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Leah & Nana (my mom) - Dec 6th 2005 (3 weeks old)

Wii Fit

So last week or so I ordered a Wii Fit. I saw it on sale on Amazon with free shipping and got all excited and ordered it. We'd been talking for awhile about saving up to get a treadmill and I finally decided this was cheaper, more versatile, and takes up considerably less space in my house!

So we get it out of the box. Mind you, this is after we both just worked six hard straight hours at the grocery store, what is the MATTER with me? (Don't actually answer that!)

So when you first start up you pick your Mii from the system and answer some questions. What I didn't know is that the Balance Board is also a scale. So it asked me my height and then apparently weighed me - and then - THEN - it tells me my BMI and it made my Mii go FAT! Like this guy (this is not mine of course):

 

See how he looks all bloated now? Is that just MEAN???

Anyway! So now my Mii is fat but only while I play Wii Fit. Thankfully.

It says funny things to you if you do badly. It asked Drew if he trips a lot when he walks because his balance is bad. I laughed really hard about that one. It also called him a couch potato once.

So it's only been 3 days but I've done it everyday for 30-60 minutes.

One of my main issues with exercise is that I get bored with routine. Any routine - not just exercise. I have a hard time taking pills everyday or doing the same chores everyday or... you get the idea. But this thing has so many options and I can just choose what I want every day and it keeps track of my time for me.

See the yellow box with the red dot? It shows you how balanced you are while you're doing the exercise. You have to try to keep the red dot in the yellow area. It makes sure you keep the form good of whatever exercise you are doing.

Anyway - I really like it and it's fun. That what I started this post to say.

Stats

I measured Leah today. This last week she's eating like a grown man and sleeping WAY more than normal. I think a growth spurt is coming.

So as of today this is where we are at:

At 3 years and 4 months:

your child is 32 pounds, and that is
at the 49th percentile for weight.

your child is 38.5 inches, and that is
at the 62nd percentile for height.

http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/usefultools/l/bl_kids_centils.htm

In a funny aside - afterward she was measuring herself in places and she measures her leg and declares:

My leg is 42 cents!

Cooking Challenge

Today I was chatting with my friend, Camela, and I tell her I need something interesting to do. First she suggested I rearrange furniture - which unknown to her I love to do but Drew was not agreeable. (understatement) And then she said I should cook but the challenge was whatever cookbook I pulled out first had to be the one & I had to do something from it I had never done before.

So I asked Drew to go downstairs and grab a cookbook - his choice. And he came back with a "Best-loved Casseroles" cookbook that I don't really like. (of course! LOL). So I decided to do a Seafood Lasagna from the book.

I'm not going to post the recipe because it needs some work. I did it as it was written even though I had my doubts. I am reminded to not ignore my instincts when it comes to cooking. Not to say it was horrible but I don't really love recipes that skimp on sauce and use cream soups - it's good but it just seems like something is lacking. So I'll make that again with some more flavors and a true white sauce into of cream soup and post it then. Drew liked it but he agreed about the changes I'd like to make. In the meantime, it was pretty! Here's a picture:

I also choose a dessert - this she said that could come from anywhere but it still had be something I hadn't made before: Ginger Peach Dessert

I did that recipe but like this (the same but the conversions done and double the number of gingersnaps because apparently ours our smaller than 'ginger biscuits'):

2 cans of peach halves
20 gingersnaps
1 cups heavy whipping cream
2 TBSP sugar
1/2 tsp double strength vanilla

Then I followed the instructions on the link for layering.

Really, really simple and really yummy!

I want very very badly to try that with fresh peaches. I think if I halved them, grilled them, and then did that recipe... then it would be over the top to die for.

Anyway! Pictures of that:

Happiest thing ever!

St. Patrick's Day Menu

CrockPot Corned Beef & Cabbage
Authentic Irish Soda Bread
Deep Fried Cabbage
Creme De Menthe Cake

Those links are what I started with. As my compulsion forces me I did something to change everything except the bread. I followed that pretty closely. The deep fried cabbage is an idea I got from Iron Chef America (love that show!).

Anyway - here we go:

CrockPot Corned Beef & Cabbage

• 3 carrots, cut into chunks
• 1 onions, chopped
• 6-8 red potatoes, cut into chunks
  
• 2-3 lb. corned beef brisket (I trim off a ton of the fat) with seasoning packet
• 1 1/2 cups of strong chicken broth
• 2 TBSP. yellow mustard
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 head of cabbage (chopped/shredded)

In 6 quart crockpot, combine carrots, onions, and potatoes. Rinse corned beef under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. Place in crockpot and sprinkle with contents of seasoning mix. Pour broth over brisket and spread mustard on brisket. In small bowl mix brown sugar with water and pour over brisket. Cover crockpot and cook on low setting for 10 - 12 hours.

