Dang. I can cook up some good chow, y’all. I’m increasingly impressed with my abilities in the kitchen. I’m getting good at this!

This morning I cooked up some eggs, bacon (baked bacon is the best), grits, and flapjacks. We were enjoying it so much that no one was even speaking. All you could hear was the flappin’ of mouths. I finally looked away from my plate to make sure no one was choking and caught a glimpse of my 12 year old with a milk moustache. Yeah, the grub was so good he didn’t even care that he was wearing more milk on his upper lip than he was actually swallowing!

Noah had pancake syrup in his hair. Bella had ketchup from her eggs all over her cheeks. And Jeremy? He was too busy eating to make a mess.

Then, for dinner, I made the most amazing green chili EVER. I baked a pork shoulder this morning and when it was done, I shredded the meat, threw it in the crockpot with some roasted green chili, onions, cumin, and a cup of salsa. HELLO! It was scrum-diddly-umptious! We had some rice, refried beans, and tortillas on the side. Deee-lish.

When I met Jeremy, I thought I was a domestic goddess when I’d pop some frozen fish sticks in the over, make a box of mac-n-cheese, and open a can of peas. Yuck. I’m sure Jeremy is glad I’m not still cooking like I did at 21! There are a few things I was better at 10 years ago, but cookin’ wasn’t one of them.

** Random addition: My Stepbrother had a baby boy a few days ago. Cooper was born weighing 5 pounds and 13 ounces! Yayyy! I’m a Step-Aunt. Wish I was closer, I’d bring them a crockpot of my greenchili stew…**

My days are crazy, y’all. I run my hind end off all day, beginning at 5 am. I brush 50+ teeth (not all mine, of course), make coffee, pack Jeremy’s lunch, make breakfast, kiss my hubby goodbye. I drink about half a cup of coffee before the day really kicks off. I usually notice my cold cup of coffee around 10 am, sigh, and mourn that I wasn’t able to sit quietly and drink its entirety.

But there are hungry boys to feed and there’s no time for coffee!

I pack the diaper bag with a snack and drinks and then head to the gym with the kiddos so that I can get buff. Or not, as the case may be. Yesterday there was an old man that called me over to him and said, “Do you mind if I ask you a question? I wondered why you only have that tattoo on one arm? Wouldn’t it be more symmetrical to have it on both arms?”

My reply? “Wouldn’t your nose be more symmetrical if it were wrapped around my shoe?”

Ok. I’m kidding. I didn’t really say that. But he has a come-over. I should have ragged him about how “unsymmetrical” his hairline is.

Old Fart.

I work out for an hour or so. I still can’t seem to get my butt tohurryupandshrinkalreadybecauseit’sbeenoverayearsinceyouhadababy,stephanie,

andyourassstilllooks9monthspregnant!

“PEDAL FASTER, Beeyatch”!

400 calories later and I’m done. Finally.

How many calories make up one ass cheek? Because I’d be happy if I could get rid of just one of them.

We travel home, have some lunch and do some arts-n-crafts.

These make wonderful gifts for happy mail to family. Isn’t it purdy? Aren’t we creative somebodies?

I put the babies down for their nap so that I can lay back and relax clean the house and fold the laundry. I also make dinner during naptime. Because I’m an overacheiver. Or, so that I can go watch Austin’s scrimmage instead of laboring over a hot stove later in the day. Here’s the deliciousness that was our dinner last night:

Chicken Alfredo Casserole

I watched Austin in his first game after naptime! He was so awesome. I nearly lost my voice yelling and carrying on. He’s the Quarterback, so he’s in charge of making sure everyone does what they are supposed to. I could hear him yelling out, “Good take-down, Aiden,” or “Put your helmet back on, Jake,” or “BLUE 52. Hut.” I was soooo psyched! I kept saying, “That’s MY boy.” Bella got really upset at one point when one of the Linebackers tackled Austin. She said, “Get OFF my brother! I’ll get you!” I haven’t been this excited about sitting under the 95 degree blazing sun with 2 cranky toddlers since, well, EVER.

Bronco bound. Or Panthers. Whoever pays the most.

That’s only part of my day. I left out the cleaning, diaper changing, and temper tantrums. Consider yourself lucky that this post doesn’t come with sound. This house full of youngin’s is noisy, y’all. Trust.

Why don’t you join me by sharing a day in your life?  

I make an award winning quiche. Ummm. Actually my quiche hasn’t won any awards. But, it’s deeeelish. So I thought I’d share my recipe with you. Now you will have the power! This is great for brunch, lunch, or dinner!

