My Compost Bins

I finally got around to taking the pictures off my camera.

Drumroll please......Soooo exciting.

Here are the 2 Compost bins that a guy at work gave me. Please ignore the weeds that are taking over. The weed cutting is Hubb's job and he is still gone.






Yes, one is already full. I have no clue what I am doing. All I know is that everything can go in it except meat, dairy and fish. And it has to stay sorta wet and hot and I have to mix it up once in a while.

I never thought I would be so excited about garbage!

To My Friends In Texas

I hope you all are safe and sound and away from the hurricane!

Holy Ear Infections Batman!

Monk Man went to the doctor this morning because I thought he had an ear infection again. I was right.

The doctor gave us a prescription for some more antibiotics and ear drops. Then he dropped the ball. The thing I have been dreading ever since Monk Man got his first ear infection.

Doc looked at me and said "I am pretty sure he is going to need ear tubes and he needs to see a specialist for that".

My heart dropped into my stomach and I tried my hardest not to cry.

Shit. Shit. Shit!

So I called the specialist this afternoon and got us an appointment for August 19th. At the time, I thought Hubbs would be back from Iowa. As it turns out, he wont be back until at least the 21st or somewhere around there.

Great. I have to take Monk Man alone.

I did some reading on WebMD about ear tubes and it is not as bad as I thought it was. I mean, it is still a big deal but I feel a little better.

It is him going under general anesthesia that I am worried about. I was only under anesthesia once (for a plastic surgery procedure) but that was enough to know that it was not something I wanted to go through again for a very long time.

The puking. The dream like feeling. The panic when it clicks that it is too late to change your mind. Realizing that you have little to no memory of anything that happened in the hours after the surgery. Not being in control.

That scares the hell out of me.

I really don't want to put him through a surgery so young. But what other choice do I have? I cant keep giving him antibiotics because sooner or later they will stop working. Plus people will look at him funny if I put him in a germ resistant bubble. And I cant handle letting him get another ear infection.

I am definitely going to do some more research to make sure there is no other option.

So if anyone has any suggestions, I am all ears.

I got my bag!!!!

Do you remember my post about getting a new bag from MDU?

Well I got home just now and it was waiting for me on my porch. That was way fast shipping.

I am so happy! I love it. It is big enough to fit all my junk in but not too big that I feel like I am carrying a diaper bag. And it has a flap to keep everything from falling out.

Ooooohhhh. Aaaahhhhh. Its pretty.

So if anyone ever happens to see me and my Coupon Diva bag at Wal-Mart, stop me and say HI!

Off to transfer the junk from my old purse to my new one.

I Hate

crossing the street.

I had to go to the Post Office for work today. Now normally, I don't have to cross any streets but due to some kind of road work, I couldn't get into the parking lot at the Post Office. So I parked across the street by the stoplight.

Ok. Let me set the scene a little more vividly so you can properly imagine my hatred.

It is Friday. It is lunch time. It is also hot and humid. I have been at home all morning with the boys because no one was going to be around to watch them until this afternoon. So I am worn out and cranky. And because of the road work, 3rd Street (normally a 2 laned, 1 way street) was turned into a 1 laned, 1 way street and traffic was backed up for at least 3 blocks.

So getting to the Post Office was fine. I just waited until there was enough of a lull in the traffic flow to get across the street. But trying to get back to my car from the Post Office was no good. There were no lulls in the traffic, the cross-walk signals suck so I just had to wait until someone stopped and let me walk across. Luckily someone did stop driving so I could cross the street.

But the whole time I was standing there waiting, I felt like everybody has their eyes on me. I don't like that at all. I mean, I was seriously uncomfortable. It is a really small town and I feel like I know almost everybody so it wasn't like I was in any danger or anything. I was just super weirded out for some reason.

Believe it or not, I don't like to be the center of attention. That is why I take at least 1 of my boys with me whenever I go somewhere. Lately, it has been both. And that draws the attention away from me.

My Hair

got stuck in the door at work. Again.



Yeah, it isn't the first time and I doubt it will be the last.



My hair is long. I am 5 foot 7 inches tall and my hair touches my pants line.



I think the last time I cut it was when I was pregnant with Monk Man, sooooo it has been around 3 & 1/2 years. I need it trimmed soon.



My hair gets caught in EVERYTHING. Car doors, Bobblehead's fingers, the refrigerator, packing tape. You name it, my hair has probably been caught in it. The best is when it gets rolled up in the seat belt when I try to take it off. That's fun.



So here is a picture. Please ignore the stringy-ness.

I Confess

I spent some money on myself on Friday. And then again today.

I hardly ever spend money on myself. I am working so hard to get my debt under control that I forget that I need stuff too. I have no problems spending money on Hubbs or on the boys.

So while I was cruising Ebay for stuff for the other people in my life I decided to just peek at one of the things I used to buy on a regular basis. Jeans. More specifically, Plastic by GLY.

Plastic are the most comfortable, flaw hiding, wear like steel jeans I have ever had. After birthing 2 good sized babies (wow how hillbilly does that sound?), I have 1 pair of Plastics that still fit. And it makes me sad that the other pairs (like 15 pairs) don't fit and never will again.

So I bought 3 new-to-me pairs of jeans. I got a pair of Plastic, a pair of Stone Age, and a pair of X2. Total with shipping? $47.95 Score! Plastic jeans usually run $65-75 a pair brand new. Super bargain.

Then, this morning I was stopping by MDU to check out the latest snark and I found out that they have set up a store! Awesome!!!! So I bought myself this new bag. It shows off my new found love of coupons.

Joyce, this is for you

Lets try this again.

Nesting Update

Naaawww. I didn't even come close to getting all that done.

I did get all my laundry washed and dried. But not put away. That's the part I hate the most.

That's it. I know, horrible. Oh! And I did all the dishes.

But.....One of the guys I work with is a big gardener. He got a new-to-him composter thing that spins so he brought his old bins to me for my compost.

I am sooooo freaking excited. I can now move my compost pile into round bins. I meant to take pictures this morning but I got distracted by the kids. I promise I will get some pics tomorrow, just in case anyone is as excited (or even close to it) as I am.

I have to go to Walmart today after I get off work because I have coupons that are going to expire in the next couple of days. So maybe I will pick up some shelves while I am there.

Nesting

I have this overwhelming urge to nest. Like the crazy, whole body consuming type of nesting I did when I was pregnant.

This is what I want to do:

I want to make a trip to Walmart and buy a couple of new bookshelves for the books and Playstation games.

I want to *gasp* do laundry.

I want to re-organize my pantry and throw everything expired in the compost pile.

I want my fabric that I bought from ebay to show up so I can start making the blankets for the boys.

I want to mop.

I want to shampoo my carpets.

