Lady Bug caught a cold last week and I stayed home from work with her. When I returned to work the whole office was coughing and sneezing and blowing their noses. Last Thursday I woke up with the crud. I headed on to the office because I didn't feel sick enough to stay home, but not really well enough to work either. Friday I actually felt better - then came Saturday. I got worse. I have been going downhill ever since. Yesterday I left work early and went home to try to sleep, but as soon as I lay down I cough and cough. I tried medicine. I tried honey. I tried hot water. I tried Vicks on my feet. Nothing seems to work. I even stood in a steamy shower. Nothing helps. I eventually went to couch at midnight last night and propped myself up to catch a little sleep. I slept until 6 this morning but then woke up hacking again. I just want to sleep and feel better - is that too much to ask?
Having said that, my 12th wedding anniversary is this weekend and I was planning to make a nice cake for my husband and work on some valentine crafts..... hopefully I can do that and maybe even post some pictures here!?
Here's to getting well and feeling good enough to craft and bake this weekend! *cheers*
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
It's been awhile - let's see if I can figure this out!
I haven't posted here in a LOOOOOOONNNNNGGGGG time. Mostly for lack of anything worth posting about, but I'm here to try it out again! I am being encouraged by several friends and family to start this blog back up. We'll see how this turns out. If I hear you all snoring I know I am boring and need to stop posting here! ;-)
I won't try to do a "catch-you-up" blog post since it has been 5 months since I posted anything! So let's just start with the here and now!
Spirit will be in the District Spelling Bee in February. Both boys were in the school spelling bee a couple weeks ago. Spirit didn't practice as hard as Lefty because he was convinced he would be eliminated right away anyway. Lefty made it down to the last 6-7 kids and Spirit got 2nd place! (Not bad for a kid who thought he'd be eliminated right away!) So now he is pretty determined to study harder. Apparently for the district spelling bee he will be taking a written test and if he scores high enough (not sure what the "high enough" is) then he will go on to the oral part later in the day. We spell as often as we can: while I am cooking dinner, while he is getting dressed, while I am folding laundry...we are taking every opportunity to practice!
Lefty was in a "Math Challenge" in December which was similar to a spelling bee in that the kids were given oral math problems they had to solve. It was a tough thing for him but he faired pretty well! He says he won't do it again - he was a physical mess before the Math Challenge. He was so stressed he was sick to his stomach for weeks and could hardly sleep!
Lady Bug has joined Girl Scouts - just in time to sell cookies. She is enjoying the "girl" company. Being with brothers all day every day can get old! It has been good for her to hang out with girls and be able to talk about girly things! I have to admit though, I hope she doesn't want to stick this out very long because I do not make a good Girl Scout mom.
That is the quick update for now. More to come!
I won't try to do a "catch-you-up" blog post since it has been 5 months since I posted anything! So let's just start with the here and now!
Spirit will be in the District Spelling Bee in February. Both boys were in the school spelling bee a couple weeks ago. Spirit didn't practice as hard as Lefty because he was convinced he would be eliminated right away anyway. Lefty made it down to the last 6-7 kids and Spirit got 2nd place! (Not bad for a kid who thought he'd be eliminated right away!) So now he is pretty determined to study harder. Apparently for the district spelling bee he will be taking a written test and if he scores high enough (not sure what the "high enough" is) then he will go on to the oral part later in the day. We spell as often as we can: while I am cooking dinner, while he is getting dressed, while I am folding laundry...we are taking every opportunity to practice!
Lefty was in a "Math Challenge" in December which was similar to a spelling bee in that the kids were given oral math problems they had to solve. It was a tough thing for him but he faired pretty well! He says he won't do it again - he was a physical mess before the Math Challenge. He was so stressed he was sick to his stomach for weeks and could hardly sleep!
Lady Bug has joined Girl Scouts - just in time to sell cookies. She is enjoying the "girl" company. Being with brothers all day every day can get old! It has been good for her to hang out with girls and be able to talk about girly things! I have to admit though, I hope she doesn't want to stick this out very long because I do not make a good Girl Scout mom.
That is the quick update for now. More to come!
Friday, August 5, 2011
Friday Recipe - Spicy Chicken with Sweet Potato and Mango
This is a low calorie recipe and it is absolutely fabulous! I made this for dinner and at first Mr. Man wasn't sure about it (he still isn't 100% on board with the mango, but he will eat a bite or two of it), but he always goes for a 2nd plateful! I took left overs to a friend and she just raved and raved about it. I serve it warm at home, but she didn't know she was supposed to warm it up so she ate it cold. I tried it cold, I have to say it was pretty tasty cold too!
