I've been a member of the Mothering Dot Commune forums sponsored by Mothering magazine for, hmmm, a decade? Something like that, anyway. If you're at all interested in Attachment Parenting, information about cloth diapering, vaccinations, raising intact sons, homebirthing, homeschooling, extended breastfeeding, eating and living in a more natural, greener way...this is your place. There are some amazing bloggers who post there who have committed to NaBloPoMo. Check out these bloggers, you just might find a new favorite!
Code Name: Mama
Tripletly Blessed
Moderate Means
Simply Jess
A Hippie With a Minivan
Moo Said the Mama
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Monday, November 9, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
I'm declaring today a mental health day for myself and the kids. No homeschooling, no extra chores, just survival. And appointments with the chiropractor, therapist, Odyssey of the Mind for the teens, a playdate for the littles, and two tae kwon do classes. I'm not sure where we would fit anything in there anyway. I should have already put something in the crockpot this morning but I didn't. Hmmm. I think I have some uncooked but soaked small red beans in the freezer; I could still have time enough to put them in there with a bunch of veggies and broth for a soup. Okay, good, that'll work. Now to figure out the rest of the week...
Sunday: Tom took the kids to a Thai restaurant; I ate with a friend on our way back from retreat.
Monday: Veggie soup, rolls (if I get the kitchen cleaned up enough to bake)
And that's how far I got in my menu plan before I went on strike. We'll just see how attitudes in this house change; tomorrow they can scrounge from the freezer and then it'll be cereal and sandwiches, unless I don't bake bread. I guess they'll figure out something.
Sunday: Tom took the kids to a Thai restaurant; I ate with a friend on our way back from retreat.
Monday: Veggie soup, rolls (if I get the kitchen cleaned up enough to bake)
And that's how far I got in my menu plan before I went on strike. We'll just see how attitudes in this house change; tomorrow they can scrounge from the freezer and then it'll be cereal and sandwiches, unless I don't bake bread. I guess they'll figure out something.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Jiggety jig.
Home. It's a wonderful place. When I left here on Friday I had no idea we had black mold attacking our house in at least one bathroom, possibly two. I had no idea my van battery would die while Tom was at the store with all the children. I had no idea how much my family would miss me, even though this isn't my first retreat. I had no idea that I would not miss them. Seriously. It was a glorious 48 hours of friends--when I wanted them--but for the most part I was stretched out on my bed watching dvds on my portable dvd player, reading, checking blogs on my phone, just doing NOTHING. It was incredible. I watched a couple movies with friends, played cards, hung out just chatting, but that's the beauty of retreat, you can do WHATEVER you want. Nobody needs anything from you. Nobody wants to touch you, have you cook, needs you to be a mediator. I want to go away for the weekend again, but this time with Tom. We've never gone away for a weekend. I think, after all this time, we deserve that.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Not great.
As much as I'm enjoying this weekend away from responsibility, my family is having a REALLY rough weekend. Black mold, plumbers, dead van batteries, I could go on but I won't because I would start crying. I'm glad I rode with a friend because if I drove myself I would be on my way home now.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Not feeling it.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Amazing lentil/rice shepherd's pie
I literally threw together a casserole last night, hoping that it would at least be eaten by tomorrow's lunch, but it's GONE. Finito. Tom had three servings that I witnessed, I'm not convinced he didn't have more. It was ridiculously easy and I would be amiss if I didn't post the half-assed recipe here, though I'm afraid I don't have a photo to show because, hello, it was half-assed and now it's gone. Are there ever two better words to apply to a recipe that is inhaled as soon as it's cooked? Or, at least, as soon as varying tae kwon do classes allow?
On Tuesday I made too many baked potatoes, because K. said she wanted to make potato soup. I told her I needed a couple of the extras but she could have the rest but then I ended up using all of them. She forgave me after she tasted the casserole.
