Baked Spicy Corn and Crab Dip

How has this year already flown by?  Believe it or not, Thanksgiving is this week!  What?!?!?!  I'm still unsure about the best Thanksgiving dinner week preparation method.  Do I clean a little and fix one or two dishes that can be frozen each day, or do I wait until the day before and go full speed?  The procrastination version requires only one massive kitchen cleanup whereas the spread it out method require cleaning every single day for the whole freaking week.  Thoughts?

 

This year, on top of the normal stress that comes along with hosting a holiday meal, my children are out of school the entire week and my husband is out of town on business.  This means that in between chopping, scrubbing and dusting I am yelling things like, "if you fart on his face one more time you will lose your screen time for tomorrow!!!" and "do I need to show you how to blow your nose again?!  It is NOT ok to wipe snot on the sofa or your brother...or the wall!!"  In an attempt to keep my sanity and actually get something cooked, I have waived my white flag today and my monkeys are currently entering hour two of video games.  Don't judge.

 

One of my favorite hot appetizers is this baked spicy corn and crab dip.  I tried a spicy crab dip recipe from the Food Network Magazine a couple of years ago and thought it was tasty but was missing something.  After tinkering with it for a while, adding a bit of this and leaving out a couple of ingredients (who really has sherry laying around their kitchen anyway) my Baked Spicy Corn and Crab Dip was born.

 

2 T butter

1 shallot thinly chopped

2 cans of corn kernels drained and rinsed

1 jalapeno seeded and diced

3 t Cholula hot sauce

salt and pepper

8 ounces lump crabmeat

1 ½ C grated monterey jack cheese

¾ cup of sour cream

1 cup of crushed Ritz cracker crumbs

½ C grated white cheddar

2 T chives (fresh or dried)

2 t Old Bay

 

1. Melt the butter in a sauce pan. Saute the shallot for a minute or two. Add the corn and jalapeno and cook until they start to soften, about 3-4 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

2. Put the corn mixture into a large mixing bowl. Add the crabmeat, 1 C of monterey jack, ¼ cup of the cheddar, sour cream, old bay, cholula and half of the cracker crumbs. Mix until well combined.

3. Pout into a shallow dish. Mix the leftover cracker crumbs, cheeses and chives together and sprinkle of the top of the dish.

4. At this point you can either cover with foil and freeze (I have never left it frozen for more than two weeks) or cook. If you are cooking it now, preheat your oven to 375 and bake for about 20 minutes or until the cheese is browning and the edges are boiling. If you are freezing it, thaw for one day ahead of time and follow the same cooking instructions. Serve with Ritz crackers.

   
   

   
   
   

Election Depression

I haven't posted anything about the election so far but tonight I sit here in complete despair and sadness and am compelled to write. 

I am not a Trump lover by any means. In my opinion, he is an arrogant and despicable man. But I have had to remove all the scandal and disgusting behavior out of the question and look simply at the opposing opinions. The bottom line is that Trumps views line up with my views. I am a vote for Trump against my will and by default. 

It is a travesty that we are even in this situation at all. We are all being forced to make a hopeless choice. I am constantly reminding my children to make good choices. There is no "good" choice this time. 

The list Gingrich is making in this video is what terrifies me the most if Clinton wins.  "The end of this country as we have known it." 

https://www.facebook.com/SeanHannity/videos/10157704845255389/

The possible appointments of four Supreme Court judges could have lasting impacts on us for the next 30 or 40 years. Are we really at the point in this world where established rulings are going to be overturned? Where constitutional amendments are going to be changed?  Where people are going to be able to kill babies as they are born?  My brain cannot process this. 

I read a quote the other day (I can't remember who had originally posted it) that was intended to calm Christians about the outcome of the election. The woman writing said that she has let go of her fear because God knows and has always known the outcome of this election. It has always been in his plan so we should not fear. I'm trying very hard to let that sink into me but am struggling. 

