Fully Stocked

I just got home from grocery shopping (at 9:45 pm) and I am exhausted. It takes me awhile to prepare my list, my coupons, etc. I usually go at night so that I don't have to bring the kids and I can take my time. Tonight I knew it was going to take awhile since I had a ton of stuff on my list. The whole time I was thinking how annoyed I was with all the people in the store and the fact that the store is always out of stuff at night and then I stopped. I realized that I needed to change my way of thinking. I need to be thankful for the fact that we can buy food, and that I have the time to coupon so I can save some money.

I had a cart full, I mean so full that things were spilling out. I pathetically pushed my cart up to the check out line and started unloading. I am slightly OCD and need to keep all the like items together. While I was arranging, a lovely old man in a suit came up behind me carrying a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of wine. I told him to go ahead of me for obvious reasons and he obliged. As he finished, he stopped for a moment, turned around and handed me a single carnation from his bouquet. He said, "Thank you. You are lovely, sweet young lady. Have a blessed holiday". It made my night.

I quickly went back to paying attention to the register and watched as the total kept rising. The total of $277.30 was way too high for me, so I passed the checker man my VIP card and my stack of coupons and watched the two men in line behind roll their eyes. I apologized for making them wait and we quickly were in a conversation about couponing. They both told me it wasn't worth the time. I respectfully disagreed and they asked if they could watch the total go down. I am by NO MEANS an extreme couponer, I have actually just been using one paper (plus the coupons my grandparents send me; my grandpa cuts them out for me and mails them to me:), but I like saving money. My total ended up being $157.22. I saved $120.00. Not extreme, but extremely helpful! The men both told me that they would maybe consider couponing now. Anyway, I got home and again started feeling irritated with all the unloading that I had to do and then did an attitude check again (this thinking positive stuff is hard). We are blessed. This is what it looked like when I got home:

Bags everywhere

And then my OCD kicks in again and I unload all the bags before I put anything away. I did get 4 cases of soda, but they are in the garage, but everything else gets put on the counter.

It was a good deal on cereal:)

This was my receipt:

Then I begin the tedious task of putting it all away. I wish my pantry was neat and organized, but the reality is, I have too much stuff food in there and if that shouldn't be a problem. Thank God we can feed our family.

A fully stocked pantry makes me happy

4 going on 16....

Anyone that had met my kids, know that they are not shy. They talk to anyone and everyone. Walking thorough Costco sometimes feels like we are in a parade because Delaney and Brody both say hello and wave to everyone they see. I am so happy that is their personality. I would hate for them to clam up anytime someone talks to them. Now don't get me wrong, Brody is a funny, funny little man, but Delaney has us belly laughing daily. Some of the things that come out of her mouth have us scratching our heads trying to figure out how she came up with it. Examples? Oh I am so glad you asked.

Lately looking through the Target toy catalog has been her fav past time. There is a battery operated car that she wants that is $149.00. I told her that is too much money and she would need to find something else that she loves. So, today we went to my parent's house so they could assess the tooth situation with Brody (another post) and this is how the conversation went:

Delaney:  "Granddaddy, I want this car that we can ride in that has two seats and a steering wheel but Mommy says it's too much money. Can you give her some money so she can go and buy it right now please?"



Seriously- how does she know to hit up Granddaddy already?

Later in the afternoon, she was still on this car thing. Eric was home and she was begging, like for real, begging for this thing. Here is the rest of the story:

Delaney: "Mommy, can we puleeeeezzzzzz go get this car?"
Me: "No. It costs too much money and you don't need it.
Delaney: "Maybe Santa will bring it to me. I want to tell Santa"
Me: "Well Santa will not be at the mall to meet the kids for a little while still."
Delaney: "Okay, well how bout Daddy puts on Santa clothes and you be Mrs Claus and I will sit on Daddy's lap cuz I am getting really tired of waiting for Santa at the North Pole"

AFTER a lot of laughing......

Delaney: "Well, maybe I can just build one. The workers can help me and I will do it all by myself. I will draw a smiley face on it with a pencil all by myself. Daddy, will you do it cuz Mommy won't let me have a pencil."

Like I predicted, Delaney wears her Rapunzel dress daily. It is already starting to tear. Kinda pisses me off, but oh well, what am I gonna do? Sew it? lol Anyways, she was jumping on the couch, which she knows she is not allowed to do and I tell her to stop.........