Okay, so first, have some cold baked potatoes. Or mashed potatoes, whatever. I took the cold ones, peeled them, sliced them thickly and sauteed them for a little while in a mixture of Earth Balance, olive oil, and garlic. I used six good-sized potatoes, but I'm feeding an army. If you're feeding a couple kids and two parents you could use fewer. Once those potatoes were nice and hot and crisping a little, I took them off heat and added some soymilk, salt, and pepper, just like I would for mashed potatoes. Mash, mash, mash, you know, with the masher, until fairly smooth.
Meanwhile, I was also cooking a cup of lentils and a cup of brown rice with 4 cups of not-chick'n broth, a diced onion, 1 t. each of thyme and basil, a bay leaf, and plenty of salt & pepper. Once that was cooked and the potatoes were mashed, I put the lentils/rice mixture into an oiled casserole dish and spread the potatoes on top. Honestly, it just smelled & tasted okay to me, but what do I know? On top of the potatoes I sprinkled kosher salt and (here's the secret) smoked paprika. I saw smoked paprika used in a shepherd's pie recipe on one of the blogs I read but I cannot for the life of me remember which one. If you are reading this, anonymous blogger, please tell me so that I can credit you for the inspiration and also thank you for providing a use for the smoked paprika I accidentally bought six months ago and have never used.
Bake it at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. I pulled it out and it was GONE. At ten minutes in I threw in some (frozen, remember, this week the food is all about EASY) brussels sprouts that I had lazily tossed with olive oil & minced garlic to just sit there and roast while the casserole was baking. At one point during dinner I had to forcefully say to J., "No, you may NOT have more brussels sprouts until you eat some of your lentils and potatoes." That kid is just weird.
P.S. Mary, over at Gluten-Free Cooking School is doing a Thanksgiving recipe roundup. If you have something yummy to add, head over there and post a comment. My family asked if I would please make this shepherd's pie to take to dinner at Thanksgiving, so that they're not relegated to eating a plate of dinner rolls (except Alec, I have to take homemade gf rolls for him) and stuffing (thank maude Alec doesn't like stuffing, I don't want to make it).
On Tuesday I made too many baked potatoes, because K. said she wanted to make potato soup. I told her I needed a couple of the extras but she could have the rest but then I ended up using all of them. She forgave me after she tasted the casserole.
Okay, so first, have some cold baked potatoes. Or mashed potatoes, whatever. I took the cold ones, peeled them, sliced them thickly and sauteed them for a little while in a mixture of Earth Balance, olive oil, and garlic. I used six good-sized potatoes, but I'm feeding an army. If you're feeding a couple kids and two parents you could use fewer. Once those potatoes were nice and hot and crisping a little, I took them off heat and added some soymilk, salt, and pepper, just like I would for mashed potatoes. Mash, mash, mash, you know, with the masher, until fairly smooth.
Meanwhile, I was also cooking a cup of lentils and a cup of brown rice with 4 cups of not-chick'n broth, a diced onion, 1 t. each of thyme and basil, a bay leaf, and plenty of salt & pepper. Once that was cooked and the potatoes were mashed, I put the lentils/rice mixture into an oiled casserole dish and spread the potatoes on top. Honestly, it just smelled & tasted okay to me, but what do I know? On top of the potatoes I sprinkled kosher salt and (here's the secret) smoked paprika. I saw smoked paprika used in a shepherd's pie recipe on one of the blogs I read but I cannot for the life of me remember which one. If you are reading this, anonymous blogger, please tell me so that I can credit you for the inspiration and also thank you for providing a use for the smoked paprika I accidentally bought six months ago and have never used.
Bake it at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. I pulled it out and it was GONE. At ten minutes in I threw in some (frozen, remember, this week the food is all about EASY) brussels sprouts that I had lazily tossed with olive oil & minced garlic to just sit there and roast while the casserole was baking. At one point during dinner I had to forcefully say to J., "No, you may NOT have more brussels sprouts until you eat some of your lentils and potatoes." That kid is just weird.
P.S. Mary, over at Gluten-Free Cooking School is doing a Thanksgiving recipe roundup. If you have something yummy to add, head over there and post a comment. My family asked if I would please make this shepherd's pie to take to dinner at Thanksgiving, so that they're not relegated to eating a plate of dinner rolls (except Alec, I have to take homemade gf rolls for him) and stuffing (thank maude Alec doesn't like stuffing, I don't want to make it).