Remove corned beef from crockpot and cover with foil to keep warm. Add cabbage to vegetables and liquid in crockpot. Cover crockpot and cook on high for additional 30-40 minutes or until cabbage is crisp tender.

To serve, cut beef across grain into thin slices. Remove vegetables from slow cooker with slotted spoon and serve with beef. Serve cooking juices over the food, if desired. Offer additional mustard on the side. 8 servings

***That's basically the same recipe with some changes. Of course. And can I just say? I don't like corned beef usually but I LOVED this. I wish I had made way more.

Authentic Irish Soda Bread

Begin by preheating the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit so that it is ready for your bread straight away.
You will need the following ingredients to make authentic Irish Soda Bread

• 4 1/2 cups of flour
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup of sugar
• 3 teaspoons of baking powder
• ½ a teaspoon of baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon of salt
• 1 stick of softened butter (about ¼ of a pound)
• 2 cups of buttermilk
• 1 cup or so of raisins (you can use regular or golden raisins - my sister used craisins)

1. Butter a cookie sheet (or some flat pan) and lightly flour it.
2. Mix together in a large mixing bowl the flour, sugar, baking soda and baking powder.
3. Cut in softened butter into the flour mixture.
4. Stir in raisins.
5. In a separate bowl lightly beat the egg into the buttermilk.
6. Add the egg and butter milk mixture into the flour mixture by hand, mixing in a little at a time and being careful to avoid over mixing.
7. Turn out on a lightly floured board and briefly knead to form a smooth dough.
8. Shape into a high, round ball.
9. Place onto a baking pan.
10. Slash a cross or x shape across the top of the dough.
11. Bake at 350F 50 to 60 minutes.
12. It is done when it is nicely browned. Tap to see if it sounds hollow if so it is done.

*** The only thing I really changed on here was the flour. It was SO sticky it clearly needed more. So it was 4 cups. I'm guessing I added about 1/2 cup more. I just did it until I could actually get a "smooth" ball.

Deep Fried Cabbage

I got this idea watching Iron Chef America (like I mentioned already). I just used the rest of the head of cabbage and dropped it on hot oil (in several batches - not all at once). Medium-high heat. It spits and splatters like crazy so be careful.

I know this sounds bizarre but it was fabulous! Take it out of the oil spread it on paper towels to drain and sprinkle it with salt. Delicious!

Creme de Menthe Cake
sans any creme de menthe

*** This is the recipe I changed the most from the link but the basic idea is still the same. But I substituted just about everything.

Cake

• 1 package white cake mix
• 1 cup milk
• 1 stick melted butter (8 tablespoons)
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 3 tablespoons water
• 9 drops green food coloring
• 3 teaspoons peppermint extract

Chocolate Sauce

• 1 bag of Ghiradelli chocolate chip
• Hershey's syrup

Cream Topping

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
• 6 drops of food coloring
• 1-2 tablespoons of sugar

Mix the cake mix, milk, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, and flour - in a bowl by hand. I think I used a whisk.

In a separate bowl mix the water, food coloring and extract - add to the cake batter.

Pour batter into a grease & floured 9x13 cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.

Melt the chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave (about 90 seconds). I then added enough Hershey's syrup to make it 1.5 cups. If I had more chocolate chips I'd have just used that with a little cream added for the right texture. But that was all I had. Next time.

When it comes out of the oven poke holes all over it - while still hot. I used a big serving fork but I'd do something bigger next time. A wooden spoon handle maybe.

Pour the chocolate sauce over the cake.

Put in the fridge until completely cool.

With a mixer whip the heavy whipping cream, food coloring, peppermint extract, water, and sugar until firm enough to the topping on your cake.

When the cake is totally cooled put the cream mixture on there and put it back in the fridge until you are ready to eat it.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

24 Hours

This weekend my husband - my dear wonderful gem of a husband - took Leah and went to spend the night with his parents 100 miles away from here and gave me TWENTY-FOUR HOURS alone in my house.

What lead to this delicious day of alone-ness?

I need - in a very real way - time to myself sometimes. If I get even 20 minutes a day completely alone I can function just fine. But I need it to center myself. When Leah was tiny, Drew would come in the door from work, take her, and I would go in the office and shut the door. How long I stayed in there depended on how the day had gone but it was never more than 30 minutes. Sometimes it was only 10. I really don't need much time but I do need it.