I want to hang more pictures.
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I NEVER want to clean. Never. I would rather be outside in the garden than be stuck in the house doing "domestic stuff". That being said, my house is never dirty, just messy/cluttered. But who has time to have a spotless house with 2 kids, 2 dogs and a mean Internet addiction?

My mom, that's who. But she is only addicted to Soap Operas and has 3 grown children that still live at home and know how to clean up after themselves.

Today, I want to send the kids to Nonnies so I can turn up the Nine Inch Nails and have all day to clean.

Last weekend I about went crazy cleaning the bathroom. It is still all sparkly and clean smelling.
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Well, I am off to find a cd, get the kids occupied with the TV and clean like a pregnant chick. I hope you all have a good weekend. I will post my progress on Sunday night or Monday. If the cleaning fumes don't kill me.

Someone has been RAOKing me

Our trash days are Monday and Thursday. I remember to roll out the trash about once a month if I am lucky. I am pretty sure it pisses Hubbs off to no end since he ends up being the one who has to do it.

Lately, I have been doing really well with remembering. For the past 2 weeks I have remembered all 4 trash days. Ever since Hubbs has been gone, someone in the neighborhood has been rolling my trash can back up my driveway for me.

How nice huh!

I wish I knew who it was. I would take over a plate of fudge or cookies or something to thank them.

Stupid Dogs

My stupid dogs, Molly and Duke, just learned something new about dish soap. They have a fascination with bubbles. Whenever the boys or I am taking a bath, they barge in the bathroom and lick up whatever bubbles they can before I throw them back out.

I was finishing up the dishes and a puff of bubbles landed on the floor. Well they both licked it and Molly started gagging and Duke just kept licking the air.

Hello? Just because the soap SMELLS like apples, it doesn't mean it will TASTE like apples.

McDonalds

I normally dont like commercials but this one made me laugh until I almost pee'd my pants.

McDonalds Chicken Dance

Christmas Presents

Its that time of year again. Its time for me to start thinking about Christmas presents and how I am going to pay for everything.

I usually wait until the week before Christmas to order presents and pictures for the Scrapbooks, even though I start feeling the internal nagging to start doing this stuff in the summertime. Summertime, when the prices are low and I have the time to start my projects.

Last year I really screwed up. I ordered everything (like almost $700 worth) from Kohls around Thanksgiving. Part of my order showed up, another part got lost and the most important parts got cancelled. PANIC!!!!!! And lots of crying and stressing. I sent nice emails. I sent angry emails. Every day. I called and was nice. I called and was mean. Also every day. I called and told them I was never going to shop in their stores again and neither would any of my friends and family. None of it did any good. They suck.

So a few days before Christmas, I had to go buy presents to replace the ones that never showed up. That was fun.

Kohls had no explanation about why they cancelled some of the order and where the rest of my order had ended up. They tried to blame UPS but the tracking service showed that the packages were still sitting on Kohl's shipping dock.

After bothering them every single day for months, I finally got a refund. In February. Yes, February.
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So this year, I am feeling that urge to start the Christmas shopping already. And I am buying all the stuff right now so that I have no excuse to put it off until November again. I hope.

I cant wait until the stuff from Ebay that I ordered today. I have to talk to Hubbs about a few more things but I am sure I will get my way since he really does not ever want anything to do with shopping. The less he has to do with it, the better, or so he thinks.

4th Of July

I just wanted to wish everyone a safe and happy 4th of July!

Fail Blog

Another site dedicated to LoL-type pictures. It is part of the Cheezeburger network (?). So check it out. Fail Blog Funny shit.

Ok, I know this is the BBC like British Broadcasting but I saw it and thought BBC as in Babycenter. Look:


see more pwn and owned pictures

And for the record, babycenter IS hiring.

Another Walking Disaster Post

I just noticed the paint is in my sandals and I have yellow splatters on my feet. Niiiiice. My paisley Birks have a yellow accent now.

I wonder what else is going to go wrong today.

I am a walking disaster today

Its barely 9:00 AM and I have already decided that I should have stayed in bed and called in spastic (its like calling in sick but being honest).

We received a piece of glass and I needed to write what vehicle it fits. So I took one of the "Big glASS" paint markers from the counter and went into my parts room. When I took the lid off, the whole freaking top part came off and the paint spilled all over 3 windshields, the ground and my hands. Luckily our detail guy came to my rescue and said he would take care of cleaning the shit up.

Now my hands are Sponge Bob yellow. How attractive. Thankfully I only have a half day of work because of the holiday tomorrow. I think that if I had to be here longer than absolutely necessary, I might accidentally burn the damn building to the ground.

Such a Mean Mommy

I am such a mean mommy. Friday night I decided that I had enough.

Enough of what?

FIL bought Monk Man a humongous bag of candy a few months ago. Hubbs and I decided that it would be best if we put the bag of candy out of the reach of Monk Man. So the bag of candy ended up on top of the refrigerator.

The top of the refrigerator is our catch all for the things we don't want the kids to have access to. You would be amazed at the variety of stuff up there. Taken away toys, DVDs, candy, sheets of stickers.

Anyway, Monk Man has figured out that if he adjusts the computer chair to its highest seat setting and pushes it against the front of the refrigerator, he can climb up onto the counter and get stuff off the top of the refrigerator.

Every time my attention was directed at anything other than Monk Man, he was sneaking another piece of candy. So I took the whole bag of candy (what was left of it that is) and threw it all in the dumpster. Every last piece.

My reasons for doing so:
1) He has gotten in the habit of snacking all damn day. It is to the point that he wont eat ANYTHING I cook. All he wants is candy.
2) I have really shitty teeth. I have had problems with them my whole life. I spend more time at the dentist than a normal person. I am really worried that Monk Man has inherited my bad teeth genes. If he did, all the sugar that Monk Man eats is going to make the teeth rot out of his head. He already has some discoloration.
3) He will not take naps for me. I love my naps on the weekends. I am not human unless I get a nap at least 1 out of the 2 days. I am hoping that without all the sugar, he will nap with me.
4) On the rare occasion that I give in and buy him a piece of candy in the future, it will seem like a treat not something that is expected.

I really hope that I am doing the right thing.

But with my luck, when he is an adult I am going to find out that he is harboring some sort of twisted hatred towards me for throwing his candy away.

Another Earth?

I read this MSN.com article Earth's Twin. It was really interesting.

A quick summary: Scientists are really close (like 5 or so years) to finding a planet that is supposedly exactly like Earth. They have already found 3 "super Earths". Which basically means that the planets are bigger than our Earth but small enough to have mountains. Scientists have already found multiple Jupiters and Saturns and are close to having the technology to find smaller planets like Uranus and Neptune.



