Kids DO the darndest things!

We've all heard people say "Kids say the darndest things", right? Well, how about "Kids DO the darndest things"??!!?? I'm thinking we should reinvent the phrase...

After getting home from school today, PQ came out into the kitchen and said:

PQ: "Mama, guess what?"

Me: "What?"

PQ: "Guess what I forgot to do this morning?"

Me: "I don't know. What?"

PQ: (Yanking down his pants) "I forgot to put on underwear."

Me: (Mortified) "How on earth did you forget to put on underwear?"

PQ: (Innocently) "You didn't put any out for me."

Me: (Confused) "So if Mom didn't put socks out for you, you wouldn't wear those either."

PQ: "No. I would go get some and put them on."



Oh yes, folks...he went to school without any underwear on this morning. Seriously? Oh yes. This morning was a little unique. I picked out his clothes for him and laid them on his bed. We got up a little later than planned so I was trying to save some time. Let this be a little reminder for all of you...Just when you think your child is dependent enough to get dressed on his own, he might just surprise you with something like this.

I can't wait to tell him about this when he has children of his own! *WINK*

Maybe just maybe...

Maybe it's the newly cold weather. Maybe it's the stress from the recent fall schedules. Maybe it's this...or maybe it's that. Maybe Mooch has been on to something for quite some time. Maybe Mooch isn't lazy afterall. Maybe he just knows how good it feels to snuggle up and take a nap. Maybe Mooch understands how taking some time to be alone does something deep inside our soul. Maybe we all need to learn a little something from the Mooch-Man.

Maybe...

Roasted Root Veggies, Anyone?

'Tis the season for root vegetables, right? Well, I've recently fallen in love with a vegetable dish that I came up with on my own. No real recipe, per say...but I wanted to share. We've had a similar version of this side dish for the past few nights. If you give it a try, please let me know what you think. We love it...and our guests seem to really like it too!

Fresh Beets (~ 1/4 inch slices)
Fresh Carrots (I cut these lengthwise in quarters and then cut them in half)
Fresh Pumpkin (cubed in 1/2 inch pieces)
Chopped Onion

After chopping the veggies, drizzle them with olive oil. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on for taste. Toss until lightly coated with the olive oil. Next, line a baking pan with aluminum foil (for easy clean up) and then spray with non-stick spray. After prepping the dish, pour the vegetables into the pan and bake at 350 for approximately 1 hour. I also covered my pan with foil to lock in the juices.

Once the veggies are 3/4 of the way done (roast until tender), mix 2 Tbsp of brown sugar with 1 Tbsp of maple syrup. Next, add balsalmic vinegar until you are able to create a sandy paste. The sugar will absorb the vinegar and it will become dark brown in color. Once you have reached the desired taste, heat the ingredients (microwave is fastest) until it boils. This will take approximately 40 seconds. After the mixture has turned into a liquid state, mix it well and then drizzle it over the cooked vegetables.

Enjoy!

*Let me know what you think. *

PS~ Country Mouse, I'm bringing some to you in the morning. Let me know what you think. :)

The Black Trumpet Review

Last night, we had the honor of having Date Night with Derek's boss and his wife. Papa H and I both had a great time and we look forward to hanging out with the T's again soon. They are a very sweet couple and it was quite nice to converse with such down to earth people. Before I go into a full fledge review of the food, I want to apologize for not having my camera!!! I accidently left it in DT's truck which was a few blocks away from the restaurant. The only picture that I got from the entire date night was at the very end of the evening.

MT & DT

MT started her meal with a bacalao salad with sauteed Brussel sprouts, bacon, and delicata squash, drizzled with lemon. Next, she had warm Scarlet Turnip Potage with apple chips and chive oil. She decided to have Braised Bison Shortribs for her main entree. Along side the bison was celeriac mash and cider-glazed carrots in a quince and beet reduction. Overall, she was quite happy with her choices. Her favorite part of the meal was the bacalao salad. Her least favorite part of the meal was the Turnip Potage soup.

DT started his meal by having Spice-rubbed Rare Tuna with Mahnomen wild rice and parsnip vichyssoise. Next, he had a 2 cheese selection made up of Isle of Mull Cheddar Cheese and Blue des Causses Cheese. These came with a quince paste and a stonefruit compote. For his main entree, DT ordered Pan-roasted King Salmon served over housemade chili pasta tossed with fresh shrimp, bacon, and mushrooms in a gin-tomato cream sauce. His favorite item was the Spice-rubbed Rare Tuna. His least favorite part of the meal was tasting too much bacon in his main course.

