Mama for Obama!!

Did anyone watch the Democratic National Convention tonight? That moved me to tears when Joe Biden came up and gave his speech...wow...Seeing his mom there..beaming with pride as he recounted things she said when he was a youngin'..

I am looking forward to hearing Obama's ' speech tomorrow..

I am a mama for Obama!!!!

McSurfer...

Lily had a great first day of school....

Here she is with her friend and Jack..

Notice her skull shirt? yeah, that's all she wants these days is skulls and crossbones..haha..thats so funny...

oh wait she wants 'Jo Bro' clothing too..she does have one shirt already..but wants more....

She played tether ball and bruised up her wrists..but who cares when she beat everyone in the court right? That's her philosophy anyway..

She says there are surfing posters hung all over the classroom.

When I took her the first day he (Mr. Coleman) made the kids line up. 'Gentlemen in one line..and the Ladies in another'

After all that was finished..he proudly informed them

"Gentlemen remember....Ladies..ALWAYS go first" All the moms practically fainted..

AHHHHH...Mc Teacher is Mc Dreamy!

Even when the kids go out for lunch or whatever, he makes one of the boys open the door for the 'ladies'

How freaking awesome is that?

I also failed to mention that he is tall, tan, good looking, artsy-fartsy, and musical..and has manners of a gentleman. He lives in a beach house..and surfs every morning before coming to teach the fourth grade. I think Lily and ALL the girls in her class are admiring of him.

Hmmm..maybe I should volunteer to be the room mom...

Our family made it safe and sound.

It was so good to see them. Jack and Isabelle played for a few hours yesterday and had a blast.

Here they are eating some grub. Notice how she smiles all polite and then there is my son.. Jack..being a typical feet smelling, farting, dirty little boy, he decides to shows his mouth full of chewed up apple. Ahhh..how lovely.

Saying their goodbyes....until they meet again..(in a few days)

They will be back in a few days to stay with us for 4-5 days and we can't wait!

At last...

It is finally here!
School is back in session.
Ahhhh....
Lily has a male teacher this year. He is awesome..he's a young-ish surfer dude that plays his guitar in class. I requested him for her...as I heard many good things about him.
I'll have pictures later...

Its gettin' hot in here.....

Since it was so gross and muggy outside..Justin picked tonight's meal. Had I picked it would be maybe a salad or some hoagies..something relatively cool. Not turning on the oven is key.

He wasn't thinking like me. He was thinking hot wings..

Hot wings?!? Are you freaking nuts..its so hot and you want to eat more things that are hot? Did I mention I have been like permanently hot since yesterday? Like burning up from the inside type of hot. No I don't have a fever, nor a sunburn..who knows what the heck is going on...All I know is I wanna park my ass in the freezer all day.

Off I went like a good little wifey to the store to get these wings and blue cheese. I already had the certain hot sauce we use. And I can only get that at Albertson's.

First you put foil on a baking sheet and then throw on the wings and drumettes. Drizzle with some vegetable oil and coat each and everyone of these little guys. Crack some pepper on them and you're good to go. Pop 'em in the oven at 375 for about 45 minutes...

After that..take them out of the oven and pour out some of the liquid and flip them.

Put them back in for about another 45 minutes or so until they are golden and look like this...

Dump in a large bowl and pour on about 1/2 cup or so of the 'special' hot sauce. Let them coat for a few and them place them on a plate and let them hang out for about 10 minutes..

Dump blue cheese in bowl..

Grab a cold beer and large bowl for tossin' the bones and poof..there's some freaking HOT ASS eats...

Here is the before...

and here is the after...

So darn messy!

Lily even got in on the wing action and scarfed a few up...and then she ran for a glass of milk..those suckers are so hot..just the aroma of the sauce practically singed my nose hairs when I poured it on..

I had 4 and I could no longer stand it..I jumped in an ice cold shower. Whew..

Even though the AC was on..the smell of the hot sauce made it seem some much hotter in here too. Or maybe it was just me.. Oh well.

Lily and I went to 'church' today and it was great. Lily got involved in some Roots and Shoots program where the kids are becoming pen pals with children in a Tanzanian village. They are taking pictures to send to them.