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Good vibes needed.
Okay, everyone, time to start crossing your fingers, saying a prayer, lighting a candle, keeping us in the light, whatever it is you do to put out healthy vibes for people. J. is coughing, not a bad cough, not a croupy cough, but one that often portents a turn for the worse. We know how to deal with it, yes, but in approximately 44 hours I plan to be partying with a baker's dozen of my friends for an entire weekend; I don't want to have to worry about my family. I'm selfish like that.
This was the moon tonight. As I was waiting for M. and K. to finish with their tae kwon do class, I kept staring at it, while listening to Terry Gross NPR, thinking about all the kajillions of people who have stared at the same moon over millions of years, made their wishes, wondered about their place in the world. It began to feel like a humbling experience, but then the girls came out of their class and began an assault on my senses, what with the chatting, laughing, fighting, smelling, and I felt like maybe, just maybe, I'm one of the luckier people looking at that moon.
But I will feel even luckier if I manage to get to this retreat with four healthy children left at home. The dose of Xoponex we just had to administer to J. either means that by Friday he'll be wired on inhaled steroids but healthy OR he'll be in the ER with pneumonia.
Keep those fingers crossed!!!!!!!
(You want a good laugh? Try doing a Google image search for "healthy vibes.")
This was the moon tonight. As I was waiting for M. and K. to finish with their tae kwon do class, I kept staring at it, while listening to Terry Gross NPR, thinking about all the kajillions of people who have stared at the same moon over millions of years, made their wishes, wondered about their place in the world. It began to feel like a humbling experience, but then the girls came out of their class and began an assault on my senses, what with the chatting, laughing, fighting, smelling, and I felt like maybe, just maybe, I'm one of the luckier people looking at that moon.
But I will feel even luckier if I manage to get to this retreat with four healthy children left at home. The dose of Xoponex we just had to administer to J. either means that by Friday he'll be wired on inhaled steroids but healthy OR he'll be in the ER with pneumonia.
Keep those fingers crossed!!!!!!!
(You want a good laugh? Try doing a Google image search for "healthy vibes.")
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Shhhhh.
This is my new favorite mantra. I'm thinking of turning it into a tattoo. Or, you know, painting it all over my living room walls.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
This week will be all about simple meals, my favorite go-to recipes. The fall burnout is here, I'm ready to spend next weekend with a dozen of my friends, doing nothing. I have a crochet project in mind, a box of wine already purchased, netflix movies and a charged-up portable dvd player. Forty-eight hours of laughter, jello shots, fattening foods, impromptu dance parties...oh, it's wonderful. Until I'm recharged I'm going to rely on the basics for meals.
Sunday: Veggieburgers, tater tots
Monday: Mixed bean soup (crockpot), cornbread, roasted broccoli
Tuesday: Baked potatoes, baked beans (canned), veggie dogs, broccoli & carrots w/ dip
Wednesday: Lazy black beans & rice (lazy because the beans are canned, not cooked from dried like I usually do), tortilla chips, guacamole
Thursday: Brown rice & lentils, salad, pear & orange slices
Friday: Black bean soup (crockpot), sweet potato fries (frozen)...I'll be on my way to retreat, K. and M. will be in charge of dinner!
Saturday: Hahaha, I won't be here!! I imagine Tom will take the kids out for Thai food.
Sunday: Won't be here again! I'm not even going to worry about what they'll be eating!
As always, don't forget to click over to Laura at Org Junkie for hundreds more menus.
Sunday: Veggieburgers, tater tots
Monday: Mixed bean soup (crockpot), cornbread, roasted broccoli
Tuesday: Baked potatoes, baked beans (canned), veggie dogs, broccoli & carrots w/ dip
Wednesday: Lazy black beans & rice (lazy because the beans are canned, not cooked from dried like I usually do), tortilla chips, guacamole
Thursday: Brown rice & lentils, salad, pear & orange slices
Friday: Black bean soup (crockpot), sweet potato fries (frozen)...I'll be on my way to retreat, K. and M. will be in charge of dinner!
