the compliment? By doing nothing. I kept telling myself, "Oooo, I'll post about that tomorrow." Then I started thinking I would accept them all at once. Then I couldn't remember who had awarded me what and when. If you've been bothered by the fact that I haven't accepted or acknowledged an award please let me know and send me a link to the post where you gave it to me and I will make sure to post about it. I'M SORRY!

Also, I've been tagged twice now for the 7 random things about me meme. I do remember that Tama from The Twisted Hare tagged me, but I can't remember who else did. Please let me know so I can edit this with a link to your blog.

Hopefully you will forgive this addle brained pregnant woman her bloggy faux pas.

7 Random things that happened yesterday:

1. While blogging I heard shouts of, "High-yah!" and "Take that!" only to find that my kids were having a wipey war. They used a whole package of baby wipes and were throwing them at each other. Didn't I say I wasn't going to be on the computer when the kids are awake anymore? I consider myself well reminded.
2. My daughter ran by me in nothing but a diaper... a diaper that had a smiley face drawn on the back of it. Really, even if I have a bad head cold, I need to stay off the computer.
3. There is a matching smiley face drawn on the back of my living room chair and Monster Man seems to be hiding from me. Don't worry, I fully intend to renew my promise to stay off the computer while they are awake.
4. I started sketching out the plans for Cookie and Sweet Terror's painting. I am going to paint both the girls as mermaids. I'm excited for it and hope I can make myself start and finish it in less than 2 months.
5. I have a killer head cold. Seriously killer.
6. When DSSH hubby came home and saw me miserably cooking dinner while sneezing, moaning, coughing, and constantly mumbling, "Now what was I doing? Oh, yeah..." he asked if there were anything he could do to help. I told him, "Yeah, you could rotate the laundry for me, get the kids to do their chores, unload the dishwasher, set the table and finish dinner for me." He paused and then quietly said, "I meant, is there anything I can do for you that I want to do?"
7. Luckily, DSSH was able to buy his way out of marital discord with two pints of Ben and Jerry's and several boxes of flavored Wheat Thins.

Cheese, Please.

Here it is: #6. Make some silly pic on the computer that somehow involves a tortilla chip. (By the way, this is the only thing I got done on my crazy to do list. But we have already had the tree tipped over and spent more than 4 hours troubling over our half working strands of Christmas lights so I think I'm still on track with the holiday festivities)

I'm pretty proud of my silly tortilla pics, considering the fact that I made them in Paint. I really wish I had a photo shop program. Here are the pics I made for Christmases past:


The Vance's Cheesy Christmas Nacho Party has been an annual tradition of ours for 5 years now. It is my version of the Christmas goodie plate. Instead of taking plates of goodies to people we just invite everyone to our place and feed them here. We serve an all-you-can-eat super nacho bar with all sorts of yummy toppings and LOTS of nacho cheese. I make all my Christmas candies and leave them in bowls around the house for people to nibble on. We pack the house with all our friends (it is pretty much the only time when DSSH's world of friends and my world of friends comingle). It is a ton of fun. The best part about it is that it is non traditional, so I don't have any rules to follow. We make a big point about the fact that it is a cheesy party in every way. My Christmas decorations are cheesy, my party planning is cheesy, my paper plates are cheesy, nothing Martha Stewarty to be found any where. Ahhh, I love it.

Girls Night Out

Wooo Hoooo! Girls Night Out tonight, YESSSSS!!!! I'm meeting up with An Ordinary Mom and one other friend and we are going to leave the kids at home with our husbands and we are going to be out LATE. Are you dying to know what we will be doing? I've been prepping for it all week. I have detailed lists that have had many rough drafts made and discarded in preparation for this event. We are.. drum roll please....

GOING GROCERY SHOPPING

Are you just insane with jealousy? I know, we are pretty wild, my friends and I. We run away from the kids, and giggle like school girls as we drive way out of our way to go grocery shopping at the cheapest place around (WinCo). This is the best time of year to do it because of all the holiday sales and Thanksgiving is just around the corner. I can't wait! If we go early enough we might have time to go grab a treat when we are done.

Ok, so maybe I need some professional help here. But I will worry about that AFTER our AWESOME GIRLS NIGHT OUT

WOOO HOOOOO!!!!

Oops! I've gotta go take my car seats out and scrape all the old fruit snacks off my seats. See ya later.

Photos Of The Fun

At Marina Beach. This is Wendy and the kids. Of course Pablo had to bring his sword.
Shawn missing the ball. HA HA HA. Ok , the truth is that this was the ONLY shot he missed and I never caught a single pass. But I happened to get this on film and it makes me feel a lot better (insert evil Liz laugh).