Lily got a disposable camera and her 'assignment was to photograph food!

Haha that's so funny!!! She already snapped some of the wings and there will be a bunch more this week for her to take. How ironic is that?

She is so thrilled...and she can't wait to go back next week! She already made a few friends. I am glad she enjoyed herself.

Beach day...

Yesterday we went to the beach. We didn't leave the house until 1030am. Justin was very skeptical that we would even find a parking place since we left so late.
We went to Coronado to Silver Strand it was beautiful..and there was tons of parking.
Jack did not want to go in the water..he just played in the sand. However him and Justin walked out to wet their feet and Jack stumbled and fell a little and got his shorts soaked...he clung to Justin like a monkey to his mama..he was scared I guess.
Lily was fearless and just took off into the deep blue sea. I had to keep hollering at her to come closer. At one point she emerged from the waves covered in seaweed..it was so funny, I wish I got of picture of that.
We only stayed about an hour or so...the sand flies or whatever they are were attacking my legs and I was getting annoyed and we (Justin and I) felt all gross and dirty..we didn't go in the water.
We headed home and went swimming in our pool. And I am so proud to say that I actually remembered to apply sunblock to myself this time..so I am not a lobster!!
Here are a few pictures of Lily frolicking in the ocean..

She actually stood still for a millisecond for me to take this picture, then off she ran and dove into the water..


Whats with the hair ??? Looks like a feather or something...

And this here..is Just Jack....(haha like on Will and Grace..remember..'Just Jack!')

Our family arrived late last night. It was so good to see them. The little girl is this amazing bundle of energy and just a happy..excited little person. She came right in and hugged me and everyone else. It was so cute. She is the complete polar opposite of Jack..(you know how painfully shy he is..he would never go up to anyone and hug them)...he just stood back and observed the whole situation..it was kinda funny. Can't wait to see these little people play together.. :)

I shall be cooking up a storm again..I am so happy to have more people to feed. They are staying with us Wednesday thru Saturday think.

Today Lily and I are heading off to 'church' and coming home and doing any last minute preparations for school.

I think I am more excited than she is..

And next year will be so weird because both of the kids will be at school. What the heck am I gonna do with myself?

Awww..shucks...

One of my very favorite people in the whole wide Internet world gave this to me..

and I just heart her..

Her place is so nice and comfy..

She is my own personal Buddha..

Thanks Caroline...

Back to school rocks!

Today I am busy, busy..
Doing laundry...
cleaning house...
figuring what the heck to cook tonight...
School resumes on Monday and I am so freaking excited!
Sounds terrible...but c'mon, all you moms with the pre-teen critters know whats up.
Attitude one minute and complete sobbing mess another minute.
Hormones?
Who knows..but all I can say is I am a happy camper..
Peace and serenity will be restored at my house..
(well at least from 9am to 3pm)
Jack is a totally different boy when Lily is not around.
And a good boy at that!
Tomorrow we are packing up and heading to the beach for our last outing of the summer..
should be fun..
but I am not to thrilled of the thought of tons of sand and a seaweed aroma wafting through my brand new car..
hmmm..I guess I can hose the kids off there...
or throw in the trunk..either one...lol

Just for me...

What can I say...I need one of these....

Worst Mom Award....

Lily had a sleepover at a girlfriends house last night and she had tons of fun.
However, when she returned she was a complete terd. All she wanted to do was sleep. Fine by me. All I wanted to do was clean and make some lists.
She slept for 2 hours. I woke her to eat some lunch, and she slept for another hour.
Her and her friend stayed up late..that's why she was so tired. That's all good..that's what they do when they have slumber parties. :)
After she was fed and rested she was acting like a total jerk..having attitude with me and Jack.
Having just started my 'time of the month' I was in no way, shape or form to deal with the tween 'tude.
Me, being the most horrible mother, told her I wasn't taking her to the library tonight for family movie night. They were going to show the new Hananah Montana/Miley Cyrus movie tour..(featuring the Jo Bros)..
After I let her know I wasn't taking her due to the attitude and eye rolling crap she does..all hell broke loose.
Crying..sobbing..babbling sounds from another world spilled from her mouth like diarrhea...
Why is it that when they are pissed off they apparently can't speak English and start speaking tongues? Seriously I couldn't understand what the heck she was saying.
Off to your room girlie girl.
After a few minutes i decided to go and tell her like it is. I asked her if she knew why she wasn't going tonight..and ofcourse the dumbfounded look glazed over her face and she starred off in the distance and sadly muttered "No I don't"
Pftt..whatever..explained clearly why she wasn't going.
I even went as far as to say something along the lines of
"If you can compose yourself and stop crying like an infant..help with laundry tomorrow..I can go to Blockbuster and rent this beloved movie."
Well the shit hit the fan...
More tears and crying...
Was that not good enough?
I can't win..
I am done.
I am moody.
I am pms..y
I am going for a cocktail.