Taken from the article: "We are looking for twins of the Earth, analogs that walk and talk and smell like our own Earth," Marcy said during a telephone interview. He is currently looking for super-Earths using the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii.

Such a twin would be rocky, with a similar chemical composition to Earth, and would orbit within the habitable zone of its star.

The habitable zone defines the distance at which a planet must orbit from its star for liquid water to exist on its surface — not too hot like Venus, not too cold like Neptune or Pluto.

Astronomers have found planets orbiting pretty close to the habitable zone, but none so far within it.

"I suspect there are Earth-like planets with lakes and rivers and waterfalls and deep glacial gorges and that are spectacularly beautiful," Marcy said.

Finding a planet in the habitable zone is the first step toward finding alien life.

"When we say it's a habitable world, all we're doing is saying it potentially could hold life," Boss said. "To go beyond that to say, 'Here's a habitable world; is it inhabited,' then you need to start studying the atmosphere of the planet."
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Ok, science lesson over.



This seriously freaks me out. Maybe I have ready too many Stephen King or Dean Koonce stories and watched too many Sci-Fi movies. Maybe? Hell, probably.



I think we need to leave the other planets alone. Messing with "alien life" is only asking for problems. I don't see things turning out well.



Its like poking a strange dog through the fence. You might get bitten, you might not. It really isn't a chance that I am willing to take.



And for anyone who is thinking "Oh but we could use the other planet's natural resources", stop right there. Why even consider destroying another planet? We have done enough damage on our OWN planet.

Dumbass

Man convicted of murder in train derailment Article from msn.com

So this guy parked his SUV on the train tracks and tried to commit suicide. Well, instead of killing him, the only thing accomplished was wrecking 2 trains. Dude is still alive but the train wreck killed 11 passengers and injured 180. This week, he was convicted of murder as well as arson.
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I say GOOD! Dumbass.

Growing up in a railroader family and going on to marry a railroader, I learned VERY young about what happens if you mess with a train.

DON'T PARK ON TRAIN TRACKS! Ever. Please.

If you want to commit suicide, please, for other people's safety, don't use a train.

I consider it common sense but I guess some people are just stupid. shrug

I just had the strangest sense of dejavu

Weird. If I come back on here and say that the shop got robbed, the dejavu was real.

Just saying, watch the news.

Tact, My Family Lacks It

Well, 2 specific people lack it.

My Grandmother lacks tact and my little sister lacks tact as well. I love giving examples.
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I walked into my moms house Thursday morning and the first thing out of Grandma Vi's mouth was, "I hope your husband isn't in the part of Iowa that is having the tornado's".

Wait, huh? Ummm thanks Grandma.

Like I don't have enough shit to worry about. Its hard enough that Hubbs is gone. But honestly, he is 1300 miles away, what the hell can I do about tornado's.

Freaking THINK before you open your mouth.
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When I was picking up Monk Man and Bobblehead on Wednesday, Grandma Vi was visiting with a long time family friend, Mrs. B.

Mrs. B. has known us since forever and is probably one of the nicest ladies in the world.

Mrs. B. brought gifts for Bobblehead and for KKs baby.

I took Bobbleheads gift, opened it, gushed about how cute the clothes were and thanked her. That is what you are supposed to do.

KK (my youngest sister) came out of her room and went into the bathroom. As soon as she came back out, Grandma Vi told her, "Come in here, just for a minute, Mrs. B. has a present for the baby".

KK whined back at her while storming down the hallway, "Iiiii'mmm tooooo tiiiiirrrreeeeddddd".

It took everything I had not to tell her what an ungrateful, lazy bitch she was. Yeah, it takes less than 5 seconds to turn around, walk back down the hall into the living room and say "Thank you Mrs. B."!
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Ok, I get that she is on bed rest. I get it, I really do. But that is no excuse to act like she does. My mom tells me to give her a break because she is a single, pregnant, scared little girl. No! Give ME a freaking break!

First off, I don't blame Baby's Daddy for not wanting to be around right now. Every time the 2 of them even text each other, it ends in a fight. He has tried to be around. He went to OBGYN visits for a while but he eventually got tired of being yelled at and told to go away. So he did. He is more than willing to step up and be a daddy to KKs baby if she decides to be human ever again.

Second, little girl? Uh, no. She is 20 years old. She acts like a little kid because my mom allows her to act like a little kid. I could never put up with that crap.
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Ugh. I am so ready to cut ties from my side of the family. Except, FIL already does not see Monk Man and Bobblehead unless someone is visiting and he feels the need to show my kids off. It would suck for the kids if I had to walk away from another set of grandparents. I don't know if I could do that to my little guys. I guess I will have to suck it up, hold my tongue and just put up with the toxicity.

Sometimes I wish that we could move to another state so I can get away from all this. But I cannot talk Hubbs into moving.

The Story On Hubbs

So earlier in the week, I mentioned being home. Here is the story about that. Yes, I know it is Thursday and I am just barely getting around to this. Forgive me please. It has been a rough week.



We drove to the valley Friday night and stayed in the Hilton. Very nice hotel and thanks to hotels.com, we got the room for $59.00 a night. Of course there was the $15.00 extra person charge (bringing the total bill to $74.00) but still, a night at the Hilton for under $100.00 is pretty good. Oh the room was nice. There was only 1 queen sized bed but the couch made out to a bed. Soft towels, fluffy bed, never ending hot water and a balcony. It was a little piece of heaven.



Traffic was a breeze. We did have a hard time getting around though. I am directionally dyslexic. I cant tell left from right or east from north. Long story short, normally if I don't know exactly how to get there, I don't even try. So finding a restaurant to have dinner at, the actual hotel, a restaurant to have breakfast at and finally the airport was a nightmare.



We had dinner at Applebees. I can honestly say that it was the best thing I have eaten in a really long time. I got a grilled chicken Caesar salad (awesome), Hubbs got steak and shrimp (awesome) and Monk Man had a breaded chicken sandwich as big as my hand (again, awesome). Now usually, I don't like shrimp. But I let Hubbs talk me into tasting it and it was divine!

Monk Man behaved pretty well throughout the whole trip. He only got spanked once and that was when he tried to open the room door and escape.

We had to be at the airport early so while we were there, I bought a Starbucks coffee. It was the first I had had in about a year. Monk Man discovered escalators. OMG, he loved them. Up and down and up and down and up, the WHOLE morning. Hubbs had to take him because I have an irrational fear of escalators (elevators too).

When it got close enough to Hubbs flight time, he told us that we should just go ahead and start the drive home. We said our goodbyes and my the time I got into the parking garage, I was bawling so hard that I had lost the car. That was so fun, I want to do it every day.

When I finally did find the car, Monk Man crawled in his car seat and fell asleep before I had even made it to the bottom of the parking garage. He slept the whole way home. 3+ hour drive, even when I stopped for gas (which was 4.11/gal holy crap!).