My manly man, doing the manly man BBQ duties.

Here I am with a momentarily resigned Sweet Terror at the park by Pike Place Market.
Here is Shawn holding Sweet Terror. This is what she was like 90% of the time while we were at the market.

Here are the doughnuts that made the Sweet Terror's scream all worth it. Mmmmm... doughnuts (insert Homer Simpson drooling).

Ongoing Memorial Day Festivities

MUST. STOP. EATING.

Sorry for not posting anything new lately. We have all been enjoying one humdinger of a Memorial Day weekend over here. It started on Saturday and is still in process.

Saturday: I attended a fun little baby shower where many tasty treats were served. i started out with a small healthy plate, but soon went back for seconds, and when no one was watching I went back for thirds. I couldn't help it. There was lots of yummy fresh fruit, a rich spinach and artichoke dip with crackers, and some very addicting cranberry turkey pinwheels. I only had a sliver of cake, but was stuffed to the brim by the time I went home. Only an hour after the shower we attended a dinner party at one of my very best friend's home. Jamie and Andy were celebrating their 7 year anniversary and did so be feeding all of their friends. Jamie is a great cook and is my source for very good pasta. She made a great cold pasta salad with rigatoni, tomatoes, olives, feta cheese, basil, olive oil, and I'm sure there were other things in it. Now I was VERY stuffed.

Sunday:
Sunday night our very good friends Shawn and Wendy came all the way from Utah to visit. Shawn and DSSH have been best friends since 1st grade. Shawn has also served 18 months in Iraq and, considering the areas that he served in, we feel very lucky not to have to be memorializing him right now.

We started our bacchanalian marathon with awesome nachos ('awesome' referring to the size as well as the flavor) and multiple bowls of ice cream and tall glasses of Root Beer Floats. The cheesy nachos were served with taco meat, sour cream, Lizzy's Salsa, and butter black beans. The evening was spent eating and talking. We talked until 1 in the morning, just catching up on old times.

Butter Black Beans
melt 1 Tblsp. butter in pan. Add 1/4 C. finely chopped onion and cook until onion begins to brown. Add 1-3 cloves garlic minced and cook for 1 minute. Add one can black beans UNdrained. Smash a few times with a potato smasher. Stir and cook to desired consistency. Salt to taste. MMMMMMMM

Monday:
Luckily for me, S and W like yard saling as much as I do, so we left the kids with DSSH (he doesn't like "junksaling") and hit a few Memorial Day sales. I found some wonderful things, including a great art easel for Pablo's B-Day. For lunch we had make your own sandwiches with pickles, chips, and veggie sticks on the side (and they were some mighty big 'samiches'). With full bellies W and I took the kids to a local beach park to play in the sand and look for shells. We found a huge barnacle and had fun watching it poke its frilled head out. DSSH and S stayed behind to do some man bonding which requires that they sit in different rooms communicating over two computers while playing Age Of Empires III. For dinner we had a good ol' Rockwellian BBQ. W and I prepped all the veggies and side dishes while the manly men sat around drinking rootbeer and tossing a pigskin to the kids while waiting for the coals to turn grey. We chowed down on Peppered Burgers, Broccoli Salad, corn on the cob, 3 kinds of chips, 2 kinds of soda, watermelon, and ice cream. It was a lovely day. We tried to finish the night with a Mystery Science Theater 3000 called Puma Man but, about half way through all the laughter, I fell asleep. I think W fell asleep soon after so we called it a night.