Me: "Delaney, seriously, knock it off or you will sit in time out"
Delaney: "Delaney's not here Rapunzel is."
Me: "Fine. Rapunzel STOP it now or you will go to time out"
Delaney: "Well. princesses don't go to time out and I don't remember seeing her go to time out on the TV."
Me: "Well, Rapunzel, Mother says stop it now or....'
Delaney: "You'll cut my hair? Not nice Mother. I am going back to Delaney."


And that folks, is just today. She is witty and smart and we are screwed.

Menu Plan Monday

So this menu takes us all the way until Thanksgiving! I am doing all my shopping on Thursday night so that I don't have to go back during the crazy hours!

Monday:  Chicken tortilla soup (from Costco), tortillas and salad

Tuesday: Mustard Dill Chicken (recipe below) , broccoli with cheese sauce, salad

Wednesday: Crock Pot Lasagna

Thursday: Chicken with broccoli and garlic sauce

Friday: Penne with roasted asparagus and balsamic butter

Saturday: Crock pot: Salsa Chicken, rice and corn

Sunday: At a family party

Monday: Crock pot: chicken and veggies

Tuesday: At mom's house to find out the sex of Danielle's baby

Wednesday: Chilli, tortillas and beer

Thursday:  Monkey bread for breakfast and then Thanksgiving dinner at Mom's

Friday: Mikkelson Thanksgiving at our house (menu to come later)

Yummy yummy in my tummy- to quote Brody man.


Mustard Dill Chicken (serves 4)

4 tbsp Dijon mustard
4 tbsp plain fat free yogurt
Dash of garlic salt
4 tsp dried Dill or rosemary
4 boneless, skinless, chicken breast

Preheat over to 350. Combine mustard, yogurt, garlic powder, and dill in a small bowl. Thoroughly coat chicken with mustard sauce. Tear off a large piece of aluminum foil. Place chicken in center of foil; gather foil loosely around chicken and fold to seal. Place on baking sheet; bake 20 minutes. Using oven mitts, open foil, keeping face away from steam. Broil chicken until lightly browned, 3-4 minutes more.



Let me know if you want any other recipes:)

The Little Things

I know that usually it's the little things that mean the most, and I totally agree. However, today it's the little things that are irritating the crap out me. My intention was to start the major organization, overhaul of the house today. See, I want the house in "ready to move" order. No, we are not moving, but I SO WANT TO! In my head, I have a vision of what it means to be ready to move, but I have quite a few days left in November, so that's a topic for a later post. The little things around the house drive me crazy. The little pieces that don't seem to ever stay in their home, the random piles, stuff on the counter.... oh my gosh, it gives me hives just thinking about it.
Here are a few areas in my house right now that need an overhaul:

Ok well my kitchen doesn't always look like this, but right now it does and it's driving me crazy!

The backyard: the kids have so much stuff out there, it's insane- and EVERYWHERE. It looks like the dollar store threw up all over- minus the big stuff, which is mostly turned over. Needs to change people!

This one kills me- this is the top of the fridge. Yes, that's Santa and Mrs Claus.

And that's Goof Off ^^

What the heck?

This is right next to the fridge- there is just crap all over.

Yeah, this one isn't small- this is our "Harry Potter closet". It is our ONLY closet, besides the ones in the bedrooms. No kidding- NO STORAGE in this stupid house. This is a major project that needs to be taken care of yesterday.

But you see.... these little things that are driving me crazy and are needed to be taken care of, were over shadowed by other little things. Little things that made today, great.

We started the day off with a cozy, rainy, gloomy looking morning, which I happen to LOVE. We went to church and had an awesome service. Honoring our veterans and learning about God's grace is not a bad way to start your morning. I do have to say though, that church was overflowing with BRAND new babies. Seriously, they were invading and I was having a hard time standing my ground (you know: NOT having any more kids), plus the girl next to us had a brand new, adorable baby boy and I think she was as skinny as Delaney- God was really testing me on my grace in that moment. Just sayin'. After church, we went to have breakfast at my parent's house where we played with the keyboard (I rocked Amazing Grace and The Star Spangled Banner) and then watched the kids dance to a Led Zeppelin RECORD, yes that's right, vinyl y'all!

When we got home, the kids went to sleep, I went to Kohl's with my mom for some shopping and when I got home, it was still cloudy, the kids were just getting up, I read the new US Weekly and watched my man, Brian Urlacher, kick some Lion butt.