Unspectacular Things...

My new bloggy buddy over at Confessions of.. tagged me to list 6 unspectacular things about me...
For starters let the record be known that I have waaayyy more than 6, but I am playin' by the rules, yo.
Lets see..oh yeah..the rules..

1. Link the person who tagged you
2. Mention the rules on your blog
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them & leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they have been tagged.
The last part of the tag game is to send it to six people you want to know 6 insignificant or unspectacular quirks about.
(I don't know if I'll tag 6..people..in fact if your reading this, why don't you join in !)

1. I can't stand it when my kids don't match. For instance when Jack dressed himself and put on a stripped shirt and checkered shorts..it made my palms sweaty and my stomach hurt. Drives me crazy. Lily does this all the time JUST to make me mad.
2. When I was a kid I used to do an awesome impression of 'The Incredible Hulk'. I used to vibrate and shake and pretend to transform into the green giant. Hmm...that explains alot..
3. Most of the time I don't eat 'normal' breakfast items. For me I would much rather have leftovers or a sandwich or something..and of course my coffee.
4. I can't go to bed at night if there is dirty dishes in the sink. Also I don't like to leave the house unless it is neat and tidy. Who wants to come home to a messy home? Even if your just going to the market down the street. Such a nice feeling to come back to cleanliness. :)
5. I am obsessively stocking up on everything. You know how many bottles of shampoo and conditioner are in the kids bathroom? Last I counted there was 6...wtf?
6. This last one is probably the most prominent in my life. I am such an anal planner/organizer. I cannot function if I do not know whats going to happen for the day. I am a list maker. In fact..I make lists of lists that need to be made. It makes me want to barf not knowing whats going on this weekend. Seriously I NEED to know. Whats worse..Justin is the polar opposite of me and would rather decided whats going on like 5 minutes prior. Grrr..I hate that. I like things planned and organized. Things just go way more smoothly that way..for me anyway.
So there you have it...and if your just dying to know..I have WAY more unspectacular things..the list (haha the list) is never ending..Seriously.

Zesty Eats...

Today I had no inspiration at all...no ideas on what to make.

However..I ALWAYS have chicken..ALWAYS..

You and me both know you can make anything with chicken. I happen to see a bottle of Zesty Italian Dressing too...uh huh...

Zesty Dinner..Kelly Style...

*Put chicken in Ziploc bag

*Pour in 1/2 bottle of dressing

*Sprinkle in gobs of spices..whatever you have on hand that sounds good..here's what I used...(I also used ginger, but add after I took this picture)

*Mix it all up to get everything coated.. and get out any air in bag...put in fridge for 4ish hours...

*Cook 2 bags of Wacky mac tri colored pasta according to directions..drain and run cold water over it...drain again..put in large mixing bowl

*open a can of diced tomatoes

* plop it in

*Sprinkle a container of Feta Cheese (the basil and sun dried tomato variety) over the pasta.

*Pour in remaining 1/2 bottle of Zesty dressing

*Dash of Parmesan

*Top with some more spices..(I used basil)

*Place in fridge until chicken is done

*Grill chicken

*Open 2 cans of organic corn..(run it under water to get off add salt)

*Pile each of the above items on plate and dine with your family..

**(Note..this type of chicken tastes best when you have some fresh lemon to squeeze on each bite..unfortunately we had zero, so we used lime instead..)