Saturday: Hahaha, I won't be here!! I imagine Tom will take the kids out for Thai food.
Sunday: Won't be here again! I'm not even going to worry about what they'll be eating!
As always, don't forget to click over to Laura at Org Junkie for hundreds more menus.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Love/Hate #3
What I am loving right this very minute:
What I am hating:
- Wearing a bra that actually fits. No more tucking the girls into the waistband of my jeans!
- Shiner beer, a staple in Texas
- Looking forward to friends coming over this evening for trick-or-treating
What I am hating:
- The dishes I need to wash that will surely take at least an hour
- The apparent inability of certain members of the household to turn off the lights when they leave a room
- The new library rule that will only allow 50 items to be checked out and 20 on the hold list. Grrrr.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Friends, Romans, Drag Queens?
Please don't ask me what's going on up there, I couldn't even begin to tell you. At our homeschooling co-op A. is taking a class called Theater Games. I wasn't in the room with the class, but I heard his contagious laughter down the hall and answering laughter from his friends, so had to pop out and see what was going on. I'm not sure what the point of the actual game was, but A. was kind of a star, which, really, is totally obvious from his accoutrement.
Monday, October 26, 2009
I would've just gone with RIP, but that's why they didn't ask me to help.
Years ago Tom and the girls created a set of gravestones to put out in the front yard at Halloween. Not content to have them look realistic, they also made them hilarious.
If you can't read the epitaphs, click for larger photos.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Menu Plan Monday (except that it's Sunday)
Oh, hey, I just realized I forgot to post last week's menu. I don't know why but last week felt like it lasted for months. Probably it was the sleep deprivation and the lingering CRUD that has infested most of us. Cough, cough, hack, hack. Good times.
So, anyway, here's what we ate last week:
Sunday: Baked pasta, with homemade sauce, garlic rolls, roasted broccoli
Monday: Finally I made the Egyptian Red Lentil Soup I was going to make two weeks ago but never got around to. It was very good, but not enough people liked it to make it again anytime soon.
Tuesday: Tostadas, topped with homemade refried beans and all the usual toppings
Wednesday: Chickpea & potato curry and brown rice, eaten either in a bowl or wrapped in lettuce leaves
Thursday: I can't even remember, I think maybe it was leftovers? Or cereal.
Friday: Minestrone, salad
Saturday: Veggie burgers, potato chips, salad. Boring but fast. I went to see a friend perform in Rocky Horror so had to have time for putting on makeup, something that I've only recently learned how to do, so it takes more time than it should and also for finding my flask. Can't do the Time Warp without lubrication, you know.
This week's menu:
Sunday: My go-to meal when we need a meal to beat illness. No-chicken noodle soup (with tons of fresh garlic for its antibacterial qualities), orange sliced (for the vitamin C) and pumpkin pudding for dessert (because it's yummy). Perfect comfort food for a house of almost-sickies. I say almost, but I'm pretty sure Tom is heading for pneumonia and J. has the beginnings of the croupy cough that sends him to the ER for steroids and industrial-strength breathing treatments. Fingers crossed we have an uneventful day!
Monday: Tortilla soup, bean quesadillas
Tuesday: Cabbage stirfry, fried rice with veggies, baked tofu
Wednesday: Johnny Marzetti, balsamic-maple carrot coins, sauteed spinach
Thursday: Rajma masala, brown rice, spicy mustard potatoes
Friday: Black bean soup, garlic rolls, salad
Saturday: Pizza
Baking: apple crumble, coconut-orange muffins, rolls
Check out Laura at Org Junkie for hundreds more menus and Heather at Celiac Family is hosting this week's gluten-free menu swap. The featured ingredient this week is cilantro, which I love to use. This week I'll be using it in tortilla soup and rajma masala.
So, anyway, here's what we ate last week:
Sunday: Baked pasta, with homemade sauce, garlic rolls, roasted broccoli
Monday: Finally I made the Egyptian Red Lentil Soup I was going to make two weeks ago but never got around to. It was very good, but not enough people liked it to make it again anytime soon.