Papa H started his meal with Lamb Meatball Kefta with tomato-poached quial egg, cumin yoghurt and picked peppers. He absolutely loved how flavorful this dish was. After eating a few pieces of cheese, he also chose to have the Braised Bison Shortribs with celeriac mash and cider-glazed carrots in a quince and beet reduction. Overall, he was quite impressed by his selections but his favorite part of the meal was tasting the choucroute that was part of my main course. He really enjoyed the smoked bacon flavors that came along with this side. He didn't have a least favorite part of the meal...he loved everything!

I started my meal with a bowl of hearty Chicken Dumpling Soup with enriched duck broth and autumn roots. Next, I nibbled on a few pieces of cheese that DT got for us to try. My main course was a Kelly Brook Farm Pork Chop with boudin blanc, choucroute, and garnet yam latke. I really enjoyed my soup...this was by far my favorite part of the meal. My least favorite part of the meal was the boudin blanc. I didn't actually taste it...the dense appearance of the sausage was a little too much for me to handle. Papa H and MT tried it and thought that it was 'interesting'.

At the end of the meal, DT & Papa H were quite full but MT & I still had room for a few bites of dessert. Come on, we're women and that's what women do! We both agreed that we wanted to try the Dark Chocolate Beet Torte with ginger cream cheese frosting, salted walnut brittle and orange glace. The salted walnut brittle was delicious but I do have to admit that it's a dentist appointment waiting to happen. Delicious but chewy. The torte was just what I needed to end a delicious meal. I actually kicked myself for not choosing to have a few desserts for my dinner instead of the typical meat and veggie dishes. Hhhmm...maybe next time.

Overall the entire evening was a blast. I'm glad that we had an opportunity to share the evening with such kind hearted people. Thanks again for a wonderful night, MT & DT! We had a great time! :)

Top 10 Reasons Why I Love Date Night

Please note that these are in no particular order:

*I love to get dressed up.

*I love going out to eat.

*I love having my hand held by my husband (without him having to compete with PQ).

*I love seeing Papa H get dressed up.

*I love how giddy I feel when we're together.

*I love showing PQ how important it is for a mother and father to make time for one another.

*I love checking out my husband!

*I love when he looks at me that 'way'...you know what I'm talking about...we all have a special 'way' about us when we are in love.

*I love reminding myself of how much I enjoy spending time with Papa H.

*I love how much fun we have.


Oh man...t-minus 5 hours before our date! I can't wait! I love you, Papa H!

I love Tide!

I recently made the switch...

From Liquid Tide...

...to Powdered!

I was a little hesitant at first. I've always viewed the powdered stuff as a 'cheap' alternative. I always thought of the powdered stuff as second best (for no reason at all-not sure why I came up with that stereotype). I love using Liquid Tide and I had been using it for quite some time. Out of sheer curiosity, I decided to try the powdered Tide for budget friendly reasons. I was interested to see if the powdered stuff would save us any money. Regardless of whether it does save us money or not, I'm not going back to the liquid. I'm in love with the powder! Our clothes seem to have 5x the crisp, fresh fragrance that they had when I was using the liquid version!! As far as the budget is concerned, I don't know if it will save us money or not. It's too early to tell.

Does anyone else use powdered laundry detergent? What do you think?

Weekend in NH

Wow! What a weekend! This past weekend, I went out of state with my friend Glory. We traveled to NH where we met up with a few ladies from our church for a rejuvinating weekend away. Along with the ladies from our church, one of my coworkers came along with her mother for the conference as well.

I have to admit, I almost didn't go to the conference. Even though I had paid for the conference several weeks ago, I almost stayed home because this weekend might have been my 'fertile weekend'. Thankfully, a very sweet friend of mine redirected me on my path and I did decide to go afterall. If it's Gods will for us to have another child, He will make it happen in His time. Thanks again, Tracy. I'm so glad that I went away and had some time to reflect on my life.

Okay, here goes...here are some pictures from the weekend!

Me & Glory

Finally, we're here!!!!

...and look how cheap the gas is!!!

This was the room that I shared with 5 other women.