Tuesday:
We took our guests on the requisite Pike Place Market tour. I LOVE Pike Place Market! It is crowded with so many people from all walks of life. In the same three feet you see a bodily pierced young woman selling her handmade purses, a man with a 2 foot beard playing his fiddle, a wealthy business woman buying flowers, a group of Japanese speaking tourists, and me with my big family holding a screaming Sweet Terror on my shoulders. Of course no trip to the market is complete without sampling foods from around the world. Our first culinary stop was Japan with a fresh shrimp spring roll dipped in peanut sauce (or is that Cantonese?), then some Mexican Pan Dulce, a few sweet flavored honey tubes to suck on, freshly fried doughnuts that the dreadlocked man flings behind his back and into the bag while knocking a beat with his tongs on the counter, a few Greek Dolmates wrapped in tangy grape leaves, a free slice from a heavenly sweetened California peach, a stop at the spice store for little bags of pepper, paprika, curry, herbal teas, and sea salt, followed up with some Chinese food at the Genghis Khan (I highly reccomend the broccoli and mushrooms, YUMMERS). After the Market feast we took a two hour break from eating before leaving the kids with our awesome babysitter and escaping to a great indian restaurant called the Sahib. The Sahib is located down by the ferry dock so you can enjoy a great view if you get the right seat, or sit on the deck. We all highly recommend the mixed appetizer platter, the mixed grill, the Malai Kofta, and Chicken Korma. The appetizer platter had something I've never heard of before, let alone tasted, they were fried spinach leaves. I know, it sounds funny but they were addicting. I'm already planning a second visit just for that combo appetizer. Oh, it was GOOD. We were all laughing about how full we were. Then we were laughing about the fact that we still had ice cream in the freezer that wanted to be eaten. After putting the kids to bed we not only ate multiple bowls of ice cream while watching episodes from the 4th season of The Simpsons, but I managed to polish off the leftover Chinese food too, AAAUGH!

As bloggers are my witness, I WILL NEVER GO HUNGRY AGAIN! That is, until 5 minutes ago when I had another bowl of ice cream for breakfast =). Let me just say that I'm actually glad that the ice cream sale is over so that I can return to my normal "three meals and two bowls a day".

Random Thoughts

An Ordinary Mom tagged me for a “Seven Random Things About Me” meme. This shouldn't be too hard for me since my thoughts are pretty random anyway. Hang on for the ride, 'cause here we go...

1. When I found out that the computers in my high school computer lab had minesweeper on them I dedicated a month to getting the highest score on all three levels on every single computer. I had minesweeper wars with my step dad. My score kept getting so good that he finally started photoshopping his score to fake that he was beating me. I still can't stand to see anyone but me have the highest score on that game.

2. I often fantasize about being the only survivor of a plane crash and having to survive on what I can. I have had this fantasy since I was a little girl. No, I don't watch LOST because I'm a T.V. addict so I just don't go there. But I love survival movies, so if you know of any, let me know.

3. I was sad when I reached 9 years of age because I knew that if Indians ever raided our city I wouldn't be adopted anymore, but become a slave, or be killed (or worse).

4. I LOVE peanut butter, mayonnaise, and pickle sandwiches on my Grandma's homemade bread.

5. I want my hair to be boy short. I love it that way. But I also like my hair long and I'm too lazy and cheap to maintain a short haircut. So, every now and then I chop it all off and then let it grow back.

6. I pick my pinky toenails off. Literally off. Then they bleed. It's really gross.

7. I'm eating Subway's white chocolate macadamia nut cookies right now. It's my Birthday and this was DSSH's first present to me.

And, if they are willing, I am going to tag Shark Daddy, Lucy, Becky, Cellista, Laughter Thoughts and The Momma Chronicles. I can't wait to see what randomness you all produce.

Cookie's FHE

Last night Cookie gave the lesson for FHE. I love it when she gives the lesson because she always amazes me with her mature grasp of the gospel. Her lesson made me proud and a bit sad. I felt sad because her opening story was about dealing with bullies. She has had to deal with bully behavior at school. She has been called names, she has been tripped, she has been pushed, and she has been yelled at by boys who just don't seem to know better. This has been a good, albeit tough, learning experience for her and I have been proud of the choices she has made in these situations. She has even turned several of these bullies into friends. So, last night she read her story from the friend and then she had us play a board game that she had created herself. I love these moments, when you feel like your child is mastering the skills you are trying, so desperately, to teach them before they must be sent out in the world on their own. It was good for the boys to hear, too, because they have been getting pretty rough with each other. They seem to think that it is o.k. to punch the other in the eye if he says, "You're a stupid face boy". I keep telling them that if they punch the name caller then they both have to be punished for bad decisions, but if they don't fight back, then only the name caller gets punished. Ah well, we keep trying.

Today I am taking on Mount Everest. I am climbing the summit, and then I am going to chip and hack away at it until it no longer exists (or at least until I turn it into multiple miniature Everests). If you can't tell, I am referring to my paper pile. And it is taller than me right now, seriously! It starts at the top of my computer armoir, actually it starts on the top of my printer that is on top of my armoir, it runs down the sides of my monitor, it is busting out of every cubby hole, is keeping the side cupboard and drawers from closing, has fallen behind the armoir, and has been pushed underneath, and between its side and the wall. Considering all that, I don't think anyone can accuse me of exaggeration for calling it an "Everest".
P.S. What time is it when you find a pitcher in the bathroom?