Tuesday: Tostadas, topped with homemade refried beans and all the usual toppings
Wednesday: Chickpea & potato curry and brown rice, eaten either in a bowl or wrapped in lettuce leaves
Thursday: I can't even remember, I think maybe it was leftovers? Or cereal.
Friday: Minestrone, salad
Saturday: Veggie burgers, potato chips, salad. Boring but fast. I went to see a friend perform in Rocky Horror so had to have time for putting on makeup, something that I've only recently learned how to do, so it takes more time than it should and also for finding my flask. Can't do the Time Warp without lubrication, you know.
This week's menu:
Sunday: My go-to meal when we need a meal to beat illness. No-chicken noodle soup (with tons of fresh garlic for its antibacterial qualities), orange sliced (for the vitamin C) and pumpkin pudding for dessert (because it's yummy). Perfect comfort food for a house of almost-sickies. I say almost, but I'm pretty sure Tom is heading for pneumonia and J. has the beginnings of the croupy cough that sends him to the ER for steroids and industrial-strength breathing treatments. Fingers crossed we have an uneventful day!
Monday: Tortilla soup, bean quesadillas
Tuesday: Cabbage stirfry, fried rice with veggies, baked tofu
Wednesday: Johnny Marzetti, balsamic-maple carrot coins, sauteed spinach
Thursday: Rajma masala, brown rice, spicy mustard potatoes
Friday: Black bean soup, garlic rolls, salad
Saturday: Pizza
Baking: apple crumble, coconut-orange muffins, rolls
Check out Laura at Org Junkie for hundreds more menus and Heather at Celiac Family is hosting this week's gluten-free menu swap. The featured ingredient this week is cilantro, which I love to use. This week I'll be using it in tortilla soup and rajma masala.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Art
M. and I had to drive down to the Texas state fairgrounds to pick up her art that was exhibited this year. She has entered two paintings in the art contest each year (you can only enter two) and has always placed in the top four, which are the only places that are exhibited. This year her paintings won second and fourth place, which I know was disappointing to her after two first places last year. We didn't actually attend the fair this year, so we weren't able to take the annual photo of the M. with her paintings. My favorite was a couple years ago when she entered a self-portrait and we were taking her photo in front of it. One of the judges happened to see her and looked extremely surprised as he looked from her to the painting and back again. "Oh!" he said. "That really IS your hair!"
I made her pose in the nearly-empty Creative Arts building anyway.
Click the photo if you want to see the paintings in more detail.
I made her pose in the nearly-empty Creative Arts building anyway.
Click the photo if you want to see the paintings in more detail.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
A week of Mondays
Okay, so it's only Tuesday, but I swear this week will be all Mondays. A. has had severe insomnia, to the extent that Sunday night he didn't sleep. He's becoming more and more like K., I'm kinda terrified. Last night he fell asleep easily but at some point woke up screaming and couldn't stop crying so Tom moved him to the living room to be closer to us and then it happened again and the upshot of it is that WE ARE TIRED. He doesn't even remember it happening, doesn't realize while it's happening. I'm glad our insurance is up-to-date because both Tom and I will be driving with sleep-deprivation today.
I'll tell you what I'd really like...the chance to miss my children.
Now I have to go schlep A. to science class, K. to psychology, and hit the library, eye doctor, and pharmacy, then pick up A., drop the boys off at home with M., then go pick up K. At some point in there I'm going to ask a Starbucks barista to hook my beer bong up to the espresso machine.
It's a good plan, right?
I'll tell you what I'd really like...the chance to miss my children.
Now I have to go schlep A. to science class, K. to psychology, and hit the library, eye doctor, and pharmacy, then pick up A., drop the boys off at home with M., then go pick up K. At some point in there I'm going to ask a Starbucks barista to hook my beer bong up to the espresso machine.
It's a good plan, right?
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Oh, wow, 101st post!