Spicy Chicken with Sweet Potato and Mango
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups cubed peeled sweet potatoes (I did 2 yams actually and I think I got a little more than 2 c of cubed yams)
2 Tbls olive oil
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
1 clove garlic, minced
2-3 Tbls low sodium soy sauce
3/4 cup water
3 Tbls honey
3 Tbls hot sauce, or to taste
1 ripe mango, peeled and cubed
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp cornstarch
1 Tbls warm water
Place the sweet potatoes into a saucepan and fill with enough water to cover. Simmer over medium-high heat until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in chicken, and cook until no longer pink in the center, about 5 minutes; remove chicken to a plate and set aside. Stir garlic into the skillet, and cook for a few minutes, until fragrant. Pour in the soy sauce, 3/4 cup of water, honey, and hot sauce. Bring to a simmer, then stir in the sweet potato, chicken, mango, and red pepper flakes. Cook and stir until hot. Dissolve the cornstarch in 1 tablespoon of water, and stir into the simmering mixture; stir until thickened.
This can served alone, OR over steamed white or brown rice, OR quinoa or other pasta you prefer.
Spicy Chicken with Sweet Potato and Mango
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups cubed peeled sweet potatoes (I did 2 yams actually and I think I got a little more than 2 c of cubed yams)
2 Tbls olive oil
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
1 clove garlic, minced
2-3 Tbls low sodium soy sauce
3/4 cup water
3 Tbls honey
3 Tbls hot sauce, or to taste
1 ripe mango, peeled and cubed
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp cornstarch
1 Tbls warm water
Place the sweet potatoes into a saucepan and fill with enough water to cover. Simmer over medium-high heat until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in chicken, and cook until no longer pink in the center, about 5 minutes; remove chicken to a plate and set aside. Stir garlic into the skillet, and cook for a few minutes, until fragrant. Pour in the soy sauce, 3/4 cup of water, honey, and hot sauce. Bring to a simmer, then stir in the sweet potato, chicken, mango, and red pepper flakes. Cook and stir until hot. Dissolve the cornstarch in 1 tablespoon of water, and stir into the simmering mixture; stir until thickened.
This can served alone, OR over steamed white or brown rice, OR quinoa or other pasta you prefer.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
WOW
This time of year seems like something is happening every day - we have graduations, birthdays, end of school year concerts and events. It is just non-stop!
Last weekend (Mother's Day to be exact) the family all did a 5k! The funds raised go to help homeless shelters! The boys ran with Mr. Man and Lady Bug and I walked it. We had so much fun. It is put on by the local baseball team so you start at the stadium and walk through downtown and end up back at the stadium! It is so much fun!
Since it was Mother's Day after the 5k we went to see a movie, then home to grill steaks for an early dinner/late lunch. Then I took a short nap and then we went to church. After church we had ice cream at Dairy Queen! Perfect Mother's Day!! I had a such a great day and was showered with cards and a new camera! (Lefty told his dad he wanted to buy me popcorn at the movie because he knows how much I like movie popcorn - isn't that sweet?)
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This coming Saturday the boys are running in a race and on Sunday Mr. Man is running a half marathon! Lady Bug and I will not be participating at all in either of these races but will be on the sidelines of both cheering everyone on!
Monday, April 4, 2011
Cat Pool
So Mr. Man took the kids out of town, just for an overnight trip, over the spring break to visit the town he grew up in. The kids had such a good time!
When they got home each kid was telling me the highlights of their trip and they all really had a great time. One thing I found funny though was Lady Bug telling me how the hotel they stayed in had a pool but she couldn't go in the big pool because it was too deep for her. So she says "I just stayed in the cat pool." I could NOT figure out what she meant by the cat pool.... Mr. Man clarified ... she was in the kiddy pool - which Lady Bug had translated to KITTY pool and then that became the Cat Pool! Too funny!
When they got home each kid was telling me the highlights of their trip and they all really had a great time. One thing I found funny though was Lady Bug telling me how the hotel they stayed in had a pool but she couldn't go in the big pool because it was too deep for her. So she says "I just stayed in the cat pool." I could NOT figure out what she meant by the cat pool.... Mr. Man clarified ... she was in the kiddy pool - which Lady Bug had translated to KITTY pool and then that became the Cat Pool! Too funny!
Friday, April 1, 2011
I've probably mentioned this before
As a mom that works full time outside of the house, sometimes chatting with my friends and family ( or reading their blogs) who stay home with their kids all day I feel guilty. I feel like my kids are missing out somehow. I feel like "other" kids have it so much better and my kids don't get their mom as much as other kids, I am not home schooling the kids and not home all day baking fresh bread for lunch and crafting all day.
When my boss cut my hours, at first I went in to a panic. How will we be able to afford a loss in my income? we are barely squeaking by each month as it is. On and on those types of thoughts went through my head. I have to admit though that the loss of hours has been so wonderful for our family, that now as my boss talks about adding back in some hours I get nervous. I don't want more hours (more money would be nice, of course!). I am enjoying the next best thing to being a stay-at-home-mommy - every single day of the week I drop my kids off at school and then three days each week I am off work in time to pick them up from school. On the days I pick them up from school, we go home and have homemade snacks, work on homework together, play games, and cook dinner together (sometimes). I love it. I get to work - which I really do enjoy AND get to be home with my kids when school is done.