All I can control at this point are my own actions. I will continue to try to teach my children right from wrong. I will teach them to love one another and make the choices that we know God wants us to make. I will (try my hardest to) have faith in Gods plan for our election and for our country.

My Midnight Second Wind

On an average night about 12:30 am you will either find me tossing and turning in my bed trying not to wake my husband or up sitting on my couch. Sometimes while I am on the couch I am typing in my journal/blog.

People joke all the time about how they are tired all day long and then when it is time to go to bed they all of the sudden have a burst of energy and cannot fall asleep. I call this my midnight second wind. I have to peel myself out of bed in the morning and start guzzling coffee. At any point in the day, I could fall asleep if I sat still for two minutes. I have fallen asleep in the waiting room at my sons occupational therapist, on the exam table at my own doctor, while listening to my husband or children talk. I have even fallen asleep on the toilet. But the second my head hits the pillow my brain kicks into overdrive.

I start thinking of all the things that I needed to that day that I didn't get done. I start coming up with great ideas of how to streamline life and make myself more efficient. I start thinking of all the scary, awful things in this world and how I am going to protect my children from them while still teaching them that these awful things exist. I start going through all of my parenting mistakes from the day and worrying that I have scarred my children by yelling at them when they refuse to do anything that I ask. I start replaying social interactions that I had during the day and second guessing things that I said. I wonder if I actually could have lasted longer on the treadmill today and yes I could have so I will need to jog longer tomorrow and stop being such a wuss. I think of EVERYTHING. Inside the mind of a person with anxiety, my friends.

I have always wondered why this happened to so many of us. I don't remember having my midnight second wind until after I had children so my conclusion is that those little hooligans are responsible for my lack of sleep. They are so needy all day (especially in the summer when they are home ALL DAY) and are constantly asking something of me. Can you get me a drink? Can I play ipad? Tell Charlie to leave me alone? Will you scratch my back? I need a band aid. Can you come outside and knock down this wasp nest? It is ALWAYS something. On the rare occasion that I am able to get them occupied with something that does not require my assistance (usually TV, ipad or video games) I start trying to rush through whatever chore I need to get done as my guilt about letting them play with said ipad or video game starts to creep in.

So the point of all this is that all day long there is so much noise in my head. I hear children, self inflicted guilt, to do lists etc. Throughout the day, even if I happen to be alone, my head is too cluttered to think about any of the things that pop into my brain during my midnight second wind. My children go to bed by 8 and my husband not until 12. So when the house is finally, truly quiet it is late at night. I can sit on the couch and hear only the clock ticking on the mantel and the slight hum of the refrigerator. My mind is finally quiet and my body is beginning to relax. Enter my midnight second wind.

Summer Mess

That sweet, sweet day is coming. The last day of summer vacation is only a week away. There have been some good times, some not so good times, some happy times, some sad times and oh my heavens to Betsy there have been some messes!! Don't get me wrong, my house is always messy. My sons still don't understand that there is not a magic fairy who goes through our house cleaning up their messes and fixing everything that they have destroyed that day. I do my best to make them clean up after themselves and try to help them understand that they need to be respectful of our home and our belongings, but they JUST DONT GET IT! The school year mess is bad enough but it pales in comparison to the summertime mess. Dirty clothes, spills, dried play dough/putty/unknown substance, urine on EVERYTHING in the bathroom, stained upholstery, smears and spots and stains oh my!

The first thing this child does every morning after he gets up is pull all of the bedding off of his bed.  We wouldn't want your sheets to get in the way of such things as destroying the rest of your room. 

Every large box that enters the house is used for a spaceship/time machine/race car etc. And God forbid I try to throw the boxes away. 

The playroom...nuff said.

The walkway that is open to our living room is apparently an excellent launch pad. Things go flying and mysteriously no one knows who threw it. 

Little bits of random trash strewn about.  Who needs garbage cans when you have your entire house to dump your junk?!

The TP is NEVER put on the roll. Ever. 

