He Is NEVER Allowed To Leave Again

I have no pictures to go along with this post, and for that you should be thankful.

I have a gross, disgusting story to tell you.  I'm warning you right now that you probably don't want to read this.  Leave now if you must.

Earlier this week, Brian had to go out of town for two days.  He rarely ever has to travel with his job, so I am not accustomed to having him away, especially during the week.  A few years back, he had to be gone for a whole week THREE DIFFERENT TIMES, and it was awful.  Every time he leaves, something goes wrong.  One time, we had a car problem situation.  Another time, we had a leak in our roof.  Seriously, something goes wrong every single time.  So I guess I should have expected that this time would be no different.

He left at the ungodly hour of 5:00 am.  So I was pretty much awake from then on, and I actually got up early.  I should stop here to tell you that I have the best husband in the world.  What? I've already told you that? Well, here's further proof.  He always makes the kids lunches, helps them with breakfast, and takes the dog out/feeds him every morning.  I knew it would be a little harder without his help, but I got up early, remember?

It was so nice to wake up to an upset stomach (mine).  I'm sure it was just my nerves anticipating what was about to unfold.  I had no choice but to start getting ready anyway.  I took the dog outside, then went back up to put my makeup on.  Then I heard both kids yelling, "Yuck, Max stinks!"  That usually means that he has diarrhea.  You see where this is going, right?  Before I could even get in the next room, I heard, "Oh no, it's on my bed!" That's right, dog diarrhea on Parker's quilt.  Clean up began.  Then I tried to get Max into the bathroom so I could clean him up.  He got scared because he thought I was going to give him a bath.  So he ran down the steps, peeing ALL THE WAY DOWN ON EVERY STEP.  Clean up continued.  As I was cleaning the steps, Claire was yelling that a huge spider is in the hallway about to eat her alive.  Spider killing commenced.  So by that time, it was 30 minutes from time we needed to leave, and I was not at all ready, the kids hadn't had breakfast, and lunches weren't packed.  I finally got my upset stomach self pulled together enough to get dressed.

When I finally made it downstairs to get us all out the door, I went to Max's crate to get his bone out for him.  You don't even want to know what I found in there.  Throw up.  Dog throw up.  Everywhere.  When I tried to lift his blanket out that contained the mess, the throw up went all over the floor.  So I started crying.  What else was there to do?  I gagged and cried and cleaned.  And then I gagged some more.  Unbelievably, we made it to school  on time.

And that was just Day One.

(I am thankful to report that Max is all better.  I am all better.  The quilt survived.  The steps look just as dirty as always, but not any worse.  No more spiders have been spotted.  Best of all ~ Brian is back home with us, and all is right with the world.)

Well It Appears I Have Some Catching Up To Do

I guess I've been a tiny bit busy.  

(Understatement of the century)

I don't like busy.  It's not cool.  It's just life sometimes I guess.

So let's head back to last weekend for a few minutes, if you will...

Just a sweet picture of Brian and Claire watching tv:

I just noticed that empty 2 liter sitting beside on the table beside the chair.  I have no idea why it's there, but I assure you we don't sit and drink out of 2 liters while watching tv. Unless it's National 2 Liter Day, in which case, Party On! 

 Saturday morning brought out some old school toys:

 And this good ol' pirate made an appearance.  He came in and said, "Would you like a piece of my booty?"

I kid you not.

 I'm not sure how this happened.  But it did.  And I own it.

 At some point, we had the return of the redneck water slide. 

Oh, yes we did.

 Care to take a guess?

 Bacon macaroni and cheese.  For real.  Oh emm gee.

Please take note of the fancy dinnerware.  That's right, I bring out the good stuff for Labor Day.

 Parker had a little project to do for school.

 Edible Animal Cell

 Labor Day led us to Chuck E. Cheese for a little fun and games.

 Then Juliet spent the night on the floor beside me.  In Claire's words, "She freaks me out when she looks at me in the night".  For the record, I didn't notice Juliet looking at me in the night when she stayed in my room. She has since moved back to Claire's bed.

So there you go.  Random pictures from last weekend.  I know your life is now complete.

Recipes Galore!

Here are more of the recipes that a few people have requested:

Oreo Extravaganza

1 (8oz) softened cream cheese
3 1/2 cups cold milk
2 small boxes instant vanilla pudding mix
1 tub Cool Whip
1 pkg Oreos (crushed)
1 stick melted butter

Mix crushed Oreos and butter in a gallon bag.  Put in bottom of 9x13 pan saving 1/2 cup of the mixture for the top.  Blend in mixer the cream cheese with milk and pudding.  Pour over cookies.  Top with Cool Whip and reserved Oreos.  Refrigerate.

I usually layer this in a trifle dish, but it's easier just to make in the 9x13 dish.
(From an old Sunday School cookbook)

Stuffed Shells

18-20 jumbo pasta shells
15 oz ricotta cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 lb hamburger meat
1 egg
2 Tbsp. dried parsley flakes
1 jar spaghetti sauce (I use Hunt's because I hate chunky sauce)
Various other Italian spices
Extra cheese for top (however much you want!)

Beat egg, stir in ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, and parsley flakes.  Brown hamburger, add jar of sauce, and other spices to taste.  Spray a 9x13 dish with Pam and pour 1 cup of the sauce/meat mixture on the bottom. Cook pasta according to directions on the box and drain.  Use cheese mixture to stuff the shells and line them in the pan.  When finished, pour the remaining sauce mixture over shells and sprinkle with extra mozzarella and Parmesan cheese on top.  Back covered for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.  Take the cover off and bake an additional 5 minutes.