I must add also, that while I was making this..I thought Lily and Jack were getting dressed after their shower..(we just got back from the pool)..however I was sadly mistaken..when my dear daughter introduced me to her new friend.."Sarah"

Lookie here....

Poor Jack...he gets to take the brunt of Lily's boredom..

He should run...run far away..

Recap..

Here are a few pictures from Jacks party..my big 4 year old. I can't believe how fast they grow..its ridiculous..

Grilling some dogs...

Jack's loot~

Skater boy cake with tank candles...

Splashy fun

"Can I have my presents now? Peas!! Peas mama!?"

Beatin' up sis with his 'Rock em' Sock em' Robots

Jack's new ride..Big Wheel style..

He said he had a great birthday. He got calls from Grandma, Aunt R , Uncle J and Cousin ..he was excited about that.

Now Lily is already planning her birthday party....

sigh..its never ending!

Weekend Post

This weekend was great...it was Jacks b-day party. Funny, it ended up being mostly girls,a s some of Jacks buds were unable to attend...(although there was my neighbor boy and my friends son..he's a little over one.
We all went swimming and had a good time. Jack wasn't too intimidated and shy at all... I guess were making progress!
He received all kinds of goodies, some were a big wheel, sandbox, games, and gift cards..(which he already used!)
He loved his cake and had a great time

Today I thought it would be yummy to make BLT's...however..it morphed into a club-like sandwich... so a BLTHT Sandwich..(bacon, lettuec, tomatoe,havarti, turkey)
Here's what I did....

Cook some bacon....
Toast some sourdough...
spread mayo on one side, melt Havarti on the other.....
Nestle in the bacon on top of the melted cheese....
Put on some Dijon mustard...
Crisp iceberg...
Sliced tomaters....
layer in some herb roasted turkey...and poof, you got yourself a club...
I thought I would add some avocado..but that may be too many flavors competing with one another.. so left that out.
Hubz said it was the best damn sammy ever...(not sure if he was trying to feed my ego, or he Really thought so...either way I loved it, as did the kids!)
Dinner was easy peasy...(thanks to Costco..) cooked a tri tip..(omg so freaking good!) steamed some veggies..you really hit the motherload when you are having broccoli..(so many health benefits). That is one of the vegetables I try to have on hand at all times...that and carrots and yams...I could go n and on about the goods that these provide, however that could be totally boring... Made some herd and garlic rice pilaf and dinner was done..
Washed my car today ..and Lily volunteered to help which was nice. The Colbalt is so shiny and perdy..I love her....
My peeps will be her this upcoming Saturday. Lily starts school on the 25th..and I can't wait...not only for me but for her.
She seemed to have a fab summer..countless slumber parties..swimming at the pool, Museums, Zoo, play dates and mall trips...(typical tween)..and still have a beach trip planned for boogy boarding and all that..

I hope she had a good summer...

She has been working on a bday wish list for me..I asked her to do that for me..

She gave me good ideas, although I don' t think she will be getting a ipod or mp3 player..

She really wants Guitar Hero for the Nintendo DS...so that's do-able

She was at a sleep over last night and apparently she kicked some serious ass over there...hahah..thats my girl... :)

20 Things...

I got this from Caroline over at The Zen In You. Your suppose to answer the questions with one word..kinda hard..
Thought I'd give it a go...

1. Your cell phone? annoying
2.Your significant other? soul mate..
3. Your hair? thick
4. Your mother? lost
5. Your father? unknown
6. Your kid(s)? blessings
7. Your favorite thing? coffee
8. Your dream last night? weird
9. The room you're in? living room
10. Your fear? sickness
11. What you're not? optimistic
12. Last thing you did before logging on? consumed coffee
13. Where did you grow up? San Diego
14. What are you wearing? clothes
15. Your computer? rocks
16. Favorite place? cooking in kitchen
17. Your mood right now? anxious
18. Missing someone? always
19. Something you're not wearing? shoes
20. Your life? content

Lazy Leftover Lunch..

It is so freaking hot outside. Well its only 85 degrees. I can't seem to cool off. Maybe I am having a hotflash..nah..I'm only 21..oops typo..I meant 31...
After running around to Costco and Party City, I finally parked my butt in front of the air conditioner where I sat to ponder the ever so difficult task as what the heck to make for lunch.
Me, being totally lazy didn't want to do anything today.