This one is mine...the amount of laundry coming thru this place is incredible. And I despise laundry. Despise. Just shut the door and act like it isnt there.

Costumes and weapons. Costumes and weapons. Costumes and weapons.

Hey, here is a fun game. I am going to put everything I own into my closet!!

Forts. Sofa cushions that somehow never make it back to their homes even though, "momma we promise we will clean it up!"

And finally, the handprints. I never realized there were so many smearable surfaces in my house. I don't even want to know what was on his hands that could leave such an intense print.

Eeeewwww.

So next time I am complaining about our house mess between August 22 and June 5, someone remind me that I ain't seen nothing yet yet!

The Parenting Elite?????

I read an article this morning that really got me thinking. I can't remember the title exactly but it was something like, “When the elite parents dominate the school volunteers then everyone loses.” It was a editorial style/blog piece that pointed out how the “elite” parents tend to take over school events, blow things out of proportion and make everything too fancy. One example the writer cited was an instance where she suggested pizza for a school party and another mother suggested sushi. I understand where she is coming from. I see things like this happen in the school my oldest son attends. Last years Christmas party (excuse me HOLIDAY party...help us all if there is a mention of religion in public school) for the Kindergarten classes included a visit from Santa and a real, live reindeer. Our schools fundraising auction sells luxury items and vacations. There is even a rumor that several years ago a teacher received a Louis Vuitton handbag as a gift from one of her students. I understand that things can get out of control and the excess can make parents with less time and money to spare uncomfortable and even angry. It really got me thinking about my own activity at school.

One of the main reasons I stay at home is so that I can be involved in my childrens school lives. For me this means, volunteering, attending school trips and getting to know the teachers and staff at the school. I understand that not every parent has the luxury of this. It is never my intention to make anyone feel angry or guilty if they don't have the time or desire to volunteer at school. I truly believe that ANY parent involvement is good for the kiddos. The concept of “elite” parents is kind of irritating to me. I volunteer a decent bit and by no means consider myself “elite.” I am just a mom who is willing and able to help where I can at school. It seems to me that at ANY school in the country, the parents who are willing and able to volunteer do just that. Some are willing but not able and some are able but not willing.  You work full time but wish you could work the drink station at field day = willing but not able.  You are a stay at home mom but prefer to spend your hours away from your children playing tennis and cooking = able but not willing.

The comments posted under this article brought up  another hotly debated topic along the same lines...gifting. Let me start by saying that there is not enough money in the world for me to teach 22 of my son all day, every day for nine months. I would completely lose my mind. I know what my child can be like. In my book, his teachers are angels. I am eager to thank them in any way that I can. Sometimes that means baking them their favorite treat or bringing them a coffee. Other times it is writing them a note telling them how much I appreciate them and their patience with my son. At Christmas and the end of the year, it also means gifts. I know not everyone agrees with this, but for me it is my way of thanking them and showing my appreciation. It doesn't matter if they were an amazing teacher or just average, they will be receiving a gift from our family. Ok, ok...perhaps the amazing ones might get a better gift! If Louis Vuitton giving mom wants to thank her child's teacher that way, I say more power to her. There have been several teachers in my sons' years that have been so loving and patient that I would have loved to give a car if we could afford it!!

There are supposedly five love languages. I feel special and appreciated when someone does something nice for me or gives me a gift, so this is how I tend to express my love and appreciation too. Perhaps it is shallow, but for now I will continue to show up to open juice boxes at lunch, set up tasty and maybe a bit ridiculous treat tables for the school staff and yes...give my sons teachers gifts. You do you and I'll do me.  Whatever floats your boat people.