Home

Monk Man and I just got home from putting Hubbs on the airplane.

I will post more about it later. I am exhausted and a little sad. So I am going to bed.

My Head Is Spinning

Why? The last 2 days have been Hell.



Yesterday (Thursday)

Hubbs got a call from the Railroad and they told him that the board he has been on (that pays him to not find another job) had been abolished. So no more paychecks, no more insurance.



So I went into survival mode. I started thinking about what we can cut out of our routines to save us money. I didn't come up with much. Things are already pretty tight. I really don't want to have to charge anything ever again.



I *could* cancel the WOW account but then Hubbs would find some more expensive hobby. I *could* cancel XM but then I would be back to buying CDs. I already buy generic foods, generic diapers, generic everything.



The best thing I could come up with is to temporarily stop the debt snowballing. Its not much but it IS an extra $150.00 to $200.00 a month. And Hubbs would be going up to Colorado to build houses with his brother.



That's all I came up with.



Hubbs checked some memos from the Railroad and found out that he could put in a request for "temporary transfer" to Iowa. So he called his union rep and left a voice mail. The union rep called back very late last night and gave him some of the information he needed but not ALL of what he wanted to know. So he called a dude in Iowa that was in charge of the whole thing. Voice mail with this dude too.

So off to bed with an ass kicking migraine. Fun.

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Today (Friday)

Hubbs got up at 3 AM. I don't know why. He just said he couldn't sleep. I got up at 6 AM and just around that time, the dude from Iowa called him back with the information he needed.

But right after he got off the phone he found another memo that offered Montana as another option for the temporary transfer.

Ugh. Too many life altering decisions. I do not do well with shit changing. Not at all.

We decided on Iowa.

So he got all his paperwork faxed in. The Railroad bought him an airplane ticket for tomorrow. It was something like $600. Oh. My. Gawd. It is a good thing that the Railroad paid for the ticket because that is not cool. We don't have that kind of money. I don't think most people do either.

So we are staying in a hotel in Phoenix tonight so he can catch the plane tomorrow. There is no way in hell I would try to drive down there tomorrow and then drive back in the same day. My back is too screwed up to sit for that long in the car.

We are taking Monk Man with us but leaving Bobblehead with my mom.

I am not happy about having to suck it up and let my mom watch the boys today and Bobblehead tonight. But at least my dad is there to keep that whole crazy ass family in line.

So anyway, the deal with the temporary transfer. Hubbs gets a bonus when he gets to Iowa. Plus he gets another bonus every week he is there on top of what he would normally make.

I guess the reason that they are offering this temporary transfer is because of all the flooding. The floods washed out the tracks and now that the tracks are replaced they have way more trains than they have people to drive them.

So I don't feel 100% at ease with this but I don't feel like something bad is going to happen.

He could be gone for 3 weeks (at the least) or he could be gone for 3 months (at the most). Its really up in the air right now.

So I feel like my head is going to explode. There is so much to do, so much to worry about, so much unknown. Ugh. That's all for now.

I HAVE to get some work done today so they don't fire my ass.

This is horrible

As you may or may not know, I work at a body shop. I am the parts girl. Business is s-l-o-w. I have been sitting here for hours, not doing a damn thing except feeding my BabyCenter addiction.

I walked around to the shop a little while ago and the guys are just sitting around with nothing to do either. I feel really bad for them. They all work off commission so no wrecks=no paycheck. It has been really slow around here for months.

I wonder what is causing this lack of work. I mean I am sure that the crappy state of the economy has a lot to do with it. But you can be as careful as you can be and shit just happens.

Right now, we are to the point that we are taking in whatever piddly ass that job comes our way. It is really sad.

Everybody I have talked to lately, from dealerships to parts suppliers, say business is way slow too.

I have always dreamed of owning my own business. I have these amazing ideas and then I figure out how unrealistic most of them are or that someone has already come up with my brilliant idea.

It is times like this that make me thankful that I never actually followed through with any of my bright ideas. Talk about being up shit creek! But I guess it could be worse, I could be commission based too. Thank god for hourly wages.

Fathers Day Fudge

1 6 oz (3/4 c) chocolate chips
1 c peanut butter
1 stick margarine
1 c powdered sugar

Cook first 3 ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and add powdered sugar. Stir until smooth. Pour into a buttered 8-inch square pan. Chill until firm and cut into squares.

Happy Fathers Day

I just wanted to wish everyone out there a Happy Fathers Day!

Perfect Pizza

Ingredients
1 1/4 c warm water
1 pkg active dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 tbls olive oil
1 tsp salt
3 1/2 c all-purpose flour
2 tsp cornmeal
1 c pizza sauce
Assorted toppings
2 c shredded mozzarella cheese

Place 1/4 c warm water in a large bowl. Sprinkle yeast over water and stir in sugar. Let stand 5-10 minutes or until bubbly. Add remaining water, oil and salt. Stir in flour until dough pulls away from side of bowl.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth, 8-10 minutes. Coat large bowl with cooking spray; place dough in bowl, turning to grease top. Cover loosely. Let rise in warm place until almost double in size, about 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450 F. Punch down dough. Coat two 12 inch pizza pans with cooking spray; sprinkle pans with cornmeal. Divide dough in half. Roll dough to fit prepared pans; press dough against edge to form rim. Bake crust for 10 minutes.

Remove crust from oven and top with pizza sauce. Add the toppings and sprinkle with cheese. Bake until cheese is melted, 15-20 minutes longer.

**Hint: The secret to rolling pizza dough is to let it rest for 10 minutes after it is about half the size needed. Then it will easily stretch the rest of the way.

Trash Can Potatoes-Update

I went to the back yard to check on my Trash Can Potatoes last night. Big mistake. Why? Monk Man knocked the bucket over and dumped all the dirt into the grass. So being the curious cat I am, I dug through the dirt to see if anything had happened.

Nothing happened. Not a single root from the potatoes I put in the bucket.

Note to self: Store bought potatoes do not work. Buy seed potatoes or tubers.

So I am going to order some tubers from Burpee today. I will update some more when the tubers arrive. I might even post some pictures of what the hell tubers look like.
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I just checked Burpee and the tubers are not available at this time. So much for that idea. Shit.

Next idea? My boss is really close friends with a potato farmer somewhere back east. The next time he calls I am going to ask him to send me some seed potatoes.

Problem solved. Hopefully.

Whoops

Well I saw it right, sorta. House was on last night but it was a repeat from last season.

Damn. At least it was one I had not watched yet.

House: Did I See That Right?

