The Flood

Why is it that life is one step forward and one step back......Oh wait, that's supposed to be two steps forward.......Well, it feels like just one right now!! :P

I went to my craft show on Saturday and as many of you know it was just "okay". I made back my booth fee and a little bit more. Mikayla and I had a great time visiting with the other crafters. We met some really nice people! and we had fun hanging out together. I did learn a lot about craft shows and may try another later this month since I have a lot of cards ready to sell and supposedly Saturday's show was bad just because their were more crafters than shoppers!!!!

Yesterday morning I went downstairs to find the humongous pile of laundry that had accumulated as I stamped cards all last week. Let's just say that the leaning tower of Pisa (sp?) can be recreated in no time at my house!
I had promised myself (and Shane) that I would get the house back together this week including getting the laundry caught up. I virtuously began separating the clothes into their appropriate bins (organized by colors and washing temperature) and started the first load. Unfortunately, within 5 minutes the disaster occurred.

I slipped on a brand-new stream of water coming from under my washing machine. Yes, my washing machine had overflowed. The darn thing has truly passed away. It doesn't want to spin another load again. It also doesn't shut off when it has reached the appropriate water level. Let's just say I had lots of water escaping from it's designated location and heading for the floor drain near the furnace. (I've had my doubts about the wisdom of indoor plumbing for years and this just confirms them.....I mean, overflowing toilets, sinks, dishwashers, busted pipes.....who needs them?) So, all day I watched, babied, and cajoled my machine just to get a few desperately needed loads washed. (I only got 4-5 done.) This does not make a DENT in the amount of clothes I wash each week. But, I can guarantee clean underwear, socks, jeans, and t-shirts for a day at least.

Shane came home last night he declared the official time of death at 8:30. So, I have been given the assignment to search Craigslist for a new washing machine (CHEAP!) so my beloved husband can go forth with an appliance dolly and his work van and (as conquering hero) deliver a working washer to his fair maiden.......AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!!!

The Beast

No, I'm not talking about Shane!!!! The Beast is my affectionate nickname for our computer in the family room. It doesn't seem like we've had it that long, but it is slow and it hates me. But, our laptop (affectionately known as the Beastie) has suddenly turned retarded. It doesn't know it can get on the internet. So, my blogging addiction has been denied for weeks! I have little energy to drag myself down to the family room and sit in a hard chair at the computer desk at 11:30 at night to write or read! Tonight, I was helping Jessica get her papers ready to submit to the National Honor Society (they've invited her to apply) and I'm up late so I thought I would explain my lack of participation in the blogging world.

My craft show is this Saturday. I have approximately 400 cards to sell. I still need to buy envelopes and make labels to attach to my baggies with an email address and phone number for re-orders. (I hope there will be re-orders.) So, besides my agonizing deprivation of the joys of a laptop computer, I have been stamping my heart out, and keeping up with the boys' soccer schedules, oh, and cleaning houses for cash! Yipee! Hope all your blogs are still as wonderful as ever. I hope to read them again after Saturday!!!!!

The Top 10 Countdown of Why I Love My Sister Jocelyn

10. She has a naughty sense of humor.

9. She loves animals and I admire her devotion to her pets. (No, they can't be sealed in the temple to you Jocelyn!)

8. She enjoys shopping at Half Price Books as much as I do. (And spends more $ than me there! hee hee)

7. She knows that she deserves to go to the spa and hair salon every so often and be pampered!

6. She appreciates great Hibachi cuisine and took me to have some with her family the last time I was in Texas.

5. She has a beautiful singing voice. (I LOVE to sing with my sisters and mom!)

4. She listens to my "funny" stories and even laughs at them. (or at me.....whatever!)
3. She listens to my whining......more often than I care to admit.

2. She is my cheerleader. She believes in me and encourages me.

1. drum roll please......She has great taste in sisters!!!!!!! Just ask me...or Sheralyn!





LOVE YOU JOCELYN! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We call her Pretty Pretty Princess!

And I'll tell you why! I did her hair and we were really hustling to get it done in time! It took over an hour! While I was curling, spraying, and pinning her hair, she sat in a chair and made her royal requests.

"Mikayla, go downstairs and get my dress. Please."

"Mikayla, go downstairs and get my jewelry."

"Mikayla, go downstairs and get my shoes. Please."

Yes, your royal hiney. I mean highness! :)

AND she kept admiring her beautiful fingernails that she had done at the mall. (They really WERE gorgeous.)