Bad Dreams

Connor came into my room at 2 am this morning crying and upset because he had a bad dream. He told me it was such a bad dream that he couldn’t even tell me what it was about. He climbed up and snuggled up to me like he used to when he was a baby. I held him and rocked him and told him that whatever it was to remember that it was just a dream and that everything was all right now. He cried and cried and I told him he could sleep with me for the rest of the night. This is a pretty big deal because I can count on one hand the number of times either of our children has slept in our bed. He would calm down and little and then get all riled up again and begin sobbing. After this had gone on for quite a while I told him that it might help him feel better to tell me what the dream was about. I was fully expecting it to be his typical “really bad” scenario...something like not getting a toy he wanted or having to go to school on the weekend.

When he finally decided to tell me he said that in his dream Charlie had died and it was the worst thing he had ever dreamed. My heart broke. I snuggled him up even closer. We talked about how everyone has bad dreams sometimes and that everything was fine. Charlie was safely asleep in his room. I told him to relax and I would scratch his back while he fell asleep. Just as I thought he was going to fall asleep he said, “I was just floating thru space with Charlie and then he got sucked into a multidimensional portal and I couldn’t pull him out because it was a black hole. Then it closed up and he was gone.” As I snuggled my son I couldn’t help but giggle on the inside. A glimpse into my sons mind. Perhaps we need to lay off the sci-fi...

Football Fan Failure

I love college football. I really do. I look forward to football season. I love the excitement, the rivalries and the traditions. Even in the years like this one where my team is stinking it up, I love it. With college football comes trash talking, joking and heckling. For me, it's part of the experience. It's definitely more fun when your team is on top, but you can't win them all...or this year for the Longhorns, you can't win many at all. 

There are certain stereotypes that follow every school around. Texas fans are snobs who think they are better than everyone else or hippies who don't bathe and smoke a lot of pot. Aggies are rednecks who are all farmers. TCU folks are all rich frat boys. Baylor students are all the rich frat boys who aren't smart enough to get into TCU and the prude Baptist girls. Blah blah...the list goes on. The fact is that none of these are true but that doesn't stop us from ribbing our friends.  I am all for some good old fashioned heckling (I dish it out and certainly take my fair share) but there is a line where it becomes horrible. Keying a car with your rivals sticker in the window, spitting on someone, screaming and cussing at another person, throwing drinks from moving vehicles, peeing on another persons property...these are all things I have witnessed from college football fans. Enough. It's rude, disgusting, trashy and in many cases illegal. 

I am a big fan of my school and its teams. Everyone should be proud of their school. For all the time, money and energy put into your education you should proudly wear your t-shirt and sing your fight song and cheer!  But come on...golden rule folks. 

Football Class aka Hell Hour for Mom

Hallelujah!  Praise the Lord!  Football is over.  For the last six weeks, twice a week I have schlepped the boys to the gym at the intermediate school for Charlies football class otherwise known as hell hour for mom.

Anyone who has ever met our family knows that Charlie has a few (many) behavioral issues.  He has trouble sitting still, keeping his hands off of other people, using a quiet voice, following directions, controlling his gas etc.  Before I really get started let me say that I realize that I got myself into this.  I am the mom.  I sign up the children for their activities.  I am not sure what I was thinking with this one.  I should have know.  Rowdy child, enclosed space, lots of rules and teenage instructors...not a good combo.  But alas, I signed him up anyway hoping that it might be a good way for him to exert some energy and perhaps for once his giantness would be handy.

Well I was wrong.

While the other 15 boys were standing in line waiting for their turn to throw/kick/run my son was running to the opposite side of the gym yelling "CHARGE" with his shirt pulled up over his head.  He was cornholio.  And I was humiliated.

He blasted into this life four years ago and has pretty much been raising hell ever since so you would think that I would be used to this by now.  But it never gets any easier to sit and watch your child acting out.  It is never an easy decision whether to let him work it out on his own or snatch him and run away from the glares with your head hung low.  I cannot ignore the looks and mutterings from other parents.  There are so many times that I want to stand up and yell to people, Yes, I know he is wild and no I am not just sitting here letting him get away with everything.  I am watching his every move cringing each time he starts rolling across the floor or growls in someones face or takes off his shoe and throws it.  I am ready to pounce if he even comes close to hurting someone else. I am sorry if he is offending you but I cannot physically follow him around and correct his every mistake all day every day.

