The Muffin Man

Despite feeling under the weather, Jack insists on cooking. No kidding. Everyday..at least..oh I'd say about a bazillion times I hear "I wanna cook" and "gimme everything mom!" How could I say no to this little coughing, snot-nosed, feverish child?

So I thought it fun to have him make muffins. He fancied the idea. Instead of doing everything from scratch like I normally do, I decided to take a short cut since he has very little patience to sift flour, measure out baking powder, etc. So with some help from Krusteaz, we open up a box of Banana Nut mix, add the ingredients needed, then add some of our own touches. He smooshed up some raspberries and blackberries and added those, then made a topping for the muffins with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Into the oven! That was the longest 18-20 minutes of my life..every 11 seconds Jack would say..'did the timer go off yet?' or 'I wanna eat my muffin!' or 'are they done yet?'

Finally time to chow! After cooling for what seemed like an eternity..Jack finally got to taste his creation. From his mouth and I quote "Mom these are tastic!" (fantastic) and "So delicious!" I am so happy he enjoyed the fruit of his labor! Every picture I took, Jack has his eyes closed...haha

Like there wasn't enough...

There is an abundant amount of playthings at our home. Its great..but there are things that I don't like.. here they are in no particular order....(not that it matters that I don't like them..mostly I just don't like having to clean the mentioned items up)

1.Polly Pocket..(because its just too damn small)

2. The teen tiny Lego's..(you know the ones in the blue tub..hate those..again..small pieces get lost and ultimately end up in the heel of my foot)

3. Hotwheels..just because there are literally thousands at any given time strewn about the kitchen.

4. Play-doh..I am still trying to get that damn stuff outta the carpet.

5. Bratz..it creeps me out that there feet come off.

6. Last but certainly not least(for now anyway) is Dolls..like the supposed life-like ones..eeww..a neighbor lady gave a tub o toys to the kids and in there was the most fucking creepy, evil, possessed doll that cried and the face glows red..its like Rosemary's Baby..I need to get rid of that thing.. maybe I should bury it somewhere..I don't think any child deserves to have such a wicked toy. Who thinks of stuff like that anyway? I mean..if I was a kid I would have nightmares about it..I sure as hell wouldn't want to push it in a stroller and show it off to my friends.

But Justin bought a toy this afternoon at Target that I don't mind. 117 piece pretend food set for the kids..(well mainly jack because he is obsessed with cooking) On a daily basis he is begging for some garlic and telling me how he is gonna make something with tomatoes and apples...mmm..maybe he's onto something.. I took a picture of the baby when it was glowing, but it didn't come out like I thought..oh well, better that you didn't see the horrific creature..i will post it, but you'll have to use your imagination. Oh yeah and then there is the food.

I don't know why I am blogging about this, I guess I feel the need to bitch...

Yay for Us!

We are so getting a new..I repeat..a brand spanking new A/C delivered today...
I am so happy..maybe I should totally make out with the delivery guys to show my appreciation..them or my boss who ordered it! Woo hoo!

Jack and The Snot Factory

How can so much snot come from such a small person. I mean seriously..I wipe his nose(when he's running by, because god forbid he stand still for a second to clean the mess) and by the time I go throw away the tissue I look at the little mucus monster and its pouring outta his nose! He feels fine other than his leaky nose. Lily was ill Sunday..she cried on and off all day due to a headache..which was a sinus headache because she was totally congested. I kept her home from school Monday..which was silly she didn't have a fever, and she felt totally fine..I just didn't want her to get worse or get other children worse..I'm considerate like that....
So we were watching Alton Brown Good Eats Monday night and he made Chicken Fried Steak..yum! So I go to the market and get all the stuff. (I should mention I missed the first oh..5-7 minutes because I was working on my 5th load of wash.) Anyway..it turned out so wicked gross.. I totally missed the most crucial step..tenderizing the meat..duh! (I was at the laundry room when they showed that part) And my gravy was brown, not white. And the meat..well lets just say your mandible got a helluva work out. Oh yeah the coating on the meat was suppose to be crunchy and mine was soggy and it kept falling off the steaks...haha oh well I totally suck at frying stuff..which may be a good thing because its totally unhealthy. I felt bad for the husband because he went after work and bought some beer called Anchor Steam? or something to enjoy with his meal that I got him all worked up about. (he hasn't had beer in a month!)
I have my doc appointment Sept 13..remember when I mentioned I am getting this rash all over..eczema I presume..well I Google adult onset eczema and about 4 sites list something like this:
'Adult-onset unexplained eczema may be sign of lymphoproliferative malignancy'
I am getting some lab work done and maybe a derm referral for my insane eczema that is driving my crazy. I am totally freaking out..which is silly ..because its probably nothing..right? I have to keep telling myself that. Maybe its from the cats? But I had a very small patch before they came..and also years ago, before Lily was born I had a cat too, and no eczema.. I know how your feeling B... I drank a whole bottle of wine the other night..(in the post with the kids making a huge mess)..I figured I 'm gonna die anyway, so what the hell....
I will spare you the pictures I took of the Chicken Fried Steak..it looks terrible..like a big gravy-ish terd..

