Laugh Out Loud Funny

I found this link to an SNL skit on BooMama's blog and I laughed so hard I had tears in my eyes. Then I made S watch it and he laughed really hard, too. Your sense of humor needs to be slightly twisted but I promise you'll laugh!

Souptacular 2008

Since I did this last year, I thought I'd do it again!


Turkey Chili

1T olive oil
1lb. ground turkey
1T garlic, minced
2½ t ground cumin
½ t salt
½ t pepper
1 (14oz) can chicken broth
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 can corn
½ C uncooked rice
½ C green salsa
1C onion, chopped
½ T cilantro

Heat olive oil in large skillet or pot. Add turkey, garlic, and onion and cook until meat is no longer pink. Add cumin, salt, and pepper and stir to combine. Add chicken broth, black beans, corn, rice, and salsa. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and add cilantro. (If you don't like the flavor of cilantro, substitute flat leaf parsley.)

Serve over chopped lettuce and top with sour cream, salsa, tortilla chips and grated cheese.

Like Father, Like Son

Many years ago, a tall skinny boy was heading out to a concert. He was going to see one of his favorite groups, Kid 'N Play, knowing every one of their songs even though his parents didn't really like them. At least they were mostly clean. (S and I share many things; our taste in music isn't one of them.)

In order to feel like a part of the crowd, S decided that he must do his best to make his hair look like this:

He tried all sorts of things: hair gel, hair spray, even mousse. But nothing was working. The texture of his hair just wasn't made for this particular style, never mind that it was only two inches long. So he tried one more product - Vaseline. This didn't really work very well, either, and just made his hair greasy; very greasy. In fact, it made it greasy for several days, through countless washings with various shampoos.

Fast forward twenty something years later and this is what I came home to after picking the girls up at school:

No, that's not water on his face or bananas in his hair. That is Vaseline. Apparently there was some in his room that I had yet to take out and he, being the curious boy he is, found it, took the top off, and rubbed it all over his body, including his outfit, hence the hair standing up on his head. He's had one bath already but he's still greasy and now my hands feel greasy as well. At least his skin is baby soft and will be for the next few weeks.

If this is Monday, what's that mean for the rest of my week?

First Tooth Picture

Yet Another Sign She's Growing Up

As if loosing her first tooth this week wasn't enough, K had her very first sleepover party Saturday night. Now I remember these fondly as I look back on my childhood. Playing with other people's toys and getting to sleep in a sleeping bag was just so much fun. We stayed up late, ate junk food, and came home in a foul temper, pumped up on sugar and with no rest. Oh, but it was fun.

When K got the invitation, I was very hesitant to let her go. But she begged and pleaded and said she really wanted to, day after day after day. I took this as a sign that she wasn't afraid to do it. So many questions came to my mind as I pondered what to do: what if she had an accident at night? What if she ate something she wasn't supposed to? What if she got scared and wanted to come home? I talked to S about it. I talked to the birthday girl's Mama about it. I talked to several other Mamas about it. And then I talked to God about it. After much consideration, I let her go.

Oh, friends, it was hard. I drove her to the party, took a tour of the house, got all the info I could possibly need and knew that she would be in good hands (not my hands but good enough ones). I had to leave a list with all the things K is allergic to and what to do should she have a reaction to anything, including medications and their proper dosages. I hugged her good-bye five or twenty times before we left. I'm glad S was there or I would have been a puddle. I had a knot in my stomach until about 10:00 PM, when I was pretty sure there wasn't going to be a phone call that she was scared and wanted to come home.

When I picked her up yesterday, I was so happy to wrap my arms around her. Oh, how I'd missed her! She had a fantastic time. Birthday Girl's Mama said K was a huge helper and was very well-behaved as were all the girls (nine 6- and 7-year-olds).

K's first question for me? "When can I have a sleepover at our house?"

I don't think this Mama is ready for that just yet.

Growing Up

On Tuesday afternoon, as the sun was beginning to wane, I forced the kids outside to get some fresh air. They had been inside most of the day and were going stir crazy (and about to drive me crazy) so they went outside to play, even H. He loves being out there but with a crawler, it's hard to want him to be out there. He either gets his legs dirty or his pants come back caked with dirt. Ah, the joy of having a boy. He also likes to climb the stairs of the play house which scares me to death. But the antics of H outside is another post entirely.