I love that child and he has so many wonderful, amazing qualities. I want for him to show his kind, gentle, loving self all the time so everyone can see.  I am consantly having to remind myself that he is a young child and that he has an outgoing and spirited personality...determined temperament as his behavioral therapist would say.

Today was the last day of hell hour for mom and I cannot say that I am sad.  After watching his impulsivity on the first day and having another four-year-old boy come up to me and say, "your son is not a nice boy," all I wanted to do was scoop him up, go home and never come back.  Instead we attended every practice and I sat in anxiety through each one.  I figured I could at least teach him commitment if nothing else.  I pray that I can calm down and appreciate the good moments; that I can praise him for the two minutes that he sat in the line instead of criticize him for his mistakes.  And Lord, please give the other parents a little bit of understanding.  Please help them to also see the good in my child instead of commenting to each other, "Geez is anyone going to do anything about that kid."

Ramble over...

10 Random Things My Mom Taught Me

1. Fruit roll ups, gummy bears and cokes will ruin your teeth and you will have to get them all pulled and will have a mouth full of wooden teeth!

2. Do not, under any circumstances, let your body come in contact with the bedspread in a hotel. They don't wash those and you will contract a deadly disease if you do so.

3. Always carry a corkscrew in your purse. I mean, how else are you going to open your wine in your hotel room while you sit on your bedspreadless bed?!

4. Taste your food before you salt it. Some moms play dirty salt tricks!

5. Don't be afraid to dance at weddings. Who cares if someone thinks you look goofy?  You are having a better time than them. (Bonus: If you fall and break your arm while dancing at a wedding get up and finish the song before you go to the emergency room.)

6. Someone has to be in charge. If you stand back and let someone else be the boss you will end up doing a bunch of stupid crap. Grab the bull by the horns. 

7. Carry a granola or protein bar in your glove box  otherwise the McDonalds drive thru is too tempting. 

8. How to take off your bra inside your shirt.  Nuff said. 

9. Wear your damn sunscreen!!!!  Nothing will age you faster than the sun. 

10. Be confident. Whether it is your brain, your body, your personality...you are who God wanted you to be. Don't apologize or feel guilty. 

Mom, thank you for teaching me these and so much more. I love you!  Happy Mothers Day!

3 vs 6

Sometimes I write little secret notes to my boys in my journal.  I never give the notes to them.  This exercise is to help me clear my mind and organize my thoughts.  These latest notes are an excellent example of the differences between a 6-year-old and 3-year-old boy.

A note to my boys:

Connor,

May you always keep your charm.  Be confident in yourself and try not to care so much about what everyone else thinks of you.  Be your amazing self.  Accept that there are rules in life.  It does not matter where you are, there are things we all just HAVE to do and sometimes those things just stink.  Suck it up and do what you have to do.  Enjoy your life.  Be more positive and dont always be looking for the ugly side of things.  See that there are small pieces of happiness all around if you will be open to seeing them.  Eat something other than peanut butter.  Food is amazing and delicious and you are SO missing out.  Learn when you can let your true feelings show and when you need to keep it together.  Get outside and run around.  It is good for you health and also for you mind.  Dont ever stop giving me hugs and kisses.  I love you.

Charlie,

Please keep your hands to yourself.  People will like you more if you do not sit on their heads.  You do not need to completely remove your shoes, socks, pants and underwear to go poop.  I love you.

Expensive Red Lipstick Days

I have a secret. A very strange secret. Not even my husband knows. Its dark and deep, and...sometimes bright depending on the day. Huh?! Expensive Red Lipstick. When I am having a crap day or feeling extraordinarily anxious or uncomfortable I wear bold, red lipstick.