We were watching Hell's Kitchen last Tuesday and I thought I saw a commercial stating that the new season of House is back. Already? The last season only ended, what, 2 weeks ago? Not that I am complaining. I am happy to have my Monday night TV show back.
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So I just checked MSN's TV information and this is what I found:
"The Right Stuff"
House begins interviewing for the open positions on his team and sets the applicants against one another to help treat a woman who has an unusual neurological disorder.
Airs:
MON 6/09 9:00pmFOX60 mins

Yep. That is a new episode. Tonight. Hooray!

Would you like to put a face to the blogger?

Well, Hi. This is what I look like. I finally have a picture that I am not embarassed to show the whole world.




Yes, you CAN see right down Monk Man's throat. Uuhhhh and ignore the pimples, my skin has forgotten that I am 26 and not 16.

I am trying to get my scanner to work so I can post some pictures from "back in the day". They are a riot. I so thought I was hot shit in high school.

My poor kids

My kids start hearing the word "No!" at a very young age. Around the age they start crawling or eating in the highchair.

I am guessing that Bobblehead has heard "No!" a few hundred times. Monkman has probably heard it 546876845468 times.

"No!" seems to have very little effect on Monk Man. In one ear and out the other. Actually, it has never had much meaning to him. But with Bobblehead, the word seems to crush him.

Just today I was feeding Bobblehead some applesauce and he kept reaching for the spoon. (Don't get me wrong, I will accept it when he can feed himself with a fork and spoon but I really like feeding him and 8 months is a little young for me to start accepting it.) So he got the stern "No!" and when he gave me that look, I thought I was going to cry.

The same thing goes when he discovers that we put the dog's water bowl back on the floor and starts splashing in it. Either I will have to clean up a huge mess or he will try to drink it so I have to bring out my big guns. "No! Stay out of the dog water!" Ugh. Such a sad look.

My Pantry

My Formula Stash


Baby Food, Bottle Liners and Baby Snacks


My Baking Supplies


My Cookbooks


Pasta & Mexican food stuff


Soups


Fruits & Veggies


BBQ Sauce, Chili, Mayo, Jelly and other stuff


No Place to Put these yet-Flour, Sugar, Rice


Potatoes, Onions and Oil


Mac & Cheese, Hamburger Helper & Brownie Mix


Cereals


Crackers


Trash bags, Ziplocks, popcorn, bread & Tortillias




It is a VERY small stash compared to other people. But I am just starting out and going very slowly. I would hate to overdraw the checking account. Again.

I have a pantry project planned for this weekend. Hubbs is going out of town to pick up his work truck. While he is gone, I am going to turn part of my office/junk room into better pantry space and put my small appliances like the deep fryer and crock pots in the hall pantry so I can have a little less clutter in the bedroom.

Yes, I am going to try to build some shelving. Never done this before so keep your fingers crossed I don't pull the walls down while trying to get this accomplished!

Best Parent Ever

Go to this blog and let me know how many of these you are.

I am still trying to get my tally together. But I will let you know!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All right, I just finished reading that WHOLE BLOG. Final score? 6 out of 37.

Just for shits and giggles I am going to tell you about the ones I am guilty of.

#6: Ridiculous 1st Birthday Parties
For Monk Man's 1st birthday I rented out the banquet hall at a local restaurant. I bet I had invited 75 people. It was a huge deal and a huge nightmare. Hubbs sat in the bar drinking with FIL and some of our friends while me and my MIL were left to run the show. Bobblehead turns 1 in October. Please, for the love of God, someone remind me in September about Monk Man's party! Suggest a nice Bring-Your-Own-Crap backyard BBQ or something that will be easy.


#7: Yahoo Groups
I am only guilty of this if BBC counts.


#14: The Nintendo Wii
Me and Hubbs are gamers. Computer, Playstation, Wii, you name it, we have the gaming system. Well, except for the playstation 3 and the X-box live. We are too cheap for those still. Well Monk Man has followed in our footsteps. He could live with a controller in his hand. Probably sleep with it too. Bobblehead is showing interest already too. He wanted to play PS2 with Monk Man on Friday and ended up pulling the cord so hard that the entire console fell off the TV.


#21: Giving Unwanted Advise
Ummm, this blog is proof of that.


#25: Puppies.....rescued
Our Lab is a rescue. But most of my pets have been rescues. But we didn't rescue him for the show of it, we (read:Hubbs) really needed another dog. We would have happily taken a dog off the streets or from the pound. As long as we didn't get one from the pet shop or puppy mill, we were going to be happy.


#34: Overdressing at the Playground
I am only 1/3 guilty of this. I don't go anywhere without full makeup. If I don't put makeup on, I don't leave the house. Period.

Comments Commented

I just finished commenting on the comments. Well, most of them.

I am dedicating today to

responding to the comments.

When I started out blogging, I had no clue about blog etiquette.

I now know to respond to comments.

Having another rough day.

Hubbs has been at the Elks Club for 7 hours and 18 minutes. Ummm, I am not stupid. I know that it does not take that long to play a Shuffleboard Tournament. And he is going to wonder why I am all bitchy when he gets home. Are all men this clueless?

The swamper is broken and it is HOT today. This no cool air sucks.

I cant get onto the Old BBC boards this afternoon.

I want a Vanilla Dr. Pepper from Sonic but I am not going to try to drag both of these kids out in this heat just for a soda. Plus I have no makeup on and the hair is in a ponytail. Scary.

I have pulled Bobblehead out of the bathroom 5441654943 times today because he wants to do this:

and this

and this

and then this

Please ignore the chipping paint and the funny colored/non-matching-the-bathtub calk. I need to get someone to do some work on the bathroom.

Focus on the 8 month old trying to climb in the tub. Cute huh? Anybody want him? I am so not ready for the mobile stage. I am still trying to baby-proof for Monk Man!

Clean Computer

So I finally have a clean computer again.

It only took 3 tries and all day to get everything erased and re-installed.

The first and second times I wiped it out yesterday, I opened the program files and everything was still there. Third time was the charm I guess.

I had to go to Walmart and spend $40.00 for new World Of Warcraft games for Hubbs since Monk Man scratches every single disk we own.

The kids were still napping so I finally got to go somewhere alone. For the first time in probably a year. Sad, very sad. I know.

Damn Computer

Monk man has gotten a virus on the computer.



This monster child is only 3 and is already doing stuff on the computer that I didn't figure out until I was maybe 15 or 16. He really likes to download games and it looks like he downloaded something he shouldn't have.



So I get to wipe out the computer and re-install everything again. So if you don't see any new posts for a couple of days, that is what I am doing.



Right now I am just waiting on Photobucket and Youtube to finish loading all the pictures and videos.



Yeah, I have been slacking on uploading everything lately. At least it isn't as bad as last time.



