Adventures in Dinnertime

Yesterday I actually thought ahead and planned for dinner. I made Shepherd's Pie, which Dan likes. I like it because I can beef up the nutrition by adding shredded carrot and zucchini to the meat. Then, I add some tomato sauce and simmer it down and it makes me feel all virtuous about a healthier meal for the family. It does take a bit of time though, so I was feeling pleased that I had started early, and I was in the middle of the simmering when Dan called.

"I have leftovers from the work party, so you don't need to make dinner." he said.

Too late.

In the interest of not wasting my efforts, I changed my tactics. Rather than putting it in a 9x13 pan, I put it in two 8" pans and froze the second one. That made me feel brilliant, as well as virtuous.

As my tasty meal was cooking, I got to cuddle with Callie. She had arrived home from school with a headache, and it was bad for her. She mostly lay on the couch and whimpered. And sometimes she cried. It was so sad. I snuggled with her for a bit and then went to do the dishes. It was a good thing I did, because Callie came crying into the kitchen, "I need a bucket!"

Aack! A bucket?! There's no bucket in here! And there is no bathroom on this level of the house. I know, stupid, but there seriously is no bathroom on the main floor. In a moment of brilliance, I recalled that my sink was clean, and a must-be-a-part-of-everything Rylee had already pulled a kitchen chair to that very area to better "assist" me. I hauled Callie onto the chair and tipped her over the sink and let her do her thing. Perhaps I shouldn't put green Gogurt in her lunch anymore; it was disturbing, to say the least.

Dan came home shortly thereafter. He brought his load of goodies and I pulled my Shepherd's Pie out of the oven. I had even made salad. Between that, the BBQ Pork, meatballs, cheese, salami and crackers that Dan brought, there was a plethora of culinary delights to choose from.

Unfortunately, Delaney was completely sacked out on the couch and wasn't even roused by Joshua's enthusiastic trumpet playing in her ear. Callie lay on the other couch, dripping tears on the cushion and had no interest in eating. Actually, she was more interested in voiding all contents of her stomach (and did so with vigor). That left me and Dan, 2 children and a baby to make a dent in the food piling the table.

This is why we had leftovers for dinner tonight.

Such an imagination!

Life is never dull with Marian. She sees the most interesting things in the most interesting places. And she comes up with the most interesting ideas! Earlier this week, Rylee opened a drawer in the kitchen and grabbed the tin foil. She managed to unroll quite a bit of it before I got to her. Marian was delighted to commandeer the crumpled foil.

She was so happy to make herself these booties.

Check these bad boys out! They will be the next thing sported on the runway, I bet! What is really funny is watching her prance around the house with a crunch and a crackle at every step.

And this is her favorite thing about her "shoes"-- they stand up all by themselves! How fabulously cool is that?!

Photos for the Folks

I'm hoping Mom and Dad are back to Internet access soon, since I am putting these pictures up mainly for their benefit! I have decided I need more pictures of Joshua, but he is now old enough to protest, and to ensure I get nothing usable from him. I'll have to be more sneaky! In the meantime, here are shots of the girls who shout, "Come take my picture!!"

They really wanted a picture of their "cushion sandwich". I love it when they get along well and play nicely. Of course, that seems to come right before the NOT playing nicely!

Somebody learned a new trick! Rylee discovered that she can climb up on the shoe shelf and reach the light switch. She is so proud of herself and the room is not perpetually dark, because the second she sees that light no, she races to turn it off!

She's all fresh and clean after the bath and looking so cute here on the stairs.

Total future blackmail shot here. The kid has no shame. "Take my picture!!"

"Take a picture with my funny face!" "And another one." "Take a picture of this one....."

She sure is cute. I just wish I could get a picture of her not posing. this is as close as I got.

Same with this kid. And to totally depart topics, do you have any idea how many apples my girls eat?!! Delaney and Callie alone eat through a 3 pound bag of the little ones in about 3 days. I like it, but sheesh!

Joshua was doing homework in his room, and I was hunting down Rylee to make sure she wasn't disturbing him or the girls who were suppose to be in bed (and weren't). This is where I found Rylee! (Note the ear rubbing. That's her thing when she's tired; she rubs her ears. Very cute, but hard to snuggle her to sleep since she needs full ear access.)

That's my boy! He's a great kid. He does his homework by himself without needing anything other than a reminder. And he's a cutie!

Marian was in rare form and made me laugh. Here is her silly face.

This was her getting ready to be a cheetah.

This is her as a cheetah in a mellow mood. Life is never dull around Marian!

And this is me. I have officially decided that I love my short hair. I like it enough that I am actually considering regular maintenance to keep it this way.

The End!

Dear Me?

My friend Sylvia introduced me to a blog: Dear Me

This blog is people writing letters to themselves when they were younger. It is strangely compelling and somehow riveting reading for me! I am fascinated by it. What would I say to myself? What would I try to change? What nuggets of wisdom would I impart?! And then I think it is a silly exercise, because I already know how it turned out!

I am a person who would never, ever chose to go back and relive any part of my life. I had some really rotten times, and I had some really awesome times, but I would not want to go back and do them over again. Well, some parts I wouldn't mind having a second shot at and doing right, but how would it impact me now? What difference would it make in my life? If I were to go back and choose not to date someone, or choose not to make a dumb choice, how would my life be different now?

I have a pretty sweet life. I have a fabulous husband. He's not perfect and he makes me crazy sometimes, but we're in this together and we're going to work it out. And he is perfect for me. There is no one I would rather be with for eternity. I have great kids who brighten my life, and I love being a mom more than I ever thought possible. I mostly like me. I like my life. If changing anything in my past would change this as my future, then I would choose to do the dumb thing. I would not change anything that it took to get me to where I am right now. The trials and difficulties that resulted from being stupid made me who I am. Do I wish I hadn't done some things I did? I sure do! But would I change me now? Nope. Okay, that's not entirely true. I would totally change a hundred things about me, but I would not be as far along in my work in progress had I not done dumb things and suffered the consequences.

I guess if I were to write to myself, I think I would tell me to hang in there, and hang onto my family and I will be happy and have a better life than I ever expected. I wouldn't give me any advice, because we both know I wouldn't (and didn't!) take it.

I maybe shouldn't blog when I'm tired. I think I have forgotten my point. Would you change anything in your life? Is there any advice you might have for your younger self? If there is, you should visit this blog and submit your letter!

Rylee is adorable!

This is all about Rylee. Just Rylee. She is growing up so fast and is learning so many new things. I love this age, as their little minds are in overdrive and they are checking out everything and figuring out how it all works. It is so fun! More fun when they are not making huge messes, but messes seem to be a big part of it all! We took some super-cute pictures of Rylee, and here they are:

She was so funny with Dan's hat here. She totally hammed it up and posed for me to take her picture.

Love the static hair!

I brought lollypops home for the kids yesterday. Rylee knew exactly what it was and demanded hers too. I did get 5! Here she thinks I am going to take it away from her. See that suspicious look?!

Rylee can now climb up on the rocking horse all by herself. Yes, she has fallen off a few times, but mostly, she gets up and rides like a pro! I hope the video works for you. (And pardon the mess, we were in the middle of putting Christmas stuff around.)