Answer: Time to sanitize the pitcher and see what else the kids have been doing while I blogged.

GIRLS NIGHT OUT

Friday was busy and wonderful. The sun kept trying to make up it's mind whether it would stay in it's bathrobe eating ice cream, or put on its makeup and come out and play. I was waiting to see what the sun would do so that I could follow suit. It finally came out and so did I. It was so nice out that I decided to mow the lawn. Note to self: don't let the grass grow long for the Easter Bunny unless the Easter Bunny will mow it for you later. My grass must have been taking steroids this past week because it was a jungle out there. I had to restart the mower at least 12 times, the blades stuck twice, and it was such a tough job it made me run out of gas before I was half done. So, I put the mower away and left a note on the fridge for the Easter Bunny to refill my little gas tank.


My friend Lizzy came over for a visit. Lizzy is handicapped physically, and a bit mentally, is a great gal, but don't you dare get on her bad side =). She rides a motorized wheel chair that isn't able to get in my house, so we sat outside enjoying the sun. The kids were really well behaved and ran around playing, they made forts and beds outside, foraged for themselves in the food department, and left me free to visit with Lizzy. I read a book to Lizzy called Little Britches. My family loves this book and they have been begging me to read it. We were able to read through chapter 2 before Lizzy had to leave. I'm finding it hard to sink my teeth into Little Britches but I think that it is due to Mars Venus Author Syndrome. MVAS happens to me anytime I try to read a Dickens after finishing an Austin. The writers are writing in almost the same english, same time frame, about related subjects, but try to read one right after the other and you get a foul taste in your mouth. I can only relate this to trying to eat a Snickers bar right after eating a Baby Ruth. They are so similar that the slight differences are very distasteful. So it is for me with Little Britches because I've been reading the Little House On The Prairie series. Little Britches is very close to a Little House kind of story but it is written by a man, and Little House is written by a woman. I must distance myself from the Venus before I can fully appreciate the Mars, I guess.

Little Britches: Father and I Were Ranchers Little House (9 Books, Boxed Set)

Later I picked up Cookie from school, told the kids to let me sit for awhile (Lizzy is fun to have over but it does wear me out) while I watched a movie (part of one at least) and ate my artichoke. Mmmmmmmmmmmm. I LOVE artichokes. I dip them in lemon mayonnaise with garlic salt. I haven't had one for a very long time. Then I remembered one of the reasons why. They take way too long to cook. So, while I wait that excruciatingly long 1/2 hour for it to cook, I start rummaging. Because I'm a good girl and have stopped stocking snackies in order to loose weight, I was having a hard time finding anything to help me wait. Finally, reaching that desperate point, I pull over a chair, climb to my tippy toes, reach waaaaaay past my canning jars, and find my old, hidden, bag of Halloween candy. From this comes my snickers/Baby Ruth experience. Ah, but the artichoke is done after only 10 mini candy bars. Mmmmmmmmmmm I love artichokes.

Daddy is going to be home soon.... HURRY EVERYONE CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN. The kids look at me as if to say "We love you Miss Hannigan", and we all start doing our chores. DSSH comes home and I rush to the shower because I have a HOT date tonight. No, silly, not with DSSH, with the girls. GIRLS NIGHT OUT!!!!! I put on my new "not mom" shirt (meaning it wasn't the first cheap t shirt I could grab at WalMart before the kids started screaming), blow dry my hair, try to put some make up on, kiss the poor DSSH, laugh as I leave the kids behind, jump into the car and quickly change the radio from classical to classic rock, and head to the mall.

Note to self: Don't ever ever ever eat artichokes before going out. I just remembered the other reason I haven't eaten one in so long. They give me internal bubbles. Oh the pain! All that gas was NOT happy to be kept inside me for that long. But we had a fun time, chatting, laughing, eating, and playing with J's sweet new baby girl. B, L, and N were there, and H, if you have a blog you need to send it to me =). After food, we walked around the mall (I haven't walked around the mall with a group of girls in like 14 years) and I actually sat at a makeup stand and had my eyes done. I've never done that before and it was so fun. It started getting late and we all said good bye. I snuck back in the mall to get myself and DSSH some Sees Candy. I bought 3 butterchews for him and 3 cashew roccas for me, and sampled the california brittle. Mmmmmm. L called me on my cell phone (Ok, I'm starting to really like my cell phone now) and asked if I wanted to still hang out some more. I thought, "I should get back home", then I said, "SURE!". We went to Js house and stayed up till 11 playing games and talking.
WHAT A FUN NIGHT!!!!!