The last time I had to wipe out the computer, I lost a year and a half of pictures because I didn't know about Photobucket. Thankfully I had uploaded all of them to Shutterfly and was able to salvage most of the pictures from there. I cried for days about losing all those pictures.



From what Hubbs has told me, this virus has erased all his mods for World Of Warcraft. Whatever the hell mods are. I don't even bother to ask about WOW stuff anymore. Plus stuff has been running really slow and the computer as a whole has been acting funny for about a month.



Does anyone know how I can keep Monk Man from being able to download? I am pretty clueless about most of this computer stuff. I usually just fake my way through it. Is there a way (On XP) to maybe have all downloads password protected? Any suggestions?

Corn

I got my corn dug up and re-planted the right way. Monk Man and I ended up going to the local plant store and we bought more corn.

So now I have 4 sets of 6-8 groups of corn. It is too dark tonight to take a decent picture. But if I remember in the morning, I will post a few.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So far, I have planted tomatoes, watermelons, bell peppers, Anaheim peppers, jalapenos, yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, corn and green beans.

I have this vision of what is going to happen this fall. I am going to be running around the neighborhood trying to get rid of all these veggies because I KNOW I planted more than what my little family is going to eat and more than I am going to be able to can.

Still nothing on my Trash Can Potatoes.

Hot Seat

It seems like a few of the bloggers I read are doing a "Hot Seat". I guess I am going to follow their lead and put myself in the hot seat.

What happens in a hot seat is you ask questions about me in the comments section and I answer them. So start asking questions and when I have, say 10?, I will post the answers.

Sound good? Oh and yeah, if you want, you can ask more than one question.

Nice

Now the dogs have decided 5:30 a.m. is a good time to get up.

Atleast the kids are still asleep.

RAOK

I did another RAOK (random act of kindness remember?).

My chiropractor (Dr H) is trying to get out of debt, along with is daughter and some of his close friends. Well, last time I was being adjusted, I had mentioned how well I was doing on the Dave Ramsey plan.

Dr H wanted to know where he could find the book I was talking about.

I told him I would just bring one of my copies to him. So I took him one of my Money Makeover books today. I told him to keep it as long as he needed to.

So there is my latest RAOK.

Let the good karma roll in now please!?!

Perverts Beware

So you all know I use a traffic counter right? I think I have mentioned it before.

If I didn't say it before, I use a traffic counter. On both blogs.


It shows me all kinds of neat stuff about my blog traffic. I get to see which pages are the most popular, where a visitor came from, how many times a visitor has been to my blog and even a visitor's country, city, state and IP address and how long the visitor stayed at my blog. I don't check it often, maybe a few times a week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, I was looking at my traffic counter stats this morning for my other blog and noticed an unusual navigation pattern.

This visitor found my blog through a Google search for "Older Boys In Diapers". (This is the point I stop calling this "visitor" a visitor and start calling him/her a pervert.)

So this pervert is in Germany and sat on my blog for a little over 2 hours.

Ok, unless you are family, that blog really isn't THAT interesting. It is just current news on the kids. But I do have my Photobucket Album links posted which makes me a little nervous (ok, to be honest, homicidal and grossed out).

So now I am really pissed off. The Photobucket links are coming down today.

Having been through some pretty tough things in my childhood, my mind automatically thinks perverts and child molesters. I did consider that it might have been just a normal visitor and not some twatwaffle getting their rocks off. I did consider it, I promise.

But then I clicked on the link that my traffic counter provided for "Older Boys In Diapers". I really don't recommend googling it. I would rather claw my own eyes out and then pour salt in the sockets than see that kind of shit again. Disturbing. I guess there is quite the fetish audience for "Drinkers and Stinkers". It WAS the topic of a CSI episode after all.


So..........Dear Pervert In Germany,
You are lucky you don't live anywhere near me. I am not a momma to mess with. Really. If you are really THAT desperate for some action, please go to a bar or pick up a hooker. At the very least, go to an actual Porn website and look at snatch. Don't Google about kids in diapers. That is just gross. Have some self respect and drop the pedophile fetishes. It really isn't cool and you have really pissed me off.
K Thanks Bye

Getting it all out there in the open

Ok, I am ready to confess the amount of my crazy debt as of the latest statements I have gotten. Ready? You might want to sit down for this.

Credit Cards:
GM Card
Balance $2841.69
Minimum Payment $102.00
Paid Down From $3000.00

Bank of America
Balance $8506.07
Minimum Payment $140.00
Paid Down From $10,000.00

Capital One
Balance $716.37
Minimum Payment $48.20
Paid Down From $800.00

Chrysler (Collection Account)
Balance $4319.01
Minimum Payment $130.00
Paid Down From $10,500.00

Orchard Bank
Balance $310.08
Minimum Payment--We are paying this one off this month
Paid Down From $500.00


Other Credit Accounts:
Furniture Store
Balance $2528.00

Wells Fargo-Car Loan
Balance $14,773.63

Loan from Family #1
Balance $2000.00ish?

Loan from Family #2
Balance $7000.00


Paid Off Accounts:
Sears Card #1
Paid Off $300.00

Sears Card #2
Paid Off $900.00

HSBC
Paid Off $800.00?
(I don't remember the exact amount and cant find any statements)


Wow. That is much more than I expected. I guess until it is all written down, or in this case typed out, it is easy to be in denial about how deeply we are in debt.

Hubbs is still laid off but I am still planning on having all the credit cards paid off by February of 2009.

Thinking about it realistically, things most likely wont happen THAT soon but if I don't have a set date, nothing will get paid off.

I would probably put it off for 15 years, until Monk Man graduates from High School and then I will be in a straight jacket because I had gone ape shit from the stress because he "might" want me and Hubbs to pay for college.

Whoah. That was quite the tangent I just tripped over.

I never said I didn't have issues to work through.

Ugh, I hate weekends

I really, really, really hate weekends. I ended up having a 4 day weekend since CC had plans to go to the lake. So I was off Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Looking back, I actually had a decent weekend. No major fights, no catastrophes and no natural disasters at my house. Any weekend (let alone a long weekend) that doesn't end with threats of divorce is pretty good to me.

Friday and Saturday's weather was so shitty (contrary to my weather forecast it was cold) that I didn't hardly get out of my pajamas.

Sunday and Monday were actually pretty nice. I got my tomatoes re-planted. I went out to see the veggies on Sunday morning and discovered that the dogs had squished and broken some tomato plants since they like to pick on the dog next door. I also got some weeds pulled.

Didn't get a chance to do any blogging, but no surprise there. I promise that I will finish some of my older, unpublished posts this week.

Whats for dinner tonight?