Do I sometimes wish I could afford to stay home every day - sure do, but I will take what I can get for now!
When my boss cut my hours, at first I went in to a panic. How will we be able to afford a loss in my income? we are barely squeaking by each month as it is. On and on those types of thoughts went through my head. I have to admit though that the loss of hours has been so wonderful for our family, that now as my boss talks about adding back in some hours I get nervous. I don't want more hours (more money would be nice, of course!). I am enjoying the next best thing to being a stay-at-home-mommy - every single day of the week I drop my kids off at school and then three days each week I am off work in time to pick them up from school. On the days I pick them up from school, we go home and have homemade snacks, work on homework together, play games, and cook dinner together (sometimes). I love it. I get to work - which I really do enjoy AND get to be home with my kids when school is done.
Do I sometimes wish I could afford to stay home every day - sure do, but I will take what I can get for now!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
A little bit of this and that
We have had such nice weather over the last month or so, this week has brought some high winds but the temperature is still very nice. I have been walking a lot and getting some good exercise! Woo hoo! Love spring weather!
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Had been using an online program to store all my recipes but wasn't as happy with it as I wanted (it was free so you know what they say "you get what you pay for"!) so I decided to create a recipe folder on my home computer and store it on a flash drive. I finally got all my recipes put in only to have my neighbor give me a stack of cooking magazines - I will, no doubt, find more exciting recipes to try out!
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The kids have been invited to so many birthday parties lately I feel like we are constantly shopping for and wrapping up presents and driving all over to the different parties! I'm getting worn out!
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Spirit has been practicing a specific song on his guitar to play for the talent show, he is getting pretty good at it, but I am getting pretty sick of hearing that song over and over and over and over.....
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So when I volunteered to be the secretary for the PTO at school for next year, who knew they actually meant I needed to start now?!! It's ok, I have been having fun with it!
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Not related to the PTO secretary position, I volunteered to prepare a flyer for the school to advertise for a supply kit they are selling. No one told me until the day it was due, that it was MY responsibility to find someone to translate it to Spanish. So I asked the principal for some suggestions and every one was "too busy" to help me. So then the school secretary suggested Google Translator. I did that and then got nervous it wasn't accurate. When I took the Spanish and put it in the Google Translator and told it to give me the English on it... ya, it did NOT translate accurately! So I ended bribing the Spanish speaking school secretary to look at it. Only cost me a Starbucks - not bad. I am SO glad she looked at it because there were several things she changed! Well worth a Starbucks to me! Funny thing is, the person responsible for copying it emailed me asking how I got Martha to translate that for me so quickly because she "never does anything that fast for me!"
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Freaking out about what to do with the kids for summer daycare. I can't afford full time daycare for three kids and although the kids say the summer is short when you are the parent paying for daycare it is a LONG time!! 11 weeks of daycare is a lot and is extremely costly! I am hoping and praying for a mom I can swap care with OR a nice inexpensive college student to help me out!
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Well, that's all for now folks! Have a good day! :-)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Had been using an online program to store all my recipes but wasn't as happy with it as I wanted (it was free so you know what they say "you get what you pay for"!) so I decided to create a recipe folder on my home computer and store it on a flash drive. I finally got all my recipes put in only to have my neighbor give me a stack of cooking magazines - I will, no doubt, find more exciting recipes to try out!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The kids have been invited to so many birthday parties lately I feel like we are constantly shopping for and wrapping up presents and driving all over to the different parties! I'm getting worn out!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spirit has been practicing a specific song on his guitar to play for the talent show, he is getting pretty good at it, but I am getting pretty sick of hearing that song over and over and over and over.....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So when I volunteered to be the secretary for the PTO at school for next year, who knew they actually meant I needed to start now?!! It's ok, I have been having fun with it!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not related to the PTO secretary position, I volunteered to prepare a flyer for the school to advertise for a supply kit they are selling. No one told me until the day it was due, that it was MY responsibility to find someone to translate it to Spanish. So I asked the principal for some suggestions and every one was "too busy" to help me. So then the school secretary suggested Google Translator. I did that and then got nervous it wasn't accurate. When I took the Spanish and put it in the Google Translator and told it to give me the English on it... ya, it did NOT translate accurately! So I ended bribing the Spanish speaking school secretary to look at it. Only cost me a Starbucks - not bad. I am SO glad she looked at it because there were several things she changed! Well worth a Starbucks to me! Funny thing is, the person responsible for copying it emailed me asking how I got Martha to translate that for me so quickly because she "never does anything that fast for me!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Freaking out about what to do with the kids for summer daycare. I can't afford full time daycare for three kids and although the kids say the summer is short when you are the parent paying for daycare it is a LONG time!! 11 weeks of daycare is a lot and is extremely costly! I am hoping and praying for a mom I can swap care with OR a nice inexpensive college student to help me out!
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Well, that's all for now folks! Have a good day! :-)
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