(That's not Brian Urlacher, but that was the final score:)

 Delaney played with her babies, Brody played with his trains, they played with each other and the dogs were right there in the middle of it.

So you see, even though I have all these little things hanging over my head right now, I know that I

was supposed to ignore those today and be grateful for the little moments that I had with my family today. What a nice Sunday!

Btw... those irritating little things, WILL be taken care of soon!

Mickey Coffee

I just couldn't post yesterday- my day consisted of two trips to Target, plus all my normal "duties", plus I made about 35 cupcakes for a super dear friend of mine for her baby shower today. By 11:30- I was wiped and did not have the energy to even go upstairs and get my computer.

Today was a fun day! Breakfast out, a beautiful baby shower, followed by a relaxing afternoon. I was freezing near dinner time and went to look for my Chai Tea from Trader Joe's, but sadly, I was out. But, I did find a box of Nestle Hot Chocolate and got all warm inside just thinking about it. I am a hot chocolate girl! LOVE it! I realized that Delaney and Brody had never had it before, so I decided it was time! They were so excited to drink 'coffee' like Mommy and Daddy.

His mug has Mickey on it, so he kept calling it his "Mickey coffee'

Cheesy smile

Blowing on it (really just spitting)

Having a marshmallow out of his Mickey coffee

Drinking like a pro

He was hilarious to watch

The Mickey coffee- he wanted me to take a picture

So that's all. You are probably asking yourself, "Did she really just do a post on drinking hot chocolate? And she took that many pictures?" Yes folks, I did. It may be up there on the lame-o meter, but I thought it was a memorable occasion:) Maybe that's because I am kinda lame like that myself.

Christmas blessings and struggles

Christmas is BY FAR my most favorite time of the year. I LOVE it! I love the decorations, the smells, the family, the movies, pretty much everything. I am excited for this year! Brody and Delaney are at such a fun age! Just walking through Costco or Target is exciting with them as we saunter through the Christmas aisles. I have been jammin' the Josh Grobin's Christmas CD and the Very Merry Christmas Kidz Bop for the kids and they LOVE it- btw,when does the "Holidays and Happenings" channel start happening on DirecTV? Totally annoying. Anyway, this year were are determined to have a way less stressful Christmas season. I don't want to stress over the gifts, over how much we spent and how many presents are under the tree. I have a lot of shopping done- I like to buy clearance items throughout the year. I don't have everything done so what's remaining, I want to be fun. I want to have a date with Eric where we go to dinner and then shopping. I want to have a lunch date with my mom (and my dad if he wants to come) and then have a peaceful afternoon of shopping. I am bummed that I have so many gifts already because I am struggling with 'the true meaning of Christmas'. I want Christmas to be about family and memories, not about the quantity of gifts.
 Growing up, we were blessed. We always had big Christmas'. BUT, while the gifts we received were wonderful, I remember the things we did, more than what we got. Watching White Christmas each Christmas Eve is our family tradition. I will always remember different years doing it. One year, we thought our grandpa (my Granddaddy) was sound asleep when all of a sudden the song "Snow" came on and he belted it out! Scared the crap out of, but initiated the sing a long. My sister and I LOVE to sing the "Sisters" song and we drink hot chocolate, have popcorn and Grandma Ann's delectable chocolate Christmas cookies. I remember moments- like one year, my brother, sister and I got my parents a new coffee maker and being the sneaky sneaky kids we were, we snuck out in the middle of the night (after Santa had visited) and set up the coffee maker with the timer set to come on first thing in the morning. We even bought them new mugs and special holiday creamer. I loved that.
When we were younger (not last year, I promise) my sister (who is 7 years younger) would always sleep with me on Christmas Eve. We would set our alarm for some ridiculous time, like 3:00 am, go wake up our brother and then tip toe to the living room to see the goods. Then , we would excitedly run back to our rooms and re-set our alarms for 6:00. We would wake our parents and go out to the living room- where we were allowed to open our stockings until they had had their coffee. My mom ALWAYS made a big breakfast. We're talking eggs, bacon, toast, biscuits, everything. So yummy.
I also remember that we were pretty bummed one year, that we were not going to be able to have our normal Christmas Eve tradition because my dad had a trip. We ended up watching White Christmas a couple days early and to our complete surprise, Santa ended up coming that night! We woke up the next morning and had Christmas early, so my dad could be there.