Child 2 kicked me in the face while I attempted to put on his shoes...popped on some Dior in Rouge Massai. Got my second speeding ticket in a week...slathered on YSL Glossy Stain in #9 Rouge Laque. Got back from dropping off the kids for school and realized there are two days of dirty dishes to wash and six loads of laundry to fold...pull out the trusty Chanel Rouge Coco in Gabrielle.

It is a weird thing to do...I realize this. But something about a luxurious red lipstick just seems to make everything else easier. When I wear red lipstick I am not quite as tense, I carry less anger, I smile more. It just makes the day a little easier to face. I mean come on!  It's MUCH harder to scowl at yourself in the mirror when you are rocking a perfect red lip.

I always take it off before my husband gets home from work because...you know...he doesn't need any more proof that I'm a lunatic. I provide plenty of that without involving my cosmetics. ;)

So if you happen to run into me in Costco wearing my big grey sweatpants, with my dirty hair in a wad on top of my head but notice I am wearing red lipstick without another stitch of makeup on my face, instead of backing away slowly from the crazy lady, come give me a hug...I probably need it.

Lazy Ass

I am always reading articles in magazines, seeing posts on Facebook and hearing people ask, "what do you do all day as a stay at home mom."  So instead of defending my point and getting into a deep philosophical debate about it I thought I would straight out tell you what I do all day:

- Get up and feed the kids breakfast. 

-dress myself in workout clothes, put up my hair and brush my teeth ...beauty routine

- Hassle oldest child to hurry up and eat because we need to leave while I throw all of his mess into his backpack

-flop down on my bed for a few moments of fake sleep while said child finishes breakfast. 

-Ask oldest child to put on shoes and listen to the next five minute rant about why he doesn't like his tennis shoes and why does he always have to go to school  and when can he make all the rules. 

-drive to school to drop off child, deliver potato salad for the teachers luncheon and put our stuffed bunny into the donation box for sick children while oldest son complains that it is not fair that he didn't get a stuffed animal. 

- drive home and again plop face down in an attempt to fake a few more moments of sleep. 

- chase, catch and then wrestle youngest child to the floor to dress and put on shoes. 

- spend five minutes negotiating with and bribing child to get in the car

- drive to school and drop off lunatic #2

- drive to gym and try to cram an hour long workout into 30 minutes

- leave gym and head to grocery store where I proceed to speed shop for a weeks worth of food. 

- drive home, unload groceries, put groceries away, put in a load of laundry and move the load from yesterday to the pile on the floor. 

-clean up breakfast mess

- get meat for dinner out to thaw and chop vegetables needed for the recipe

- turn on shower but then sit down naked on the vanity bench and check Facebook 

- shower, get dressed and put on some makeup

- grab random baggies of leftover from the refrigerator, shove them in your mouth and call it lunch. 

- drive to cvs to pick up prescriptions

-argue with the pharmacist about the $4 i should actually be paying vs the $50 they are charging

- wait 10 minutes while she checks with the head pharmacist. Pay $4 and leave

- drive to pickup littlest man and call girlfriend in the car. Complain about errands and annoying children then talk about the perfect house/body/children/wardrobe we want. 

- pick up youngest and take him home

- talk about his day, the good the bad and the ugly. Play dinosaurs.

-Move the wet laundry to the dryer. 

- spend 5-7 minutes letting child decide what he wants for a snack in the car. Finally get frustrated and pick up a package of goldfish. Child starts screaming in protest while you drag him by one arm to the car. 

-drive to oldest sons school and park in the insanely long pick up line. 

- pick up son and listen to the proceeding explanation of what went wrong, what went really wrong and can he have a lollipop

-get home and carry 523 pounds worth of kid equipment into the house while they scratch at my legs and beg for snack. 

- serve snack but immediately start the time warnings that we have to leave for soccer in 10 minutes. 

- spend next 15 minutes putting the godforsaken soccer gear on the big child. 

- load soccer gear, snack, iPads and water into car. 