This is where we REALLY went.

(You didn't really believe the other picture, did you??)


Breathtaking!

Did someone say FROST??

(It's only mid-October!)

HP and her Mom



Isn't Glory funny???

(I think so.)

Connected.

Hooked.

(on the pumpkin whoopie pies)

Mean.

(We had turkey dinner on Saturday night-one of my favorite meals. My table friends decided it would be funny to take all the food before I got back to the table to get any...)

PRANK.

(They hid the food on the chairs.)

Team Playful Revenge.

(We played pranks on each other all weekend. My favorite was switching tables with another group while glory went to the bathroom...she was VERY surprised when she came back and we were gone. HAHAHA)

Cozy.
(Everyone loves a campfire, right?)

BOND.
(Enough said.)

Hilarious!
(On Sunday morning, Glory and I found out that our roommates had put soap in our bed under our sheets...and we didn't even notice. We slept with the soap in our beds all night long!)

Wait a minute. Didn't I say it was mid-October!!???

Every single detail of the weekend was perfect! I'm so glad that I went to NH afterall. Everything happens for a reason and it's not our jobs to try and figure it all out. This weekend was a gentle reminder for me. :)

Cold Weather Blues

It's official...we've turned on our heat for the season. Sigh.

After seeing Papa H come to bed with a fleece jacket on for the past two nights, I thought 'enough is enough'. As soon as I got home from school today, I turned up the heat to 65 degrees. We always try and push off the inevitable by waiting until the last possible moment to turn on the heat. With the recent cold weather at our door steps, it's getting more difficult to maintain a happy-go-lucky approach to it all.

Sigh. It's that time of year again!

GOOT Product Review

A few days ago, I embarked on the GOOT challenge. My friend Laurie swears by the stuff and I just had to try it out for myself. I ended up making the gooey potion and using it that same night. Even though Papa H knew what I was doing, he still had a hard time with the not-so-sexy smell. Every time I would roll over in bed or ruffle the sheets when I rolled over, I heard an awful gasp. It was Papa H cleaving to his last breath of fresh air before inhaling the smell of his garlic'y wife.

Before putting the GOOT on my feet, I felt miserable. My voice was husky and my throat was scratchy. After an evening with GOOT on my feet and a night full of Papa H plugging his nose, I'm happy to report that I felt like a rockstar in the morning. I felt good and my voice sounded much better.

Will I use it again? Yes indeed...even though I smell like a cross between a garlic knot and a lasagna. So ladies...if your husband loves the smell of italian food, this might be just the thing that you've been looking for. He'll love you forever. *WINK*

Gut Pumpkin?

Today was a FUN filled day. PQ and I had the day off from school (for Columbus Day) so we spent the day looking for fun fall activities. We went on a nature walk. We went apple picking and we went to the local pumpkin patch to pick out a pumpkin! This evening, we decided to gut the pumpkin.

Don't worry, PQ...

...there you go!!!!

Tah-Dah!

Meet our newest friend, JACK.

What types of 'fall' activities did you do today?

Too Close To Home

Our tenant's just came knocking on our door. Yes, it's late...but apparently someone broke into their house and robbed them while we were all gone today. Papa H, PQ, and I got home around 8:30pm this evening from our afternoon out and about. When we got home, we went through our normal nighttime routine. Brushing our teeth, washing up, getting pj's on, praying, and then saying goodnight. Up until the knock on the door, we hadn't heard anything out of the norm.

According to our tenant's, they had been gone since 1:30 this afternoon. Upon their arrival back at home just a short while ago, they found their back door wide open. They found their mattress moved and their drawers had been rumaged through. The Playstation had been stolen and a few games had been taken as well. Other than that, they can't pinpoint anything else that might have been taken.

We tried to collectively wrap our minds around the fact that someone was in our close quarters without our permission. Without getting consipiracy theory on everyone who might have been involved, we tried to stay calm. Just a few weeks ago, our bikes were stolen from our yard...and after a week and a half, the police found them and returned them back to us. Considering the fact that this type of crime has happened on our property twice in the past month is not okay. I don't feel safe...and it makes me want to move even more than I did before. (Unfortunately, we can't afford to move and take a hit on our house. We know that we would lose quite a bit of money if we sold it right now because of the real estate market.)