Last Christmas

I want our kids to be excited about the traditions and the family time. That's why I feel like tons and tons of gifts take away from that. My friend's sister only give three gifts- like the wise men did. Something you need, something you want, and something to read. I also saw another version of this which was, something you want, something to read, something to wear, something you need. I dunno.... I feel conflicted!! Ahhh! Maybe we will adopt some version of that next year.... after we think about it and figure out how it will work. But this year, I will try my hardest to soak up every moment I can and make as many memories as possible.

To the lady.....

To the lady at Michael's who told me she wants to be a stay at home mom and do nothing all day and go shopping whenever I want:

Yes, I stay home with my kids. I understand this is a privilege and I don't take it for granted. This decision is also a sacrifice on our behalf. One income=less money. For the record, I DO NOT do nothing all day. I am the dishwasher (multiple times a day), the janitor, the pooper scooper, the chef (again multiple times a day), the laundromat, the organizer, the chauffeur, the tear drier, the encourager, the nurse, the maid, the dipaer changer, the potty trainer,  just to name a few of my jobs. I work my butt off keeping up with the kids, dogs and the finances. I run errands, make phone calls, cut coupons to save us money, and am constantly figuring out ways to spend less money. I teach my kids respect, love and responsibility. My work day, does NOT end at 5:00. I don't get a day off. I don't go shopping for pleasure with the kids (believe me) and btw, weren't YOU at Michael's at the SAME time as me? So you were shopping in the middle of the week in the middle of the morning too. Weird.

Do I get to sit down and watch TV? Yeah sometimes- don't you get a lunch break? When you have kids that are 18 months apart, or even 5 years  apart, whatever it may be, I hope you get the opportunity to stay home with your kids and you remember the comment you made to me this morning. Let's see how much 'nothing' you do.

Sincerely,

The Stay at Home Mom

**End of rant**

Some strange stuff....

Since becoming a mom, I have noticed things that I had never noticed before. Strange things. Unsettling things. Amazing things. And some things I chose to ignore BK (before kids).

It's strange that:

there is some kind of button on all the toilets in the house that sends out a signal to both the kids and Eric. Instantly, I sit, the button is triggered and "Mommy" or "Nicole" is yelled.

silence is more terrifying than screaming.

the kids don't listen to anything I say, but can repeat what I whispered to someone on the phone.

there is also a button on the inside of my eyelids that no doctor has diagnosed that wakes up both of the kids the second my eyes are closed.

sweat pants aren't sexy to some people.

It's unsettling:

to listen to your daughter have an adult conversation with a baby because that's how she heard you talk. Oops.

to smell sheets to see if there was an accident during the night that may have dried (not in your bed, duh)

to say put the poop down, over and over and over and over.

to eat your words, over and over and over

Omg look at those thighs... this was right before he started walking- before the storm:)

It's amazing:

to watch your son and daughter read all the letters and say all the sounds of the alphabet.

to watch your daughter write her name for the first time.

to see all the random people say hello to you son and daughter (by name) at church while they are racing into their classrooms.

to go into their rooms at night, right before you go to bed, and tuck them in one last time.

that they love you so much.

that you are the example that they look up to.

to watch them grow everyday.

when they tell you, "Good night, I lub you, sweet dreams".

They were so little!

Menu Plan Monday November 7-12

It's Monday and I am proud to say that I have had all our meals planned since last Friday! I am trying really hard to stay organized and not spend ANY money on fast food or restaurants. Here is my menu for the week!

Monday:  Chicken roll- ups, rice, broccoli with cheese sauce

Tuesday:  Cilantro Lime Pesto Tacos, Spanish rice and salad

Wednesday:  Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken, Normandy veggies and butter noodles

Thursday: Chicken Lo Mein

Friday:  Crock pot meal:  Italian Chicken

Saturday: Tortellini and salad

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the kids have either cereal or a pop tart and some fruit. On Tuesday and Thursday, they have waffles, french toast, eggs, etc. The weekends we make a big brunch:)

Lunch is usually leftovers, chicken nuggets, hot dogs or mac and cheese:)

Now I am so ready for dinner!

It happens....

At least that's what I tell myself. Today has been a day. I should have known it was going to be a doozy when the moment I walked downstairs this morning, the playroom was trashed and the kids were screaming at each other (Eric was up with them, don't worry).