Okay, it's not technically my 101st post (which, btw, I totally hear in my head as one hundred onest) because there were a bunch I deleted before I really started blogging. Whatever, I got all excited when I logged in and saw that I have posted on here 100 times, almost fairly regularly. You guys, I have A.D.D., that's a major achievement for me. Most days I can't even remember my password to log in, no lie.
Speaking of A.D.D., K. is trying meds again. She took a couple different ones while she and M. went to school, but when we started homeschooling in 2002 she stopped taking whatever it was, I think Concerta at that point. Both Adderall and Concerta made her sleep even less, and she was already on about four hours of sleep a night, she had no appetite, and just felt numb. It's not like she was one of those kids you hear about who are drugged up and kind of zombie-like, she was happy and energetic, but she said that she felt like her emotions weren't all there.
Now I'm wondering if she was feeling normal emotions for the first time instead of the out-of-control emotions that A.D.D. can bring. At any rate, she's trying again, with one that's newer on the market, Vyvanse. Any readers who have experience with this drug, I'd love to hear your thoughts. I've seen a positive response: she's finishing schoolwork earlier, remembering to do things I ask her to (not always, but more than usual), more even-tempered, not crying as much (probably because she's able to do what she needs to do without having other people frustrated with her). That's all external, I want her to feel an internal difference. I don't think she does yet, but that could be her not wanting me to remark on positive aspects that she associates with taking the meds when she wants it to be that SHE'S the one making a difference. And maybe she is.
Okay, so tonight I really wanted to give a review of the Singapore Noodles that I mentioned in my weekly menu, but I ran into a snafu....I had no coconut milk. How the hell does that happen? I order that stuff by the case from Amazon, there is no reason in the world that I should run out of coconut milk. Fortunately I hadn't started soaking the rice noodles yet, I was just making the sauce and about to slice & dice veggies, so I threw the rest of the sauce on top of the tofu I had just pulled out of the oven and stuck it in the fridge. Tomorrow I'll finish the recipe; it might not pull together in the pan exactly as written, but I think it'll get eaten.
Don't worry, we weren't eating cereal again. We'd already been to three activities today, including gymnastics, so A. asked if he could skip tae kwon do tonight and go tomorrow, which sounded fine to me. That meant I had a little extra time before taking M. and K. to tae kwon do, so I went ahead with tomorrow's meal, which was buckwheat pancakes and the last of the veggie sausage. Everyone but M. loved the pancakes, which I really just threw together. She took one bite and said it tasted gluten-free, which nobody else tasted, so maybe the bite she took just hadn't cooked completely through. OH WELL. That's why I stock up on cereal.
And now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go watch Glee with Tom and the two big ones, if only to stop listening to the South Park episode they're watching. I swear, it's like I have five children.
Speaking of A.D.D., K. is trying meds again. She took a couple different ones while she and M. went to school, but when we started homeschooling in 2002 she stopped taking whatever it was, I think Concerta at that point. Both Adderall and Concerta made her sleep even less, and she was already on about four hours of sleep a night, she had no appetite, and just felt numb. It's not like she was one of those kids you hear about who are drugged up and kind of zombie-like, she was happy and energetic, but she said that she felt like her emotions weren't all there.
Now I'm wondering if she was feeling normal emotions for the first time instead of the out-of-control emotions that A.D.D. can bring. At any rate, she's trying again, with one that's newer on the market, Vyvanse. Any readers who have experience with this drug, I'd love to hear your thoughts. I've seen a positive response: she's finishing schoolwork earlier, remembering to do things I ask her to (not always, but more than usual), more even-tempered, not crying as much (probably because she's able to do what she needs to do without having other people frustrated with her). That's all external, I want her to feel an internal difference. I don't think she does yet, but that could be her not wanting me to remark on positive aspects that she associates with taking the meds when she wants it to be that SHE'S the one making a difference. And maybe she is.
Okay, so tonight I really wanted to give a review of the Singapore Noodles that I mentioned in my weekly menu, but I ran into a snafu....I had no coconut milk. How the hell does that happen? I order that stuff by the case from Amazon, there is no reason in the world that I should run out of coconut milk. Fortunately I hadn't started soaking the rice noodles yet, I was just making the sauce and about to slice & dice veggies, so I threw the rest of the sauce on top of the tofu I had just pulled out of the oven and stuck it in the fridge. Tomorrow I'll finish the recipe; it might not pull together in the pan exactly as written, but I think it'll get eaten.
