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Tuesday, July 31, 2007

2nd Day on the New Job

I like it. I'm sore.
Even my brain is tired from having to get up at 5am. Heck...even my hair is tired.

I now know how zombies must feel.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

Funnel Cake Sunday


We had a nice quiet Sunday. I took a nap and tried to mentally prepare myself for starting work tomorrow. I love nice quiet days like this. I decided to try a new Funnel Cake recipe, because nothing lights up this Mommy's face like fried dough. They came out PERFECT. Even better than what you get from fairs and festivals.

INGREDIENTS:
3 eggs
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla (or the flavoring of your choice)
1/4 cup white sugar
3 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder

DIRECTIONS:1. In a medium bowl, mix salt, baking powder, and half of the flour. Set aside.2. In a large bowl, cream eggs, sugar, vanilla and milk. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth. Continue to add remaining flour, but use only enough to achieve desired consistency. Batter will be thin enough to run through a funnel.3. In an eight inch skillet, heat the oil to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).4. Put your finger over the bottom opening of the funnel, and fill the funnel with a generous 1/2 cup of the batter. Hold the funnel close to the surface of the oil, and release the batter into the oil while making a circular motion. Fry until golden brown. Use tongs and wide spatula to turn the cake over carefully. Fry the second side one minute. Drain on paper towels, and sprinkle with sifted confectioners' sugar or cinnamon sugar.

Saturday, July 28, 2007

So Tell Me Again Why The Toilet Seat Is Wet ???

Why ?
That's all I want to know.

You can't even get near the downstairs/Pickles' bathroom without smelling it first.
I've asked nicely. I've begged. I've threatened.
Please. Please. Please Baby, Baby Please.
Lift up the toilet seat when ya go.

That's all I ask.

And yet he still doesn't see the grossness in having to sit on a wet toilet seat.
It's not just that the seat is wet, but the entire area around the toilet has sprinkles on it too. Ewwwwww...

I feel for the boy, I really do. I understand how difficult it has to be to be the only male in a house full of females. But cut me some slack... ewwww

Granny believes he's going for some sort of World Record in Long Distance Peeing. Because it seems like he has to be standing in the doorway of the bathroom trying to work on his aim.

He spends about 30 minutes every morning cleaning it and scrubbing the floor. It still smells funny.

He doesn't seem to be able to understand that if he would just lift up the seat he probably wouldn't have to clean the toilet every. single. day.

He even asked me to pay him for cleaning it. LOL
Not going to happen. Ever.

Ewww...

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Picture of the Day- Wednesday


Oreo the Cat decides she wants to be a rapper when she grows up.

Monday, July 23, 2007

Things Kids Say

I've had a toothache for a few weeks now and the pain from it usually flares up in the evening. I was having a conversation with Pickles about it today, here's how it went. :)

Mommy: This tooth is driving me crazy.
Pickles: Doesn't it have a filling in it ?
Mommy: No, it's gonna have to come out.
Pickles: If you put some Vagisil on it, it'll stop hurting.
'Cole: No, that's Viagra. Vagisil has side-effects.
Mommy: !!??!!

I had to explain to them why those products are NOT for teeth (while trying not to hurt myself laughing) they finally understood and were completely grossed out.

My work here is done. ;)

What's For Dinner ?


Granny graced our table with Great Northern Beans with Smoked Turkey and Cornbread Saturday and I cooked Fried Chicken, mixed vegetables and macroni and cheese Sunday.

And now.....I have no idea what to cook for the rest of the week.


Eric at Panda Curry made some delightful looking chicken and pork skewers that I may have to try.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Going back to Work

Next week I go back to work. I've been unemployed since the company I worked for eliminated my job back in January. I have truly enjoyed being home with the kids these past 7 months.
The new job is great, it's just down the street from my old job. lol It pays well, has excellent benefits, every major (and some minor) holidays off, plenty of opportunities to advance.
But I'm just not excited. I just feel cautious. I worked for the same company for 6 and a half years, I loved working were everybody knew me. I hate thought of being the "new kid on the block".
I know it'll be great. I know it will.

Our Yard Sale

We had our first yard sale yesterday and it was tons of fun. Just being outside meeting the neighboors was really cool. We sold a lot of girl sized clothes, a bike, a carpet cleaner, a bath spa and a bunch of movies we don't watch anymore and made $72.
Today the kids are going to put out stuff they don't use so they could earn some extra money. They were amazed that people would actually pay money for our stuff. I told them people will always pay money for things in good condition. So now they're excited.

Sunday, July 15, 2007

Happy Birthday Pickles !!