I am a stay at home mom. Yes, I sell Premier Jewelry and do jewelry shows outside of the house, but my first job, my first priority is being a stay at home mom with my kiddos. I feel very fortunate that I get to stay home with them each day. Is it easy? Hell to the no! It is exhausting from the second I wake up until they go to sleep, and a lot of times, in the  middle of the night!

Today, was not my finest parenting day. But it happens (right??) Today, I realized it was 10:00 and they hadn't eaten breakfast yet. They had been snacking on some friut- they each eat an apple like an 80 year old man, but they hadn't had breakfast. Usaually, we eat at 8:30 but 8:30 came and went with screams and kids playing outside in the cool morning air. It's always enjoyable to look out the screen door and see your son using his front loader tractor toy to scoop up dog poop while your daughter is the roof of the playhouse- in their jammies. ALthough I must say, we had a lovely time playing with Delaney's Strawberry Shortcake dolls. We were dressing them, doing their hair and then Brody would take one and put her on a train or on T-Rex. Good times were had.  Around 11:30, I realized that lunch needed to happen, mainly because Brody kept asking for dinner. I made them the standard, dinosaur chicken nuggets, ranch for dipping, applesauce, pretzels and cheese. They both climbed into their seats and I realized that I had homeless children. Seriously, I should have taken a picture , but was so horrified by the black crap all over their face, that I just washed them off as fast as I could. At this point, I also realize that we are all still in our jammies and not one of us had brushed our teeth. I pulled Delaney's hair back into a low ponytail because it is so full of apple, banana, ranch, that I couldn't even get a brush through it (should be fun later).

Riding her bike, in her night gown.

He kept getting stuck in the bucket and the arm of the chair.

After lunch, I decided to jump in the shower really quickly and get dressed. Now, when I say dressed, I mean I put on my "cuter" yoga-ish pants with a comfy shirt, put my wet hair in a ponytail and slapped on some make-up. It was nap time- the kids weren't dressed, the house looked like a bomb went off, I hadn't done anything.

A little play room action- yes, the couch has been moved.

Even Tinkerbell got the wrath of Brody today. We looked everywhere for her.

Not rotated, but you get the idea. Stuck in the drawer pull in the kitchen

Back to the playroom.....even their play kitchen was moved closer to the front door because that is where you "come in to the store"

 It happens. Getting the kids to sleep for their nap today was exceptionally difficult.   At one point I was sitting in
Brody's room with my head bowed, my hands folded and was literally praying for patience and peace. Brody thought it was hilarious and was mocking me, but I think God felt bad after that, because he literally fell asleep.Boom- out. Like someone pressed his pressure point or something. I had to check him to make sure he was breathing. God is good:)

During their nap, instead of working on my Premier stuff, folding clothes, or cleaning, I got a plate of cut up apples, a ton of peanut butter, some chocolate milk, and I sat on the couch, turned on Christmas Vacation and got cozy in a blanket. I know all the chores will be waiting for me tomorrow and I know I can't go another day being so lazy.

But, it happens.....

Pumpkin Pickin

Our annual trip to pumpkin happened the day before Halloween again this year. It is so funny how empty it is so close to Halloween. We went to Apple Annie's again, although next year we will be taking the trip to Agua Linda. The first thing we did was immediately get on the hay ride to go pick our pumpkins. Brody saw the tractor the second we pulled up and there was no way we were doing anything else first.

Delaney's pose kills me

He loves his Mummy.... hehehe

He was super excited!

So was she!

Once we arrived at the pumpkin patch, Delaney was instantly irritated because she was not allowed to hold the massive cutters that could chop her arm off, so finding the "perfect pumpkins" went a little quicker than usual.

Getting the two of them to look is impossible

She got to at least help Daddy with the cutters

Delaney's pumpkin

Brody helping Daddy

Brody's pumpkin

Apparently we were keeping Brody up...

Back to the cutters again...

I was there too!

When we got back from the hayride, the kids played in the corn kernels for a bit and then we went to eat some food. BUT there was no food to eat! All they had was Kettle Korn and snow cones. We got both:) The bees decided that they loved the snow cones and thus forced us to throw the yummy snow cones into the bee infested trash cans. 

She was freaking out!

Eric decided that he wanted some produce so Delaney and I hung out while the boys did some shopping. Brody helped Eric do it all! Seriously melted my heart. He was so proud of himself.

Another pumpkin picking day in the history books:)