Mikayla and I had a good laugh at how Princess Jessica was so demanding. Mik had her sweet revenge by bringing up macrame style jewelry while hiding the pretty silver jewelry Jess was planning on wearing. Mikayla also brought in an assortment of winter scarves to cover Jessica up a little bit more! And Jessica has promised to be Mikayla's servant when Mikayla gets ready for her first formal dance.

We three girls really had a great time getting Jess all gussied up. Her date, Zack Baker, got here a few minutes early and we still weren't done with her hair! So, he had to cool his heels in the living room for 10 minutes with Mikayla and Jared entertaining him. (Jared's nose was running! Not nice! But, kind of funny!)

I insisted on going down the stairs first (so I could watch Zack's reaction when Jessica came down). When she walked in the room he said "Wow" under his breath. It was so cute. They had a wonderful time on their date. Especially when they went to goof off in Target after their nice dinner at Johnny Carino's. At Target they tried on boots, cowboy hats, and Halloween masks! Zack told me Jessica even started riding a scooter up and down the aisles. (That story is uncorroborated.)

They stopped at the Village Green (a park) to walk around and take pictures and then stopped at UDF to have ice cream. They had a nice time seeing their friends at the dance, but the music was horrible and the dancing vulgar! Jessica and Zack are thinking a church dance will be more fun.

After the dance, they went to a friends' house (Claire) and then Zack brought her back home and we visited with them (including Mikayla) for a half hour or so. It was lots of fun for us to visit and get to hear all the fun details of their evening!

When the Mom is Sick

It's not pretty. And I don't just mean the face I see in the mirror! The house starts falling apart pretty quickly when the boss is down for the count. It started out as a bad headcold and sinus pain. Then it progressed to bad congestion and coughing. After a week it turned to a fever and stomach flu!!! It was AWFUL! But, finally this morning the fever broke. I feel weak and I'm not over it yet, but I feel much better.

Unfortunately, the house is in bad shape too. The laundry has become a complicated situation. Children ran out of socks on Thursday and Tanner actually went down to the dirty clothes in the basement to get some out of the "whites" hamper. When he came upstairs and had a "dirty" pair to wear to school. I actually said they would be fine. There are 3 baskets and a recliner full of clean clothes in my bedroom. They are unfolded, but at least clean. I'm afraid to venture down to the basement to see how high the dirty laundry pile is now.

But, I'm so proud of my family. Sometimes they didn't want to do the extra work asked of them, but Tanner watched Savannah on Thursday so I could take a nap. Mikayla went to the soccer games on Saturday to cheer for the boys since I couldn't go. (Thanks to Karlin for picking them up and taking them and bringing them home!!!!!) (Thanks also to Heather for taking my 3 middle kids for the afternoon so I could rest and thanks to Kevin and Pat for watching them in the evening!)

Mikayla then spent Saturday babysitting me and Jared. And now, she is downstairs making dinner for the family. Something else I am grateful for is my kids' caring personalities. When they would come home from school or activities, the boys would often stop in my room and check on me. "How are you feeling mom?" "Are you doing better?" "I hope you get better soon." Can you beat that?

So, after days of toast, soup, and Gatorade, I am glad to have eaten 2 real meals and I think I may actually be on the road to recovery!

I'm not including any pictures for this post. Believe me........

you don't want any!

Fried Rice

Maura's Chicken Fried Rice

2 cups uncooked white rice
4 chicken breasts, uncooked and cut into small chunks
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2-4 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
2 cups frozen green peas, thawed
4 eggs
milk
margarine (or butter)
garlic salt
pepper
soy sauce
crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
This is my "homemade" recipe, so the amounts of the last 6 ingredients can vary according to your taste.

1) Prepare rice according to package directions. Set aside. The rice can be made a day ahead of time and refrigerated if desired. Or you can use leftover rice.

2) Melt margarine (approximately 1/4 cup) in a very large non-stick skillet or wok. Add chopped onion, garlic, and chicken. Season with some soy sauce, garlic salt, a little pepper, and a little red pepper flakes.

3) After chicken is cooked through, remove from skillet and set aside. Melt more margarine (approximately 1/4 cup) and add rice. Season with garlic salt and soy sauce. Stir it often over medium heat. When nicely warmed through, add thawed peas and stir.

4) While peas and rice are cooking, in another pan scramble 4 eggs with a little milk, garlic salt, and pepper.

5) When the eggs are finished, add them to the rice mixture.

6) Add the chicken back to the rice.

7) Taste. Add additional soy sauce or garlic salt if needed. This recipe makes a huge amount of fried rice and can be halved easily for a smaller family or if you don't want a lot of leftovers.

My family and friends like this so I thought I would post it on my blog.

New Cards

Here are my 2 new creations for my craft show. The index finger on the light pink one is not included and is for display purposes only!