Ingredients:

2 deep pie shells (I prefer Marie Calendar or Pillsbury)

10 eggs

3 cups shredded cheese (I like sharp cheddar)

1/2 can organic spinach

1/3 jar of sliced sweet red bell peppers (usually on the pickle aisle)

1 cup mushroom slices uncooked

1 small handfull of diced onions

* sometimes I add a chicken breast, sometimes a 1/2 jar of soft bacon bits, maybe even some green chilli if you are feeling spicey. But this time it was all veggie and was quite filling. It’s a great way to disguise veggies if your kiddos hate them, like mine do.

Cook on 370 degrees for 1 hour- 1 hour 15 minutes. Serve with a delicious fruit salad. Or better yet, try this:

fresh organic spinach, sliced strawberries, feta cheese sprinkled on top, with a bit of strawberry dressing (yes, they make this. look for it cause it’s so yummy). (Thanks, Chanda, for the delicious salad idea!)

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Also, my son is a football star. Well, almost. He’s a star in training. He’s been going to practice all week and just got the position of Quarterback! My son is a Quarterback, Bronco bound, y’all! I’m so stinkin’ psyched!

All the girls love the Quarterback. I remember our Quarterback in high school at Terry Sanford. He was something else. Great looking, point scoring, super friendly. He got scholarships to NC State. We loved you Edwin!

Austin is my favorite Quarterback though:

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Lastly, Jeremy has been working on this multi-million dollar home as a sub-contractor. He was offered a better paying job with a competing contractor, which, of course, he excepted. We figured there wouldn’t be hard feelings with his present contractor since the job was done, everything passed inspections, etc. On the day of Jeremy’s expected “check-cut”, the present contractor found out about Jeremy finding a better paying job. He refused to pay Jeremy. So, we’re floating and at this guy’s whim for an entire month’s pay. He cusses Jeremy out everytime Jeremy calls for the status of his check. He hangs up on Jeremy. He jerks him around. This is all so very humbling because what the guy deserves is a kick in his jaw but all we can give him is patience and hope that he’ll pay up. Meanwhile, you know, bills need to be paid and children need school clothes and fall jackets, and the world fargin’ keeps on going despite this jerks pride and ego. So, we’re having to go file a mechanic’s lien on the house he worked on which is a total bummer because it means it could take MONTHS to see the money, if ever, and we still lose hundreds of dollars for the cost of the liens. I’m sooooo bummed out. If you pray, will you drop one in the mail to God for us? If you light candles and send happy thoughts, please do for us. We could use a little of that right now. We’ll make ends meet. We always do. But the funk and negativity this has brought our family this week has really put some long on our faces.

But we’ll keep on truckin’ because that’s what we do. And with a face like this to brighten your day, what else matters?

“Mommy, I LOVE your strawberry and spinach salad. More, please!”

…the way Noah gets so excited when I pour a bath for him. He makes the awesomest noises and squirms around in my arms until I put him in the water.

…how I have to brush Bella’s alligator’s teeth as bribery before she’ll let me brush hers. She makes me brush his teeth and when I’m done, she makes him watch as I brush hers.

…the way Austin always observes my needs. He notices how I’m feeling and always tries to support me and help me. He’s way ahead of his time. I so love him and his sweet ways. He’s going to be an outstanding man one day.

…when Jeremy compliments me. And he does all the time. He convinces me that I’m pretty, even when I feel frumpy. He knows when I need to get my hair done or when I need some time alone. He works so hard every day and then comes home with open arms to grab a baby, feed them the dinner I prepared, and play with them while I go to the gym. I love the way he compliments my mothering. He knows how important it is to me to be good at it. I wonder if he knows that he’s the beautiful one, inside and out.

…tripping over toys and crunching cheerios between my toes in order to travel from one room to the next.

…dirty fingerprints on the television screen, mirrors, and walls. They make me smile. So much so that I had to do them in paint in a special place that I’ll never have to wipe them off of.

…the way I miss the babies when they go to bed, and the sweetness of Bella cuddling with her books and “babies”.

…the way they smell.

…the sound of Austin and Bella playing together.

…the forts Austin makes Bella all over the house with every blanket he can find. She tears them down as fast as he can put them up. His frustrated patience with her is adorable.

…the way my house smells. And the laundry. The fresh sheets I have time to hang on the clothes line now that I’m not working.

…Bella’s wild hair. Especially when it has jelly in it. I think there’s nothing cuter than a child who looks like she enjoys every bite she eats. By lunchtime she has paint on her clothes, milk on her moustache, food in her hair, and playdough in her pull-ups.

…wearing the look of a mommy. I take my clothes of at the end of the day to take my shower and find cookie crumbs and cheerios in my braziere. I have snot marks on my t-shirt. I usually have something sticky and unknown tangled in my ponytail.

…the way Noah’s eye gets squinchy when he smiles his biggest smile. I have a squinchy eye when I smile too, although it’s the other eye on me!

…and the mooshy, gooshy feeling I get when they smile…