K has been nursing a loose tooth for some time now. I think it was back in the spring when we first noticed it was slightly loose. Finally it was loose enough to come out but hung in there for over a week. She pulled it out on the back porch and you would have thought she had won the lottery. She was so proud! She is the last person in her class to lose a tooth so this was really exciting.

I'll post a couple of pictures if I remember to download them. I just had to tell you that my baby is growing up!

SWAT Team at School

The SWAT team was at K's and L's school on Friday. The reason? It was a demonstration by the Sheriff's office. It was truly wonderful. One of our dear friends flies the helicopter for the Sheriff's office and he organized this field day for the preschool and elementary school (ah, the benefits of a small school!). There were squad cars, a SWAT team truck, the helicopter, and the K-9 unit was on hand. The kids got to see everything up close and learn about the various jobs held by the men and women in green.

We got to watch the helicopter land and take off (from a safe distance) and we all got a turn petting one of the K-9 dogs. She was the biggest baby but she took her job very seriously. The SWAT team showed us how they approach a building when there could be suspects inside (and yes, they used real guns).

The highlight for me was the K-9 demonstration. We got to see how a dog tracks down a bad guy and what happens when said bad guy attacks his handler. The dogs have exactly one job: to please their master. So whatever the master says, the dog does. And when the master is in danger, no words are needed; the dog attacks without being commanded to do so. It really was cool. What I didn't know was that the dogs go home with their handlers every day and live with them even after they are retired. I thought that was really neat. I think the whole day was just as much fun for the adults as it was for the kids!

One More for the Road

Pumpkin Patch 2008

Each year our little preschool takes a field trip to the pumpkin patch. This year was no exception and I went with L. It was so much fun. Their little class did such fun things including pumpkin painting, games, hide & seek, and a hay ride. L's class is a wonderful group of 4-year-olds, probably the best behaved group I've seen in a long time. They got to ride the bus, have a picnic lunch at the pumpkin patch, and ride the bus back to school. Riding the bus is a BIG deal when you're four. Here are some pictures of our day.

Nothing says "pumpkins" like jeans and your pink cowgirl boots. This picture is, to me, quintessential L.

L-ism of the Day

When we got home from ballet yesterday, I told L she had to change out of her ballet attire and put it in the laundry room. She protested at first as she loves her ballet attire, or any other special attire for that matter.

A few minutes later, she came out of her room and, wearing only her underwear, said, "Mama? I just want to put on my normally clothes."

Bragging on L

Yesterday when we got home from school, I went through both girl's folders as is the norm. I went through K's first, digging through all the work sheets and tests (100 on her spelling test!) and moved on to L's.

The very first thing I saw was a gift certificate with a little green post-it. It said that L had been "caught" being extremely patient, waiting for her teacher to lead the way rather than running ahead like the other 4-year-olds in her class. As a reward, she got a free kid's meal at a local restaurant, one we frequent.

While my kids are (mostly) well-behaved at school, they usually aren't singled out for being especially good. So I was very proud of L and her patience. I'm not sure where she got it!

When Did it Get so Complicated?

I've been pondering this subject for a while now and I thought I'd get the opinion of the two of you who actually comment. I'd love for others to chime in, too.

Last night I went to a birthday party for one of L's friends. Technically, our families are friends so we were all invited even though he's L's age and they have gymnastics together. And we all went, all five of us. I noticed that many of the kids there were not this boy's age but all ages and the parents stayed, too. Some of the older kids were neighbors who play with the birthday boy on a daily basis but there were others who were siblings of his friends as well. In fact it was mostly families who attended the birthday party for a 4-year-old.

I don't remember inviting whole families to my birthday parties. I remember my friends being there but not the whole family. Granted, I was an only child so I didn't have siblings who might want friends there, too, but I don't remember being invited to my friend's sibling's birthday parties either. When we had K's birthday party last year we invited her friends. Not all the siblings; just her friends as it was her party.

