Dirty Girl

This afternoon Clara was enjoying her bag of Cheetos. The same bag that had the contents fall out over and over again. Each time I picked them up and stuck them back in the bag and headed for the trash can only to be sidetracked by something else. Each time Clara found the bag and continued to eat the chips.

.

When I finally got them away from her and out of reach, I told her she needed to go wash her hands. I followed her into the bathroom where she went to lift up the toilet lid to wash her hands in the only water she thought available.

.

I read somewhere that the water restaurants use for their ice makers is actually cleaner than toilet water. I hope that is true for her sake.

For the hips.

I have absolutely no will power when it comes to oatmeal raisin cookies. I must have been a horse in a previous life* because I have a great love for all things oats. On Monday I was craving some oatmeal raisin cookies and wanted something better than the old stand by recipe. I started searching the Internet and just for fun typed in "world's best oatmeal cookies." I figured something was bound to come up. Sure enough, plenty of entries came up. I scanned through them and was intrigued by a recipe posted that not only had the old standby of cinnamon in it, but it also had ginger and nutmeg. I figured I would give it a try. I am so mad that I did because they were delicious. We ate the entire first batch and made a second one today.

If you are at all like Steve and don't like "spicy" cookies, these are not for you. He also feels they are a waste of space because they are oatmeal raisin and not oatmeal chocolate chip. In my opinion there is a time and place for chocolate chips. This is not it. These are a cross between a soft, mild ginger cookie and a chewy oatmeal cookie. If you're having a hard time being at one with the raisins you could substitute chocolate chips, but in this house it will never happen. Sorry babe.

(* For the record: I am Mormon - I do not believe in reincarnation. )

Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 C butter

1/2 C shortening

3/4 C white sugar

1 C brown sugar

2 eggs, well beaten

1 Tablespoon Vanilla - I spelled that out so you would no it's not a mistake - T.a.b.l.e.s.p.o.o.n.

1 1/2 C flour

1 tsp salt

1tsp baking soda

2 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg

3 C quick cooking oatmeal

1 C raisins

1. Beat the 2 eggs in a bowl and add the tablespoon of vanilla. Go get your raisins and dump them in the bowl. Now walk away for at about 2 hours. DO NOT START THE RECIPE UNTIL YOU HAVE DONE THIS. MUY IMPORTANTE!

2. Set your oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter, shortening and sugars in the mixer. In a separate bowl mix all the dry ingredients - except oats. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Then add the raisin and egg snot (yes, that's what it will look like) and mix well. Finally add the oats and mix until it all comes together.

Bake for 9 minutes on a greased cookie sheet.

You can thank me later. If you don't like them, go make yourself a "Team Steve" t-shirt and wear it with pride.

How many times can you say wiener?

I wish I would have dressed Clara up a little bit. I can also see from this picture it's time for a haircut. Someone is going to turn me in for child endangerment - the poor girl can't see!

We were lucky and got Wiener Whistles. Not just 1, but 2. I can't even begin to tell you how much fun I had on the ride home. I am happy to report I didn't lose my patience once - I let them blow all they wanted. That alone should qualify me for mother of the year.

Thomas was in heaven. On the way home he asked if we could get a Wienermobile when our van breaks down.

The whole gaggle of kids. 2 out of 5 looking at the camera - not too shabby!

Sometimes

Sometimes I am able to catch tender moments with my lens. Ones that I don't want to forget. Images that tell a stories of love, happiness and peaceful times.

And then upon further inspection, those same images become even more priceless because of one small detail that could have easily been missed.

Belly Up

A picture story.

I am too distraught to put our feelings into words.

Advice

If you have one of these...

and one of these...

Make sure you have a good one of these...

New Dictionary Entry

This morning Steve was getting ready for work. I was in the other room listening to the conversation Thomas was having with dad.

D: Today is your last day of school for the week. Do you know all about Q? (letter of the week)

T: Yes

Thomas and Dad start listing off words that start with Q.

D: There's really not that many words.

T: I know, it's kind of Quard.

For clarification:

Quard: \'kwärd\ adjective difficult or troublesome in respect to any word that starts with the letter Q.

How to sell on ebay

I am in the de-junking mood. I want my closets clean, my drawers organized and my house in semi-functional order. Today I was walking through the house pulling stuff to give away. I have had this workout DVD set sitting on my office desk for months now. I figured, "what the heck, let's try selling it on ebay." I was feeling a tad punchy when I sat down. I wrote the following product description thinking I would never really hit "sell now" - but I did. I guess people like honesty. Who would have thought it would sell in less than and hour.

Here was my listing...

This is the Tony Horton 10 minute trainer DVD set. I only used it 3 times - if that. What can I say, I'm a wimp!

The set includes:

-2 DVDS -one DVD has 3 workouts, the other has 2 workouts.

-1 Workout band - Used more by my kids to play "tie you up" than actually used to workout. Don't worry, still in great condition (both the band and the kids)

-The straps to use on your door to make the workout more intense - who am I kidding...I never took them out of the plastic.

-Measuring Tape - to measure all the inches that will just melt away once you start using this (hint: you have to do more than just own the DVD to see results - I learned from experience)

-Some papers that talk about what to eat, how you can look good in your jeans, and how to be a lean, mean, workout machine! There is also a nice little set of note cards you can take on vacation so you can workout in your hotel room. I am guessing there are some people out there who like to workout on vacation, go figure. That would not be me.

-Seriously, it is everything that comes in the box from the infomercial. The only thing you will not get is the 5 x 7 note card that you write your measurements on. I already used it. If you want, I can send it with my measurements written on it. This should make you feel pretty darn good about yourself!

Please buy it. I want it sold so I put the money towards my gym membership. I am hoping a membership card in my wallet will work better than a DVD in a box. Wish me luck.

Cha-Ching!! It sold for $52.99 in less than an hour. Not too shabby!!