Friday, July 26, 2013

Mistaken Identity

I love ignoring my kids killing time at night before bed, reading old blogs I posted. My recent favorite? Click here to read and laugh.

Last night while reading I was reminded of a funny coincidence that took place a few weeks ago.  Addison used to sleep with her "Shape" blanket each night and even though she's grown out of it now a lot of the time, Shapey will make the occasional car trip with us. And even though she's "grown out of" Shapey, don't you dare try to snuggle with him. 

Well, while we were in Lafayette for a birthday party, Addison made friends with another girl just a few weeks different in age, and after a few hours of playing Addi came running up saying, "Guess what!!!! My new friend has a Shapey too!"

Turns out, Addi saw Shapey in the arms of another and freaked out, only to realize that the blanket in question was in fact the love of another.  This blanket's name? Fluffy.  And is literally the exact same blanket. Same pattern, same material, same worn spots. 

We had a good laugh over the mix up and went our merry ways, Fluffy and Shapey safely tucked away in their respective owners arms. And I breathed a sigh of relief that Addison didn't tackle the girl or beat her up.  She is quite strong, you know.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

The Oatmeal Story

I thought it was common knowledge that I don't cook.  I DO bake and enjoy it, but cooking meals is not my forte. Even grilled cheese shivers at the sight of me. Seriously, this was a grilled cheese I made (and forgot about). Oops.

However, after my friend Beth came over and was stunned (and I mean STUNNED) to see canned ravioli and cereal boxes on the counter while Jay was gone, I started to think maybe people assume I exaggerate when I mention my lack of a cooking gene.

Even my kids understand it - they know Daddy cooks, Mommy does dishes.  Addi was shocked and speechless to find out that my friend Jenny does all the cooking at their house, and Samantha told her teachers all about it in my Mother's Day present. In a cute survey that said, "My Mom loves to cook ___" Samantha told her teacher to fill in "Dad cooks everything."

So in case there was any confusion - I don't cook.  And not in a "OK I'll whip something up for dinner but it will taste just OK but I won't enjoy it very much" kind of way.  In a "Just tell them the oatmeal story and they'll understand" kind of way.

The Oatmeal Story

Pinterest is this website that makes moms feel inferior to everyone else in the world lets you search for recipes, crafts, home decor, really anything you could want to look at. And one night, while perusing Pinterest, I find what looked like a tasty morning treat - Slow Cooker Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal. The picture looked nearly irresistible, and with it being posted on a dieting board, I knew I could eat this guilt free. I showed the girls and they asked if we could make it, so we followed the directions exactly and waited for morning.  And Yes, I am well aware that oatmeal can be made in less than three minutes, but really, the picture sold it. This was going to be amazing.

I woke up to the smell of baked apples. Very, very tasty smelling from upstairs. But as I got closer to the kitchen, the smell changed. There was still a cinnamon smell, but instead of being a sweet one it was more of a burnt one. I lifted the lid to the crock pot and found what could easily be used as mortar or possibly could even patch the great Wall of China.  There was a solid 2-inch ring of burnt oatmeal around the circumference of the pan.  In the middle of the ring of burnt-ness was regular looking oatmeal, so in order to prove this oatmeal was still OK I let each girl tasted a bit of it.

Then I cleaned it up off the kitchen floor from where they spit it. It tasted just like it smelled.  Terrible.

Seven days later I FINALLY soaked the crock pot long enough to get most of the oatmeal out. At day five Jay suggested just buying a new one because we were fairly certain it was a lost cause, but I prevailed. And even though I stink at cooking, I do have one great talent - washing dishes.

I'm pretty sure Jay will let me keep that title forever.

In case you are curious, here's the recipe (with my added Step 4.) Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal 
 Cook overnight to wake up to delicious smells and a tasty breakfast!
 Cook time: 9 Hr  Prep time: 5 Min  Serves: 3-4
Ingredients: 2 apples, sliced; 1/3 c brown sugar; 1 tsp cinnamon; 2 c oatmeal; 4 c water
Directions:
1. Place sliced apples, 1/3 cup brown sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon in the bottom of the crock pot.
2. Pour 2 cups of oatmeal and 4 cups of water on top. Do not stir.
3. Cook overnight for 8 - 9 hours on low. Serve and enjoy.
4. Buy a New Crock Pot and never speak of this again.


Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Addison's Strength

Addison is strong in a lot of ways. She's physically strong - she rolled over and pushed up within an hour of birth, walked at 9 months, and can pick up her overweight mother today.  Her will is VERY strong - meaning you better go into an argument with a clear idea of what you want because she will wear. you. down. fighting for her heart's desire.  She's also strong in her convictions - basically, she knows she is right and that's all there is to it, thank you very much.

Some of these strengths are great - she carries giant bags of cat food for Jay and is hard to convince to do things she feels are wrong, which could be handy in junior high, but they also have a bad side.  Namely body slamming her sister when she means to lightly shove her and turning my hair (more) gray with her constant arguing.

A few days ago, Jay was cutting up a chicken for dinner and took the wishbone over to Addi.  She had never seen one before but within 30 seconds had a lifetime wishbone score of Addi: 1, Jay: 0.

Then she said, "Instead of wishing for something, I'm going to pray for Sherryl's dad who died instead.  Is that OK?"

Turns out, she's also strong in her faith and strong in her caring for others.  And those might be my two favorite strengths of all.


Monday, July 1, 2013

Almost 10 Years

Jay and I splurged and took an early 10th anniversary trip to Punta Cana last month, and to say it was amazing would be a gross understatement. It was too good for words.  We had a great time just hanging out with each other, Jay golfed 18 holes, I read three books, we met some new friends, and we sat on a boat and just breathed in all of that open space. 


The kids had fun with Grandma and we were happy knowing they were kept alive while we swam with sharks.


Spending all of that alone time with Jay was really great.  I remembered how fun he can be when he is relaxed and I reminded him of how hot I am.  Before we left I found this list of Rules for a Happy Marriage, and I've tried to live by these everyday since.

I do have one rule to add, however.  Rule #11:  Take your spouse on an all inclusive vacation to the beach, eat and drink whenever and whatever you want, hold hands all the time, walk on the beach, swim in the ocean, and whenever anything goes wrong, blame it on the hotel staff.  Repeat annually.

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