So when did it come to this? When did children's parties become parties for the whole family? Does this go along with our society's need to include everyone? That everyone must win, everybody gets the prize? Is it that we don't want to hurt anyone's feelings? Or is it that we now feel obligated to include everyone? I just don't get it.

I'm not saying that it's a bad idea. In some ways, it's a wonderful way to celebrate with family and friends, all of our friends. K and H had a fantastic time and I even jumped in there with them, having races with several kids. It was fun and we all had a blast. Everyone was exhausted when we got home and went to bed right away. (Kudos to my friend who had the party from 5-7 on a weeknight rather than a Saturday. I will keep this in mind for L's party next year.)

What are your thoughts?

Words, They Do Escape Me

A few months ago I found a fantastic deal on shampoo while at our neighborhood pharmacy. They had a name-brand shampoo that had a free, full-size detangling spray attached. Plus, they were marked buy one get one free so I got 4, full-size products for the price of one. Can't beat that deal. The detangling spray is perfect for the girls after hours in the pool or post-bath. I honestly don't know what they do after their hair has been washed but it looks like it has been teased with a fine tooth comb.

I put the shampoo away until I needed it. When I got out the detangling spray for the girls, I noticed this printed on the back of the bottle. Keep in mind this is a direct quote.

"Hair knottier than your stomach after a questionable hookup? Smooth things out with [insert product name here]. The heat-activated silk protein formula gives you intoxicating shine...for better luck next time."

I'll give you a moment to pull your lower jaw off the floor.

Of Deodorant, Football, Pizza and Coffee

Ready for some random thoughts by Mama? Here they come.

1. I had to buy deodorant the other day. Since I had to go to the grocery store anyway, I thought I'd just get it there. The kind I had been using was $4.93. I'll give you a minute to recoup from that. Yes, it was almost $5 for a small stick of deodorant. I can assure you I didn't pay that much for it when I first bought it. And I didn't pay that much for it this time, either. I went for the old standby, the one I've used on and off for years. It was much cheaper. When did deodorant become so expensive?

2. Auburn football (yes, Sporty Mama, I'm going there). It's a pitiful sight when you lose to Vandy. I don't care how good Vandy is and how bad Auburn is playing, you don't lose to Vandy. I'm going to stand behind my Auburn Tigers through thick and thin and this is definitely thin. We've got to do something about this offense if we're going to make it through the rest of the season. Let's just say it was bad enough that my fellow Auburn friend here in town called not once but twice during the game. We only talk if Auburn isn't doing well.

3. I finally found a pizza crust recipe that I really like. It's crispy, has great flavor and this method of cooking it makes it even better. This is the reward I get for getting up with H on Saturday morning and watching TV.

4. We lived in this small town for two years before we got one of these stores. That would mean it didn't arrive here until 2005. We are now getting a second one closer to my house, complete with drive-thru. I'm not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing given my new love of coffee. And going up just down from that one is one of these. I'm pretty sure this isn't going to be good for my waistline. (We currently don't have one of those particular fast food places even though we have every other one known to man. Well, except for this and we can't seem to get them east of the Mississippi.)

Have a happy Monday!

Random Things I Love About My Children

1. K crosses her legs while riding in the car.
2. L calls K "Sissy" and gets mad when anyone else does. It's her term of affection for K.
3. The way H says "seese" for "please."
4. The way both K and L said "upplease" when they wanted to be picked up.
5. K's dimples.
6. H's dimple under his right eye that can only be seen when he laughs really hard.
7. L's nose.
8. L's crazy hair. It's always in her face but she just wouldn't be the same without it.
9. H's juicy lips. He gets lots of complements on them.
10. The sound of laughter from all of them.
11. K's ever-increasing zeal to know and love the Lord.
12. L's attempt at reading. She tries so hard.
13. L's tomboy behavior. She'll be outside digging in the dirt and chasing boys but she'll be doing it in her princess dress.
14. K reading to L.
15. The way H puts his head on my shoulder and gently pats my back.
16. The way their little voices sound on the phone. It was sweet music when I called on the way home from the cruise.
17. The way they all love their Daddy.
18. H's fat little legs.
19. Being called Mama.
20. Hugs and kisses at the end of the day.