Bam!

Lily and Jack were totally bored. I was thinking of something for them to do. All Jack wanted to do was get into my cooking utensils and bowls. No problem! He cleaned up some of his thousands of hot wheels and action figure dudes. I busted out tons of bowls, wooden spoons, etc.

Justin even got a box from a package that was delivered the other day (David Lynch's new movie ..'Inland Empire')..and made a makeshift stove for Jack.

Me, feeling spontaneous and excited (I guess a couple 2,3 glasses of wine will do that to ya) suggested to get some real food to play with. I went to the pantry and got some oats,an old pie crust that I never used, rice, crappy coffee beans (that I would only use in times of dire need..yes I am a coffee snob) and some sour jelly bellies and told the kids to have at it. I wasn't even worried about the mess.I am totally a clean freak and I didn't mind about the humongous mess they made..(again thanks to the Gewürztraminer). they had a ball. It was so cute. I didn't mention that Jack constantly wants me to turn on 'cooking show'. He is particularly fond of Rachel Ray, Paula Dean y'all and Emeril..

I am sitting on the couch watching some decorating show and I can here the kids talking amongst themselves, then outta nowhere I hear Jack scream "BAM!" LOL I almost wet myself from laughing so hard. I watched him and he was throwing some rice into a pile of oats and then he did it again.."BAM!" Just like Emeril!

He goes through my kitchen looking for old spice jars, and pepper grinders which is his fav at the moment. I absolutely love it! I hope he continues this passion..maybe Santa will bring him one of those wooden kitchens for Xmas. haha

Just a quick note..

Lily is totally obsessed with playing Sims 2.. here is our conversation 2 nights ago

me: Lily bedtime..
Lily (insert annoying whining here)
me: Lily turn off that game and brush your teeth, what are you making them do anyway?
Lily: Mom..my Sims character is just about to sneak out with her boyfriend and I want to see what they will do..

Those cats...

Those cats are driving me freaking nuts! Seriously..the white one..all she does is suck on you and trys to give you a hickey, and the black one, well she is so chatty..she loves to meow so loudly, and consistently at 2:23am in the morning...EVERY MORNING.
One night I was super lazy and just went to bed in the clothes I was wearing. The shirt had a teeny tiny hole in the front..seriously it was microscopic..but that amazing cat(Luna) discovers it and trys to suck on me through the damn thing. I have been trying to stay covered up at night because any flesh exposed shall become fair game for her to slurp away. Did I mention how hot it has been too? Oh sure, I push her away, blow in her face,tell her no, what have you, but she is relentless..like a cat in heat needing to get some, shes searching and won't give up til she gets some skin to suck. I tried shutting my door at night but the two felines will howl and rip up the carpet. I think slowly she is getting the picture..I have no milk coming outta me..
Oh yeah, they totally went behind the TV and screwed with the cords that connect the surround sound speakers...Justin was thrilled. And honestly I can't believe the kitties have lasted this long with Jack in the house. He growls at them, chases them, pulls their tail, tries to break up fights, I've seen him kick Luna., and runs them over with dump trucks..I am sick of these cats, I am sick of cat liter, I am sick of my knitting being totally fucked because they got into my knitting basket..(which has a lid)..Anyone want 2 cats? Anyone? I am willing to drive, fly, walk, ride a bike, walk on my hands to a decent person who is nocturnal and loves hickeys..

P.S. Please do not leave dumb shit comments about how I am so cruel to animals, can't believe I was a vegetarian, or anything pertaining to animal rights. I am not in the mood and you can just kiss my ass. Seriously.