- scream at children that they will get a spanking if they don't get in the car right now!

- drive to soccer while trying to block out the whines about how mean I am. 

- play iPad games with the little while the big attempts to play soccer for 55 minutes

- load crew and equipment back into car. Then begins the complaints about what gross things I am probably making for dinner and why can't we go out to eat

- arrive home and plop children in front of the electronic babysitting box

- cook dinner and set table while attempting to time it right so it we be hot when husband arrives home

- husband and I eat dinner while our children whine and complain about the disgusting meal I cooked. On some extra special nights vomiting on the table is included. 

- send husband and children upstairs to play

- clean the kitchen and wash the dishes for the next hour in relative silence with the males upstairs. Walk around the house and try to clean up any messes that involve bodily fluids or may attract ants. 

- hide in my room if I finish early 

- baths, reading, brushing, praying and then it's whack a mole bed time. 

-when they are finally asleep I have zero motivation left to do anything...oh but there is more

- spend the next 30-60 minutes working on our home business paperwork

- wash my face and lay on the couch with my hub feeling so tired and ready for sleep. 

- body refuses to sleep so I write

...morning again...

So how does it sound people?  Yeah, I guess I AM a big lazyass!

Pretty Sure I Cannot Offend Anyone With This

It is another one of those nights where I am super tired but cannot sleep. We had a full day of spring (un)break activities and have another one set up for tomorrow so I should really be catching some z's. But alas...I am awake.

Instead of thinking about all the things I need to do/should have done today/didn't do today/will have to do tomorrow, I am thinking about my friends. There is no doubt that I have a wonderful family, my husband is a superstar and my sons are my biggest blessings...no question there. But I rarely thank my friends for their important roles in my life. They each contribute something irreplaceable to my life.

I have the friend who is my mommy mentor. She was a mommy before and with me. She amazes me with her ability to juggle all her children's schedules and activities while also taking such good care of herself. She is healthy and strong and the original supermom friend I've had.

I have the friend who is not a mommy yet. She will be. It's her destiny. She is such a damn hard worker and puts her complete self into whatever her task of the moment is. She has been through some awful, stinky, unfair things and she has emerged on top and ready to kick ass. She is funny, emotionally strong, dedicated and the most loyal friend I have.

I have the friend who is the mommy I know will always make me laugh and will never be offended by my rude language or snarky comments. She makes me feel incredibly comfortable to be myself and does not judge me. She is smart, observant and honest. She is also HILARIOUS!

I have the friend who I love and hate at the same time. I love her because she is kind, supportive and a generally happy person to be around. I hate her because she is a complete knockout and has the patience of a saint with her children. She is uplifting, easygoing and real.

I have the friend who cannot be shocked by anything. I can freak out just about any person on the planet with stories from my boys...but not her. She has a stomach of steel and she can outdo any level of weirdness/grossness/ inappropriateness etc. She is so secretive about the unpleasant things going on in her life that you would never know there was something upsetting her. She is steadfast, amazingly generous and creative.

I have the friend who is the most accomplished professional woman I know. She has worked her tushie off to get to the level she has reached. She is a genius and somehow still so gentle and loving. She will talk circles around you and disprove your point with interesting facts and figures and will then hug you and schedule to take you to dinner on her way out. She is feisty, brainy and so giving of her affection.

And these are just a few of the incredible friends I have. How on earth do I deserve these friends? Thank you Lord for bringing these women into my life. Thank you for giving me such a variety of amazing women to guide me, support me, love me, laugh with me, cry with me, set me straight when I need it and point me in the right direction when I stray.

Can't Sleep

I'm having trouble sleeping yet again (damn ambien restrictions) and am scrolling thru the pictures on my phone from the past year. 

A lot of playing, a lot of fighting, a lot of messes, a few injuries (and several near misses) an absurd amount of nudity and a whole lot of cuteness. So here is what our life looked like in 2014:

So I guess that is what you call beautiful chaos.