Can't I just push a button on these kids and they'd become full or something? Don't get me wrong..I love cooking and all things food..but damn it sometimes I wanna sit on my ass and drink diet pepsi and watch my trashy tv and not cook. I mean look at these folks..looks like they are having a good time, no?

I had Lily make her and little bro some sandwiches..(I think she made pbj's, not sure) then they got to have some mango/strawberry sorbet.

While they were eating I finished wrapping the rest of Jacks loot for his shindig tomorrow.

For whatever reason I got a burst of energy so I thought I should have some lunch now, granted all I had so far today was a bazillion cups of joe and some cantaloupe.

I made fajita nachos...

Here's what I did..

*took out what was left from the 15 minutes fajitas

*chopped it up all small
*put some organic blue corn chips on a plate

*threw the fajita stuff in the microwave for about a minute and a half..

*dumped the mixture on the top of the chips

*melted cheese over top
*smothered sour cream and hot sauce
(If you are wondering if I ate all this or shared any with the children...well lets just say I am so freaking stuffed and won't eat for the rest of the day..hee hee)

I know, I know..what a pig..but dang it I was starving and yeah I know...so not figure friendly..

Oh well.

There's always tomorrow to diet, right?

Oops, maybe Sunday..tomorrow is cake and chips, hot dogs and all the typical birthday fare.

Crap...

'Bound to happen....

So it seems Lily has so tenderly handed over her germy germs to me and I feel like a huge pile of crap.
My stomach hurts..its all tight and weird..(maybe AF?)
My nose is pulsating
My body aches..
Good thing I made that soup..I need it now.
Fingers crossed Jack stays healthy..his bday pool party is Saturday.
The only thing that is keeping me sane right now is Kathy Griffin. She is so hilarious I just love her. There were a few episodes of The D List on back to back..
She makes me have those deep belly laughs that when all said and done..you have to wonder if you peed yourself a little.
Yeah.. I like her that much.
Ok..off to sleep I guess..or barf..which ever comes first..
So fun.

Kickin' Ass and Sniffle Soup

Today my dear friend Amy over at Escape into my thoughts bestowed upon me this gem...

The Kick Ass Blog Award..

Awesome..thanks babe!

The award was originally from MamaDawg . That makes my day a little brighter as we have been under the weather..

Well mostly Lily..she has a case of the sniffles and blahs...

Me, being a 'kick ass' mom whipped up some home-made chicken soup and biscuits for her to eat and comfort her.

Here's the results...

*Chop up bunches of carrots...

*And bunches of celery

*Put a whole chicken in a pot and spice that bad boy up with whatever sounds good...(I use garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, poultry seasoning, black pepper and bay leafs)

*Throw in the veggies

*Fill up the pot with h2o and pop a lid on it and let it do its thing for a few hours....

*Few hours later take out the chicken and let it cool. Then take off all the meat, discard bone..(except keep the wishbone and let your kids make wishes)

* Put chicken back in (remove bay leafs) and add a little bit of chicken stock. Bring to a boil and then add a bag of egg noodles..

*While that's cooking, throw in some biscuits in the oven.

*they should be read 'bout the same time.

*Serve and enjoy.. :) I personally guarantee this will be way better than canned chicken soup...pinky swear..!

Oh I found this..and decided to give it a whirl..not too shabby...

Here was my power breakfast today

Strawberry hemp Granola w/ flax seeds...blueberries, raspberries all on top of some vanilla yogurt..gave me a good boost to get started on some serious cleaning..

Lily lay in bed all day watching Gilligan's island. We have the whole series on dvd..she loves it so much..its really funny..

Justin bought me The Munsters on dvd awhile back..she said she'll start those next.

I love the Munsters...they are so cute. I want all of us to be them for Halloween.

How funny would that be,,Jack as Eddie...Justin would make an awesome Herman..I would be Lily and Lily would be Marilyn...

Hopefully..we can pull that off..or maybe we'll be the Flintstones and Lily and Jack can be Bam Bam and Pebbles..