This is what is for dinner:

Salmon Filet with Mango Cilantro Salsa:
4 6-ounce portions salmon filet

Mango Cilantro Salsa:
1 ripe mango, peeled and ½-inch diced
¼ cup chopped scallion, green part only
¼ cup diced red bell pepper
1 tablespoon finely diced fresh jalapeno
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

Bake salmon fillet at 400ºF for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the salmon. For Mango Cilantro Salsa, lightly toss all ingredients in bowl. Chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour for flavors to meld. Serve salsa as an accompaniment to salmon. Mango Cilantro Salsa also goes nicely with grilled meat or chicken.
Yield: 4 servings

Of course I am doing it lazy-style with canned jalapeno, jarred garlic, and lime juice from a bottle. But I am going to use the cilantro from my herb garden. We are also having a veggie-stir fry with it.

And even though we went grocery shopping a few days ago and spent almost $200, Hubbs is still going to the store because I can not plan ahead. Got to work on that!

I could be a weather girl

See, the weather is pretty consistent around here. Other than freaky snow in May, it is the same every day.

Here is my weather forecast for the next week:

Wednesday (Today)- Windy and Hot
Thursday (May 22)- Windy and Hot
Friday (May 23)- Windy and Hot
Saturday (May 24)- Windy and Hot
Sunday (May 25)- Windy and Hot
Monday (May 26)- Windy and Hot
Tuesday (May 27)- Windy and Hot

I cant understand why the professional weather girl/guy can not get this right! It is soooo simple.

Ok, I am finished with my PSA for the day.

Another Trash Can Potato Update

Hubbs drilled holes in the bottom of the bucket for me. I was using a hammer and a nail (unsuccessfully) since I am not exactly power tool competent. Anyway, he heard me, felt sorry enough for me to make the holes for me. Thank you dear.

I filled the bucket with 3 inches of potting soil and cut up my potato (eyes pointing up). The potatoes were dried enough today not to rot so I put them on top of the potting soil. I covered the potatoes with another couple of inches of potting soil and watered it really well.

In the thread that inspired me, a mommy mentioned that store bought potatoes could possibly carry disease and should not be used. So before I feed these home-grown-from-store-bought potatoes to the family, I will do some research on that. This is just an experiment to see if it would work.

Hopefully in the next few days I will have some green things (keep your fingers crossed that they will be a leaf or two instead of something gross) growing in the bucket to show you all!

Paid off another one!

I have been holding my Economic Stimulus money so I can pay some more towards my unreal amount of credit card debt.

I finally got the Orchard Bank statement today. I paid it off completely. This is the 2nd card we have paid off in 3 months.

Next card? Capital One. Maxed out at $800. I need to talk to Hubbs because I think we should pay this off completely too, since we have the money to do it now. But I really sleep better at night having that extra cushion in the checking account. I also REALLY want to do some MAJOR food shopping. I am totally getting into this stockpiling thing. IDK which would be to do.

I guess I need to corner Hubbs and give him no way out of the conversation and make him decide.

It doesn't look like we will make it out from under our credit card debt by next February (stupid economy and stupid railroad) but we will be VERY close.

I cant tell you how good it makes me feel to see that we are finally getting somewhere with this debt nightmare. I felt so hopeless for years and couldn't figure out how to fix it.

Trash Can Potatoes-Update

Ok, just got off the phone with Hubbs. He laughed at me when I told him about my new project. LoL. Ass.

So this is what he talked me into doing.....Instead of buying a big trash can, I am using one of the gazillion 5-gallon buckets we have laying around. THEN, if that works well, I will upgrade to a trash can. (snort, that sounds funny in my head. I can see why he was laughing at me.)

Wish me luck. Look for some pictures in the next day or so!

Trash Can Potatoes

On the new babycenter, there was a post in one of the groups I am in. It was about growing potatoes in a trash can. Volunteers were asked for so of course I volunteered to try it. (Like I don't have enough projects going on.)

In theory, this is what you do:
Drill holes in the bottom of a 33-gallon trash can. Put a few inches of soil in the bottom. Throw your potatoes in and cover them up with a few more inches of soil. As the potatoes grow leaves, keep covering them up with the soil until the trash can is full. Supposedly, the whole trash can will be full of new potatoes. And when the leaves die down, you harvest.

So.....anybody else want to try this with me?

Dear Mother Nature.....

Ummm, hi. It is snowing?! This has got to be a joke. Just wanted to remind you that we live in ARIZONA and the month is MAY. If you could make the snow stop, I would appreciate it. You can make it rain every damn day if you want. I don't mind the rain. Just make the snow stop.

You know, Arizona drivers are not used to snow. I have to drive my kiddos to Nonnie's house and the other drivers are bad enough in sunny, warm weather. Driving in snow makes me nervous. The last time it snowed, CC and BB called the house and told me not to come into work. There is, at the most, 10 blocks between my place and the shop. That's how crazy neurotic the snow makes me.

Plus, I planted a ton of plants the last couple of weekends. The snow and the freezing temperatures are not good for them.

Patiently waiting for the snow to stop falling,
Mommy Crisp

K-Thanks

Well crap

We are so screwed. Look....





He sounds so excited and proud of himself at the end!

Bobblehead figured out how to crawl yesterday evening. I am so not ready for this. I think I have been in denial. I convinced myself that if I don't push him like I pushed Monk Man that he would stay in the baby stage forever. Not ready for this at all. He has been up on all fours doing the rocking back and forth thing for about 2 months now and I was hoping that he would keep doing that for a really long time.



Nothing is baby proofed. After I caught the crawling on video and managed to keep myself calm enough not to hysterically cry, I ran around the living room like a madwoman picking up all the crap that Bobblehead could possibly put in his mouth. I really need to vacuum the floor. It has been wayyyyy too long since I did that. God only knows what the hell is on that carpet. Gross.


Well, off to baby proof.

Another 5:30 a.m. start

I was up at the butt crack of dawn again this morning.

Thanks Bobblehead. Your love for cartoons and the sunrise is really cutting into my beauty sleep. Ummm, did Dad forget to explain Mothers Day? He must have mentioned it to Monk Man because he is still in bed.

Just kidding. I really don't mind getting up with Bobblehead in the morning. It is only half an hour before I normally get up. I would rather get up early than multiple times during the night. Bobblehead has been sleeping through the night (STTN) for months now and I would really miss it if he decided not to do that anymore.

This early morning crap must be payback for the early morning hell I put Nonnie and Spanky through. Nonnie has told me many times about how I would have to see the sunrise. Every. Damn. Morning. No matter how early or late they put me to bed, I was up at sunrise. Sorry Nonnie.

Plus, it is the weekend and the Yankees are playing. I will just nap like I do every weekend.

Happy Mothers Day

I want to wish everybody a happy Mothers Day!

5:30 A.M. and my routine

Bobblehead has been up at 5:30 a.m. (aka the butt crack of dawn) every single day this week. He seems to think that as soon as the sun comes shining in the window it is time to wake up. Fun.