I usually serve this with salad and garlic bread.  I got this recipe from the same Sunday School cookbook, but I adapted it by adding the meat, extra spices, and extra cheese.  Because that's how I roll.

One last thing...

Someone recently asked me for the recipe for Brian's winning Pioneer Woman chicken recipe.  I'm just going to add the link here because it's way easier than retyping the whole recipe.  Plus, you can see the other winning recipes too if you want!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/06/grillin-recipe-contest-winner-videos/

Enjoy! I'd love to know if you end up making any of these yummy recipes!

Spinach Dip

I've had a few people request some of the recipes that I have "featured" (ha!) on this little blog o' mine.  So I'm starting with Spinach Dip.  I owe all the credit to my friend Wendy who introduced me to this dish of sin.  Now, you should know up front that it is not like Cheddar's at all in my opinion.  It is different, yet it is still oh so yummy.  And fattening.  But heavenly.  I could eat the whole baking dish.  It sometimes hurts my belly it's so good.  You get the point.

Spinach Dip

1 cup mayonnaise (Duke's, because it's the creamiest i.e. most fattening)

1 cup sour cream

1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 10oz chopped spinach (drained)

1-1 1/2 tsp minced garlic

Combine in a big bowl.  Put in 8x8 pan and sprinkle the top with some extra parmesan cheese.  Because a little extra cheese never hurt anyone.  On second thought, it probably did, but sprinkle anyway.  Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.  Then eat your heart out! (Hopefully, it won't cause a heart attack with all that fat!)

You're welcome.

Last Weekend

Last weekend was fun! Parker went to a friend's birthday party at the lake.

Claire and I went shopping.  We stopped for a little snack.

 Earlier this summer, we read the first book from The Chronicles of Narnia called The Magician's Nephew.  After we finished it, we read this:

We enjoyed it a lot! We finished the book last week, so we wanted to watch the movie.

If you've read the book, you may remember the reference to Turkish Delight.  Well, Turkish Delight is actually candy.  I wanted to have something for dinner that went along with the book.  So I present to you our very own version of Turkish Delight...

We couldn't exactly have candy for dinner, so we made something very delightful out of turkey.  Now just look at that sandwich.  If that doesn't make you feel delightful, then I don't know what would!  Healthy, it was not, but scrumptious was it's name-o.

We ate outside because it was such a nice evening.  

Then we watched the movie.  Brian was there for all of these happenings, but somehow didn't make it in any of the pictures.

Sunday, we went to church of course.  Parker camped out in the coveted chair after the service.

Claire and Lucy Cate had on their matching dresses.  

Then we went to lunch with family.  

Sunday afternoon, the kids went swimming for what might be one of the last times this summer.  Then, I got to see My Little Bible Study Group (MLBSG) one last time before Rachael moved away.  (Sadness inserted here.) I don't have any pictures of swimming or MLBSG though! Guess I was having too much fun!

We Made It!

We made it through the first full week of school! YAY!!! It was a really good week, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tired.  It's crazy how quick I can forget how much first graders change during a year's time.  It was only a couple of months ago that I was teaching little people at the END of first grade.  Well, let's just say they are very different at the end of the year than at the beginning.  Basically, they are still Kindergartners when they walk through that door at the beginning of school.  They are sweet, precious cuties for sure but also very dependent on me for everything.  I do mean everything!  It's so amazing to see how much they learn and mature during the year.  For now though, it is so exhausting.  

In addition to teaching all day this week, I had several meetings after school.  PLUS, I got the privilege of parking cars for the fair in our school lot.  I really didn't mind because it is for a great cause.  However, it was hot!

Here's my friend Wendy trying to get people to park with us.

 Shannon was trying too! (I was the money girl)

There's Wendy directly Kellie Pickler's bus!

 But Mrs. Maupin (our principal) really knows how to get the job done. 

 She just gets out in the middle of the road and doesn't give them any choice but to park with us!

 I also had to ride a bus one day this week, so I just got on at my house!

 (Teachers have to ride a bus once a year)

So all in all, it was a great week.  I love my sweet class and am so thankful for my job.  I think I forgot to mention that I got to move back to the school where I taught before I had the kids.  It's also where Parker and Claire go to school, so our life just got a whole lot easier.  I always felt like I missed out on a lot of stuff not being in the same building as them.  I've known all summer that I was getting to transfer, but I think I was afraid to believe it.  It just seemed too good to be true! I really loved the school I was teaching in, but I definitely wanted to go back "home"!

(Which reminds me...I need to show you some pictures of my new classroom.)

Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good Dogs?

Max REALLY doesn't like taking a bath.  He learned the word bath a long time ago, so we have to spell it now.  In fact, I'm pretty sure he's learning what B-A-T-H means these days too.  He doesn't fight and try to get out of the tub though.  What a good boy! He just stands there like a statue the whole time.

"It's not too late Mama,  please help me"

"Oh no, here it comes"

"I'll just freeze and maybe they'll forget I'm here"

"I really don't like this"

"Get that camera out of my face"

"I can't believe you're letting this happen"

"I think  it's almost over"

"Nope, I was wrong"

"It's got to end soon"

"I definitely deserve a treat"