Mama Says "Hey Sailor!"

Seasons of Change

This post hit me hard this morning. The mother is talking about how all of her life it seems as though she's always waiting for the next stage.

When will I get married?
When will I have a baby?
When will the baby sleep through the night?
When will that kiddo get potty trained?

I read through the post and then stopped and looked at my babies. They're watching Sesame Street. Sophie is playing with her blocks. Milly is toddling around the room and screeching at Cookie Monster. Gideon is busily lining up his figures.

I'm impatient. I want Sophie potty trained. Like yesterday. FULLY. I want Gideon to start talking. I want Milly to stop freaking out when I leave her sight.

What am I missing?

They will never be this little again. Right now I can hold all of them. They want me to hold them. Gideon cuddles against my shoulder and wants me to sing his lullabye. Sophie curls up in my arms each night so I can rock her and sing her lullabye. Milly lurches over to me, climbs up me like I'm Everest, flings herself down on my shoulder and jams her thumb in her mouth. (No singing, please. Just rock.)

They say the cutest things. Gideon just learned how to say "rocket". He has rockets on his pajamas. Sophie can say anything you tell her to. It's really funny to make her say "Oy vey!" and then we both collapse into giggles. She calls pizza "peetzee".

Please don't ask Gideon to say "fork".

Their lives are so simple. A kiddie pool, some cups and a sunny day is the BEST DAY EVER. I'm the BEST MOM EVER for setting it up.

Lord, let me rest in this phase of life. Let me enjoy my children just as they are. They are amazing.

How to Get Cheap

It's time to start cutting costs. It's time to start pinching pennies. It's time to learn how to be a housewife. Not quite Depression-era but no more buying processed frozen chicken nuggets because it's supposedly the only thing the kids will eat and it's easy.

Here's some ideas:

• Breadmaker. Time to start making some simple breads. Limit the sugar and possibly go gluten-free. Can this thing do pizza crusts and tortillas?
• Yogurt and kefir. All three kiddos love yogurt and two of them like the kefir smoothies I got on sale at the store. (Good thing it's the ones with the biggest need for Regulation.)
• Jams and jellies. It's time to learn how to do some easy canning with in-season fruits. Then I can add it to the homemade yogurt and kefir.
• Keep up with the freezer meals and meal planning. No more coddling the kids. They eat what we eat.
• Time to grow some herbs. Probably the basic Scarborough Faire variety with some dill and oregano thrown in there.
• Costco card. It is time to brave the beast.
• Start cutting down on processed foods. I can make nearly all of them myself. It's just a matter of learning how to keep them.
• Get a cow. These kids go through a lot of milk.

OK, so that last one probably isn't in the cards. Although I wouldn't have to pay for lawn care and I'm well-versed in cleaning large deposits of patties.

• We already shop clearance racks and resale shops. I think I've got the clothing bill down.
•  Ben is going to get Apple TV at the beginning of May and we'll start ripping our DVD collection. We're also looking into a Drobo to back everything up.
• Homemade cleaners. My girlfriend gave me her recipes and I'm gathering up the basic ingredients. It's pretty cool how many overlap.
• Potty train The Boy. *shudder*

Does anyone else have any suggestions? Give me your best!

Hair Raising Tales

I'm done with the meltdowns when we have to brush her hair, wash her hair, get peanut butter out of her hair, look at her hair...

So tonight I did something about it.

Ben: "Holy cow, you weren't just ranting about that!"

I put Sophie's hair in a low braid and cut it off. Then I trimmed it as best I could. Now my baby looks like this:

Dear Lord, ignore my messy living room.

Hopefully this is the beginning of the end of the Hair Wars.

Mama's Feeling Beachy

Kelly's Man-Pleasing Chicken

A recipe has been lurking the interwebs. A recipe called Man Pleasing Chicken. My best friend made it and immediately texted me virtual drool. So I gave it a shot. Of course, I had to tweak it because that's just what I do.

The Stuff:

6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
6 pieces of center cut bacon
1/4 cup mustard
1/8 cup pure maple syrup
1 TBSP vinegar
kosher salt
black pepper
onion powder
garlic powder

First, let me explain the differences in the ingredients. My friend told me that the sauce could easily be cut in half and it's still plenty. The original author used dijon mustard but I didn't have any in my fridge. I just used the regular yellow stuff. I just grabbed my usual apple cider vinegar instead of rice wine vinegar. The kosher salt / black pepper / onion powder / garlic powder mix is a basic seasoning mix I put in nearly everything. I just grab a big pinch.

And how in the world can something be called "man-pleasing" without bacon?!?!

The Process:

Put the chicken thighs in a big freezer Ziploc bag. Pour in the mustard, syrup, vinegar and spices. Seal the bag and squish everything around. This can marinate for a few hours, overnight or be thrown in the freezer for a Freezer Bank Meal. The bacon is sealed in a separate bag and labeled to go with the meal.

When you're ready to make the dinner, thaw your chicken bag and bacon bag. Preheat the oven to 375 and mist a casserole dish with cooking spray. Roll each chicken thigh in a piece of bacon and lay them in the dish. Bake until everything is golden brown and the bacon is crispy. Mine took...I honestly don't know. I use my nose. 30 minutes? Glance at it after 25 minutes. Then again after 35. If it's been 45 minutes then make sure your stove is on.

The chicken was tangy and juicy. Eventually I'll give it a shot with the other stuff the original author added.

Do I even have rosemary?

I Just Don't Know

Sophie is having multiple nuclear meltdowns today. It makes her incredibly sensitive brother cry. I used to be that sensitive sibling hiding when the yelling started. Now I'm the Mama who has to simultaneously calm/redirect Sophie, reassure Gideon and keep feeding Milly who is wondering where her macaroni went.

Sophie goes in the crib to calm down. Gideon gets hugged and kissed. Milly gets her macaroni. Once Gideon and Milly are done with lunch, they go down for naps. Sophie continues screaming.

Pull Sophie out. Chores will have to wait. Put her sneakers on and grab the chalk.

She's alone and outside. I'm watching from the porch. She's a different kid. I see the tension flowing out of her every time she turns her face into the wind. Sometimes she stops drawing and just stands. She's quiet. Her long hair blows all around her head because she refuses to put it up. She squints in the sunlight but her face follows the warmth.

She can't tell me why she's angry but I can fix it. A little.

Chalk and sunshine. I wish I knew what that cured.