Want to know the bad part? Bobblehead does not want a bottle. He does not want to bounce. He does not even want me to hold him. He wants to lay on the floor in front of the damn T.V. and watch cartoons.


What do I do while he gets his cartoon fix?

Clean? Nope. That gets saved until Hubbs pisses me off and I angry clean. This happens at least twice during the week and once during the weekend.

Watch cartoons with him? Oh hell no. Those cartoons are the weirdest shit I have ever seen. You couldn't pay me enough to torture myself like that.

I am on the computer of course. I get my morning babycenter and coffee fix.

Then about 7:30, Monk Man is up and we get in the shower. After that, we all get dressed and beautified. Then the boys finally go to Nonnies house and I get to work around 8:30-9:00. By this point, I have already been up and in Mommy Mode for at least 3 hours.

And Hubbs wants to know why I am dead tired and bitchy when I get home and don't want to do anything domestic (cleaning, cooking, grocery shopping, etc). I finally crawl into bed around 9:00 P.M. and start the whole routine over the next morning.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am all about my routine. If something disrupts my routine (like Hubbs getting up early or Saturday and Sunday roll around) I am seriously pissed and feel off the whole day. Hubbs told me last night that I am a control freak.

*snort* Yeah, I know. So?

Those Duggars!

I am sure the majority of bloggers are buzzing about this family already, and I am going to follow the trend!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24537885&GT1=43001
So this couple has 17 (OMG) kids and she is pregnant with baby number 18 (yes, you read that right, eight-teen). The mom is Michelle and the dad is Jim Bob. And they live in Arkansas.

"To date, the Duggars’ 17 natural children range in age from 20 years to 9 months. Included in the mix are 10 boys and seven girls — Joshua, twins Jana and John-David, Jill, Jessa, Jinger, Joseph, Josiah, Joy-Anna, twins Jedidiah and Jeremiah, Jason, James, Justin, Jackson, Johannah and baby Jennifer, who arrived last Aug. 2.
With two sets of twins, Michelle, 41, has gone through 15 pregnancies that ended in 13 natural deliveries and two Cesarean sections. "

"The family grocery bill is $2,000 a month. Transportation is provided by nine vehicles, including a 21-passenger bus. To get through a week requires 63 loads of laundry, six gallons of milk, 15 dozen eggs, 12 boxes of cereal and 12 rolls of toilet paper." They are also debt free.


~~TMI ALERT--Feel free to skip this paragraph because I am going to talk VAGINA for a minute~~
Ummm, yeah, this poor woman's vag must be a disaster! I understand that it is designed to stretch out and all that. But I have given birth to 2 kids and my girly bits are NOT like they used to be.
~~Borrowed from BH post


I wonder if she had meds during all of those births. Or went non-medicated. Hospital or home birth? Well, duh for meds on the c-sections. I am talking all 13 vaginal births. With both of my kids I was medicated. Heavily. And I am not ashamed about it in the least. With Monk Man I started off with the Narcotics and then went to a spinal block. With Bobblehead I went straight for the epidural. I am a wuss and go into convulsions over a paper cut. I can not imagine having a baby without some kind of medication.

Have I mentioned

Have I mentioned how much I HATE cooking? Gawd I hate it. Nothing ever comes out right.

Last night I made a hamburger and potato casserole. Its really simple and I should have no problems with it.

All that is involved is browning a pound of hamburger, slicing potatoes and onions, mixing up a can of cream of mushroom soup and milk. Then you throw it all in a baking dish and cook it for 45 minutes.

You would think that I would be able to not screw it up. Well, I did screw it up. The hamburger burned, the potatoes were still semi-raw, and so were the onions.

I give up! Hubbs is a much better cook than I am. He can do it.

I love playing in the dirt!

We had a very busy Sunday. We went to the plant store and bought $50 worth of veggies and flowers. The whole trunk area of the HHR was full. I planted seeds a few weeks ago but I got impatient. Big shock there. And Monk Man kept pulling the little plants out of the ground.

Oh holy hell this sunburn hurts. I am already peeling. Tomorrow is going to be craptastic.

So the first time in a couple of years, we have a garden again. Yay!

So here are some pictures. Please ignore the dog shit. That is Hub's job. He is slacking. And excuse the mis-spellings. The spell check on this thing makes my images go poof.

Tomatos



Tomatos



Tomatos



Tomatos



Colombines



SnapDragons



Blue Daisys



See the bee?



All the flowers together



Another View



All the Veggies Together



Another View



The Herbs



The Herbs again



Anahiem Peppers



Squash



Cucumbers



Corn



More Tomatos



Tomatos



Tomatos



Some Fire looking flowers



Some purple flowers that are supposed to smell like vanilla



Giranium



And here is the before...









Not pictured are the Watermelon. I dont know where those pictures disapeared to. Stupid Photobucket.

We use soooo many canned tomatos so I am going to have my grandma or MIL teach me how to can veggies to add to my pantry. I wanted some other veggies but the store did not have them out. I will keep looking though. Even if I spend another $50, I will be saving money. Fresh food from the grocery store is damn expensive. I think that is part of the reason that we dont eat much fresh food. That and I dont know how to cook.

OLD - FASHIONED SALISBURY STEAK

OLD - FASHIONED SALISBURY STEAK

4 frozen, chopped sirloin patties, defrosted
3 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. vegetable oil or butter
Garlic salt
Black pepper
3 tsp. beef-flavor instant bouillon
1 to 1 1/2 c. hot water
1 lg. onion, sliced
1 (4 oz.) can mushroom pieces and stems
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

Coat each side of patties well with flour.
Heat oil or butter in skillet until hot.
Add patties and brown on both sides.
When brown, pour off excess oil.
Add bouillon to hot water; stir to dissolve or sprinkle bouillon in skillet and add water and stir to dissolve.
Add onion, mushrooms, and Worcestershire sauce.
Stir to coat meat.
Cover and simmer gently, about 25 minutes or until fork-tender.
Serve with mashed potatoes.
Makes 4 servings.

Salisbury Steak Recipe

SALISBURY STEAK

10 3/4 ounces cream of mushroom soup, condensed
1 1/2 pounds ground beef, lean
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs, or cracker crumbs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 onion, finely chopped
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/3 cup water

Heat oven to 350 F.
In medium bowl, combine 1/4 of the soup with remaining ingredients except water; mix well.
Shape into 6 patties; arrange in single layer in 13 x 9-inch or 12 x8-inch baking dish.
Bake uncovered at 350 F. for 30 minutes.
Skim off fat.
In small bowl, combine remaining soup and water; spoon over patties.
Return to oven and bake for 10 minutes.
If desired, garnish with mushroom slices.
Serving Size: 6