Don't worry, we weren't eating cereal again. We'd already been to three activities today, including gymnastics, so A. asked if he could skip tae kwon do tonight and go tomorrow, which sounded fine to me. That meant I had a little extra time before taking M. and K. to tae kwon do, so I went ahead with tomorrow's meal, which was buckwheat pancakes and the last of the veggie sausage. Everyone but M. loved the pancakes, which I really just threw together. She took one bite and said it tasted gluten-free, which nobody else tasted, so maybe the bite she took just hadn't cooked completely through. OH WELL. That's why I stock up on cereal.
And now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go watch Glee with Tom and the two big ones, if only to stop listening to the South Park episode they're watching. I swear, it's like I have five children.
That boy ain't right.
As all our kids have learned to brush their teeth we sing songs so that they get used to the length of time necessary for proper cleaning. What can I say, I like clean teeth. Also, fewer dental bills. For M. and K. I think we sang a few rounds of "I Love You, You Love Me," a.k.a. "The Barney* Song," a.k.a. "The Song Most Distorted on the Middle School Playground." You know what I mean. If not, let me know and I'll enlighten you. A. and J., thank maude, do not know that song, so we started out singing a couple rounds of the alphabet song while we brush. I hadn't counted on the boy thing, though, which seems to be cropping up more and more lately. Really, seriously, I was convinced that boys and girls were REALLY all not that different, as long as one parented both genders equally.
I was wrong.
The alphabet song lasted about...a minute. And was then replaced by this:
A B C D E F BUTTFACE
H I J K L M N O BUTTFACE
Q R S BUTTFACE
T U V BUTTFACE
W X Y AND BUTTFACE
NOW I'VE SUNG MY A B BUTTFACE
NEXT TIME WON'T YOU SING WITH BUTTFACE
Charming, no? And that, dear friends, is why Tom is the one in charge of toothbrushing.
Not that I'm complaining.
*As an aside, Barney (the show, not the actual dinosaur) is from our city. I have several friends whose children have been in the Barney videos; my own children were invited but I managed to not vomit into my phone and declined politely. When we lived in our previous neighborhood, we would take walks in the evening and if we went near dusk we noticed that there was a house that was always lit from the inside with a neon purple glow. It came out of all the windows, I don't know that I could have lived next to it, seriously. After seeing it for so many evenings we finally asked some neighbors about it. Everyone we asked claimed that was where Barney lived, either the guy in the costume or the voice-over guy, nobody was sure which. I don't know if they were right, but I have to say, walking past a house emitting neon purple light is a surreal experience.
I was wrong.
The alphabet song lasted about...a minute. And was then replaced by this:
A B C D E F BUTTFACE
H I J K L M N O BUTTFACE
Q R S BUTTFACE
T U V BUTTFACE
W X Y AND BUTTFACE
NOW I'VE SUNG MY A B BUTTFACE
NEXT TIME WON'T YOU SING WITH BUTTFACE
Charming, no? And that, dear friends, is why Tom is the one in charge of toothbrushing.
Not that I'm complaining.
*As an aside, Barney (the show, not the actual dinosaur) is from our city. I have several friends whose children have been in the Barney videos; my own children were invited but I managed to not vomit into my phone and declined politely. When we lived in our previous neighborhood, we would take walks in the evening and if we went near dusk we noticed that there was a house that was always lit from the inside with a neon purple glow. It came out of all the windows, I don't know that I could have lived next to it, seriously. After seeing it for so many evenings we finally asked some neighbors about it. Everyone we asked claimed that was where Barney lived, either the guy in the costume or the voice-over guy, nobody was sure which. I don't know if they were right, but I have to say, walking past a house emitting neon purple light is a surreal experience.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Chocolate chip banana muffins
Two bananas were sitting on the counter yesterday, becoming browner by the minute. I couldn't find my go-to generic muffin recipe, so I created this one and, let me tell you, I was overwhelmingly asked to PLEASE throw out that recipe when I find it and only make THIS one from now on.