The police arrived a few minutes ago to take down all of the necessary information. As I sit here typing, I can hear Papa H talking with the tenant's upstairs. I've already moved PQ from his bed into our bed for the evening. Call me crazy but I don't like the idea of having someone uninvited watching my house...or my family.

It's one of those things that you don't ever want to experience, that's for sure. It's way too close to home.

Got GOOT?

You heard me. Got GOOT? My friend Laurie mentioned a home remedy to me earlier today and I wanted to try it out for myself. She and her family swear by it. She loves GOOT! You all know that this week has been a little hectic with my mother going in for surgery and PQ getting pneumonia. Well friends, my body is apparently feeling a little left out...and I've developed a 'man voice' to accompany my soar throat. It's awesome. (Kidding, of course.)

A woman from our church called me today and she had to ask if it was really me. Hahahaha....uuum, yup...it's me with a bad voice. It's kind of funny how people react to different voices from their friends. My dear friend Glory told me that I sounded 'hot' on the phone today. Hahaha...It doesn't sound 'hot' in my book but I'll take her word for it. Afterall, she did meet Patrick Dempsey last week. Go check out her blog!! Thanks again for making me feel good about myself, Glory. *WINK*

So yes, GOOT...Goot is the topic at hand. After getting the information from Laurie, I decided to make some this evening. I mean, why not?? What if it does work afterall? Think of all the times that I've slathered on VICKS Vaporub because we've had a cold. I guess this is no different. (Although the smell sure smells different...)

Here is the recipe for GOOT:

3 Tbsp Coconut Oil (heated enough to melt it)
3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 Tbsp Minced Garlic (about 3 to 4 good sized cloves)
Small blender or grinder
Small lidded jar for storage

Step 1: Blend warm (but not hot) coconut oil, olive oil, and minced garlic in blender.

Step 2: Strain the blended mixture into a small jar to remove any of the bigger pieces of garlic that didn't blend in. Place the cover on the jar.

Step 3: Place the jar of GOOT in the refrigerator and in about 1 hour, it will be like a salve. Keep this refrigerated until ready to use.

Step 4: Rub the GOOT onto the bottoms of the feet of the person who is sick. Put socks on the feet to keep the salve from rubbing off on furniture or carpet. Rub the GOOT onto the chest of a person who is coughing. Keep warm clothes over the area that has the GOOT on it. Rub GOOT onto the neck of a person who has a soar throat or strep.

Step 5: Continue using GOOT until the person feels better or is no longer displaying symptoms of a cold or flu.

*As an aside, this little blurp was also provided with the GOOT recipe. Take it for what it's worth...I don't know how I feel about using this stuff on just any body part. Goot can also be used for rashes, stings, burns, bites, earaches, hemorroids, yeast infections, and just about anything that you can think of that calls for medicine. It's safe and it works wonders.

GOOD LUCK....I'll keep you posted in tomorrow. Happy Healing! :)

English is so crazy!

PQ has recently proclaimed the following saying as his new favorite response:

"English is so crazy!"

As a first grade student, PQ has been challenging his reading abilities each and every day. He really enjoys reading and he loves to have someone else read to him. When PQ is writing words on his own, he often 'invents spelling', which is quite common for kids his age. After spelling out (or sometimes sounding out words), we will teach PQ the right way to spell the word that he is trying to complete. Of course, "English is so crazy" is the most common response to our our efforts. Most recently, there were a few words that made us chuckle. I wanted to share them with y'all.

A few days ago, PQ thought Papa H was 'sneaking' some watermelon from the fridge. (We had to talk to PQ about grown-ups not having to ask permission before eating snacks...but that's another matter...perhaps for another day.) After 'ratting out' his father, he began to spell a word out loud. He continued by saying N-O-T-E. After spelling the word in my own mind, I couldn't understand why PQ would spell the word 'note'. That is, until he waved his finger at his father saying 'naughty, naughty'. *Wink*

PQ came home sick from school today. He had the classic symptoms of a stomach ache (or fear of being away from home is what I like to call it). While he was at home, we sat down and did some homework together. As he wrote a sentence on his paper, I immediately noticed the word 'wuz'. I knew exactly what he was trying to say...and part of me didn't want to point it out to him because it was so cute! (Just for the record...I did point it out to him.)