Yesterday was Pickles 12th Birthday. He wanted to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, so he and I went to see it. Just mother and son. We stopped and picked up a birthday cake and for his birthday dinner he wanted breakfast for dinner. He wanted a t-shirt from Johnny Cupcakes , a new controller for his Playstation 2 and he wants the last Harry Potter book that is coming out next week.

We spent a lot of time talking about his firstmom and about drug addictions. He seems like he is starting to understand things, but with that understanding there is anger. He said he really felt angry at her. We talked about how a person who is addicted to drug is controlled by the drug and even when they are in danger of losing everything the know and love, the drugs prevent them from realizing the truth of their situation.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

True Love



Binky the Rabbit and Oreo the Cat have been in love ever since Binky wandered into the laundry basket Oreo was sleeping in. They're so cute together.

Sunday, July 8, 2007

Good Deal Hunting

Pinky, Daisy and I spent a lovely Saturday out and about visiting thrift stores. I found eight pairs of girls short/skorts and eight shirts in nearly new condition. Lots of nice stuff from The Children's Place, Limited, too, and JC Penney. Pinky and Daisy found a bunch of teddy bears to add to their collection.

I spent a grand total of..... $50.

I just started visiting thrift stores this year, and have been amazed at what I've been able to find each and every time we go. I usually spend somewhere between $600 and $800 a year on just summer clothes alone. This year I've spent an amazing $400.

I love a good shopping day.

Now if I could just learn to save all the money I'm not spending I'd be in good shape.

Wednesday, July 4, 2007

Happy 4th of July

Despite some afternoon rain, we had a lovely day. I grilled some shrimp skewers and we had crab legs and corn on the cob. We just lounged around, still trying to recover from the fireworks show yesterday.

Pickles accompanied me for my morning walk and we talked about how his sisters act and the things they do to drive him crazy. He's a good kid, he has a good heart. I know he feels forgotten somethimes because he's the middle kid, but he rarely gives me any trouble (except for the uncanny knack for being in the wrong place at the wrong time).


He's changed so much in the four years he's been by son. A few months ago he told me that all he wanted in the was to be loved. I hope he realized how much I really really do love him.

Fighting the Good Fight

We spent yesterday evening watching fireworks at Red, White and Boom and had great fun, but what truly amazed me was the number of half-naked teens and pre-teens we saw while we were out. How did they get out of the house dressed like they were going to a nightclub ? (Don't answer that, I already know ;)) No parents in sight and surrounded by over 400,000 people.

Which led 'Cole to comment about how I was ruining her life because she couldn't "go hang" with her friends. I had to look at her like she had gone temporarily insane. Surely this kid didn't think she was going to go gallivanting around unsupervised.

Why do I have to be the bad guy ? No, you cannot run around by alone down here. Why would you even ask such a question ?!?

Oh, I'm sorry for ruining your life, but I'm the Mom...it's what I do.

Monday, July 2, 2007

Shameless Plug






NappyGear is a collection of clothes for people who wear their hair naturally and it's my sister's company. She's been working on this project for a few years now, right after she started getting her hair loc'ed.


So I just wanted to support her in this endeavor and share these wonderful designs with the folks who read Mommy Goes Bananas.


Thanks

Sunday, July 1, 2007

"Nobody Likes Me" and How to Foster Self-Esteem in a Flower

Daisy's favorite things to say daily is "Nobody Likes Me". I remember when I started giving all the kids nicknames, Pinky was easy because she loves the color pink, and 'Cole used to be Long Tall Sally Or LTS, because she's so tall, Pickles name is a play on his real name and even teachers and kids at school call him that.
But Daisy was difficult, it took me forever to pick a nickname for her and one day while I was looking at my garden it came to me. Daisy. So I told her her nickname was Daisy. She instantly got teary-eyed and said "Nobody likes me, everybody calls me names."
So I had to explain...
"Um Daisy is a nice name, it's the name of one of my favorite flowers. I like daisies because even though they aren't fancy or showy they are just simply beautiful...like you."
She was OK with it after I explained why I picked the name for her, but it seems like she is very sensitive to anything she perceives as negative...even if it's not.

She gets picked on at school, but only because she tattles (A LOT). She doesn't know how to make friends (she does know how to, but she doesn't THINK she knows how to.)

She constantly compares herself to everyone around her and uses that to decides whether or not she is successful or a failure.

For example 'Cole draws very well and Pinky is good at gymnastics, but because Daisy is not great at either of those things she feels like a failure.

Until the day we went to the park so I could teach them how to play tennis. Daisy picked up a tennis racket and hit the ball like she had been playing her whole life. It was amazing to see how self-assured she was out on the court and I knew I had found her "thing".

So now comes the hard part, finding other things she's good at so that it helps build her up. Because she needs that.