Chocolate chip banana muffins (gluten-free! vegan!)
Egg replacer to equal 3 eggs (whatever sort you use, ener-g or flax, whatever floats your boat) OR, if you use eggs, use 3
1/2 c. safflower oil (or any sort of light oil)
2 very ripe bananas, smashed with a fork
1 t. vanilla
2 c. gluten-free flour mix (I used a mixture of garfava, sorghum, and tapioca)
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. xanthan gum
chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350.
In a large mixing bowl whisk your egg replacer or eggs together, then add the oil, bananas, and vanilla. Whisk vigorously so that it all mixes together well. In another bowl combine the remaining ingredients, then add the dry to the wet. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, mix together just until there are no dry bits; it should have lumps.
Spoon batter into muffin cups and bake for 22-25 minutes. When they're cool enough to eat, try to save some for the rest of the family.
Chocolate chip banana muffins (gluten-free! vegan!)
Egg replacer to equal 3 eggs (whatever sort you use, ener-g or flax, whatever floats your boat) OR, if you use eggs, use 3
1/2 c. safflower oil (or any sort of light oil)
2 very ripe bananas, smashed with a fork
1 t. vanilla
2 c. gluten-free flour mix (I used a mixture of garfava, sorghum, and tapioca)
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. xanthan gum
chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350.
In a large mixing bowl whisk your egg replacer or eggs together, then add the oil, bananas, and vanilla. Whisk vigorously so that it all mixes together well. In another bowl combine the remaining ingredients, then add the dry to the wet. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, mix together just until there are no dry bits; it should have lumps.
Spoon batter into muffin cups and bake for 22-25 minutes. When they're cool enough to eat, try to save some for the rest of the family.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
Sunday: Out for Thai food in celebration of the Pookies turning 16!
Monday: Chickpea and potato soup, salad
ETA: Wow! This soup is amazing, definitely a keeper.
Tuesday: Taco salad, with homemade refried beans
Wednesday: Singapore noodles, baked tofu
Thursday: Buckwheat blueberry pancakes, strawberry-banana smoothies, the last few boxes of the gluten-free, vegan sausage stash (When Kellogg purchased Gardenburger, they started putting gluten into what had previously been the only vegan/g-f sausage I've found, so I bought up every box I could find that was still labeled gluten-free. At one point we had 46 boxes in our freezer but now there are only a couple left.)
Friday: Egyptian red lentil soup, brown rice, salad
Saturday: Tom's birthday is Friday, so we'll probably go out to his favorite Mexican restaurant.
Gluten-Free Goodness is hosting the Gluten-Free Menu Swap this week with a theme of apples. I'm going to make an apple crumble and apple muffins. Mmmm. When it's dreary outside, a house full of the smells of cinnamon and apples just feels right. Org Junkie, as always, has links to hundreds of other menus.
Monday: Chickpea and potato soup, salad
ETA: Wow! This soup is amazing, definitely a keeper.
Tuesday: Taco salad, with homemade refried beans
Wednesday: Singapore noodles, baked tofu
Thursday: Buckwheat blueberry pancakes, strawberry-banana smoothies, the last few boxes of the gluten-free, vegan sausage stash (When Kellogg purchased Gardenburger, they started putting gluten into what had previously been the only vegan/g-f sausage I've found, so I bought up every box I could find that was still labeled gluten-free. At one point we had 46 boxes in our freezer but now there are only a couple left.)
Friday: Egyptian red lentil soup, brown rice, salad
Saturday: Tom's birthday is Friday, so we'll probably go out to his favorite Mexican restaurant.
Gluten-Free Goodness is hosting the Gluten-Free Menu Swap this week with a theme of apples. I'm going to make an apple crumble and apple muffins. Mmmm. When it's dreary outside, a house full of the smells of cinnamon and apples just feels right. Org Junkie, as always, has links to hundreds of other menus.
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