The last quip that I'm going to leave you with this evening is a 5 Senses Page from school. PQ filled out the paper listing something that could be experienced with one of each of the five senses. Here goes:
*Touch--> PQ wrote and drew a...: 'Dog'
*Smell--> PQ wrote and drew a...: 'Sho'...aka: Shoe
*Taste--> PQ wrote and drew a...: 'Lolepop'...aka: Lollipop
*See--> PQ wrote and drew a...: 'Crokdil'...aka: Crocodile
*Hear--> PQ wrote and drew...: 'Muzic'...aka: Music Notes

I love reading with PQ and I absolutely LOVE to see what type of things he writes about. I'm saving a bunch of these papers for him so that he can see them when he gets older. But for now, I'm just going to say...English is so crazy, right PQ?

The next step...

After many tests and ongoing discussions, we have decided to take the next step in trying to get pregnant. It has been almost 2 years since my IUD has been removed. After trying to conceive for a year, we finally got pregnant last October. In December, I had a miscarriage and we have been trying to conceive ever since.

I've been going to see my doctor on a regular basis and I have had various tests to further determine why we're not getting pregnant. I've used ovulation predictor kits. I've charted my mucus and I've taken basal temperatures. Last month, Papa H supplied a 'sample' for further testing and everything came back fine. Based on the ongoing efforts and my recent test results, my doctor is not convinced that I am ovulating every month. With this being said, I will be starting my first cycle of Clomid tomorrow morning.

For those of you who are unaware, Clomid is a fertility agent that is used to stimulate ovulation in women who want to become pregnant. Before you ask, the answer is YES. Yes, there is a chance that this could lead to a multiple pregnancy (twins, etc). Papa H and I have talked about this possibility and we are completely on board with this possibility. What a blessing it would be! (Of course Country Mouse has been praying for twin girls for us for months now...who knows if it will really happen.)

We ended up paying $25 for my office visit today. After that, we paid $9.99 for my 5 day supply for Clomid...and then we paid $13.88 for 40 LH (ovulation) predictors and 10 HCG (pregnancy) tests. So for a whopping sum (I'm kidding about the 'whopping' bit) of $48.87, we're ready to see what God has planned for our family. While we would love to see a positive pregnancy test at the end of this month, we'll have to sit back and see how this all unfolds.

Stay tuned.

Get Well Soon, PQ!

...'Tis the Season...

This weekend it was Grammy's turn.

Today it was PQ's.

(He was diagnosed with pneumonia today.)

Hopefully nobody else will be getting sick anytime soon.

The doctor always says GET SOME REST.

Mooch + Seasonal Stuff = MORE SLEEP!
(ADORABLE...he went and cuddled up with his sleepy toy for some extra rest)

Stay healthy, everyone! It's that time of year!

Get Well Soon, Grammy!

What a roller coaster ride! My Mom was brought in for emergency surgery yesterday afternoon to repair a perforated bowel. She had been feeling very sick over the past few days and my Dad was finally able to convince her to go to the hospital on Saturday morning. After 6.5 hours of testing, they finally found the cause. She had a small perforation in her bowel which was causing her waste to travel into her body.

Her surgery lasted about 2 hours and the doctor WAS able to reconnect the intestines after removing the damaged section. We had been praying that the bowel would be reconnected (to avoid having a colostomy bag) so we were very happy to hear that the surgeon was able to take care of this for her!

After having the surgery, my Mom was obviously 'out of it' so my Dad was the only one who saw her last night. Early this morning, PQ woke up with a mission! He wanted nothing more than to get up and go see his Grammy at the hospital. Upon arrival, she was sitting up and doing well. Her blood pressure was 97/45 (which is low) and her oxygen level was also a bit low. We visited with Grammy for a little while and then left so she could get some rest.

During our visit, we found out that the ICU doesn't typically let children under the age of 14 come in for visits...but they let PQ come in because they knew that he didn't get a chance to see her last night. With that being said, PQ knew that he wasn't going to be able to go back to visit Grammy until she gets moved to a 'regular' hospital room on the main floor. We were told that Grammy will be in the hospital for at least a week. Without hesitation, PQ wanted to make a movie for me to bring to Grammy this afternoon during my visit to the hospital. I thought that it was adorable so I wanted to post it for a keepsake.

Enjoy!

'Tis the season for fall hiking!

There is nothing better than heading out on an early evening hike with my family. The whole family....Mooch included.