So since Drew has gotten cut off work (again. ugh.) we haven't been making sure I get that. Even when I pointed out to Drew his first response was to apologize and said "Oh! I should have thought of that first! I'm sorry." Sweet man. Why should he anticipate my need that I've been neglecting? lol

Anyway, I suggested he go visit just for Sunday during the day and he said he'd take her over night. So they left at 7:30 PM on Saturday and came home at 9 Sunday night. (Okay I know that's more than 24 hours but he left 1.5 hours late. lol We planned 24 hours.)

So after they left on Saturday I went to the grocery store and shopped. I had earlier in the day gone through the ad, loaded coupons to my value card online (how cool is that?) and printed 3 other coupons. I saved 64.17 doing that! (*thank you, thank you*). I enjoyed that. I came home and put the things that need to be in the fridge/freezer away, cooked the crab I bought myself, and relaxed and watched TV. I cleaned my room after that and read until 2 am.

Then I slept until 9:50! No one woke me up at all! When I first sat up and looked at the clocked I acutally shouted "YES!" and then a split second later "oops." Because church started at 9 AM. lol

I got up and quickly got ready while also making some treats for the girls at church and hurried off to church. I at least go to attend the last hour and see the girls. That's my favorite part of church.

Then I came home, got my MP3 player and listened to my current audio book and I cleaned. Top to bottom. Every nook and cranny. All day.

And all the worries and fears I couldn't let go of this last week. All the things that were making me feel paralyzed about my life? Everything is back in it's place.

Something about taking my home and putting it in order - quelling all the chaos - also quelled all my internal chaos.

All the problems are still there but I'm functionally well again!

Life is good!

And I LOVE my husband!

The Rest of the Story...

Ahhh my neighbor.

So the very next morning after the above post...

I'm standing outside on the step, with the door open, talking to Drew standing inside our home still and the neighbor drives up. As she gets out of her car I look over at her - with what I'm sure translated as a look of disgust. She kind of made a face at me and I rolled my eyes and turned back towards Drew.

And she calls out something like "You don't have to give me dirty looks!"

And flashes through my head "You have GOT to be kidding me. After all of this now she wants to tell me what to do with my FACE?!?!"

And I turned back to her and... well... I lost it.

There was a lot of yelling back and forth.

Drew came out at one point and yelled at her & I got him to go back in the house. Two women is one thing but a man & a woman is another issue. Anyway.

She threatened to call the police (for WHAT?), she threatened sue me (for WHAT?) - when she mentioned the lawyer I just started laughing - she didn't take that well. hehe

She accused me of stealing a rock. Ya, you read that right - A rock. Not many rocks. A single rock.

When we moved into this place there was a huge mound of rocks in the backyard. We used them to line all the beds. I mentioned this and asked what reason I would have to steal A rock from her house and she said "there's paint from my house on a rock over there!" and I said "You are making that up." and she changed the subject.

She said she's missed work before because we were blocking her driveway - to which I also said "You're making that up." Seriously? What sane person would NOT go to work instead of knocking on the door? Besides that fact that it's never happened. Whatever. She changed the subject again. At some point she did say she had pictures and I said I wanted to see them. As of yet no pictures of materialized. Imagine that.

I pointed out that we put up with the noise of her dogs and her dogs eating our fence, etc. And she said she has pictures of MY dog eating the fence. (sense a theme here??) We didn't even HAVE A DOG when that happened. Never mind her dog had to stand on the dog house to chew it. There is nothing back there for my dog to stand on.

At some point I said "What in the world have I ever done that you needed to start out being so rude to me??" And she changed the subject. (sigh.)

And then I said "You don't have to be such a b$*#&" And she about lost her mind.

And she went in her house, yelling out a name I will not even come close to repeating. And she called the police.

I had been on my way to the store so I went ahead and ran down there. In the meantime I called Drew and told him to take Leah and leave the house. That I would come back and deal with the police. I didn't want Leah to be there.

So I get back and sure enough. There's a cop car outside my house. I was getting out of my van to go in and Brad (from church - husband of Kristen who is on my blog roll) drove up. He wanted to know why there was a cop car outside my house. lolol

So while I'm talking to him the cop came over. I did my level best to smile and be cheery and reasonable with him. I think he liked me. At first he said he was going to ticket me for calling her a name - she OF COURSE - had not mentioned what she called me. He did not ticket me after I told him what she said (apparently there's a city ordinance about swearing?!? whatever). We talked about what happened, some of the issues I've had with her, how my neighbor on the other side parks the same way we do and it's never once made me angry. It never even crossed my mind to be angry!

She acts like the world is conspiring against her and her parking her car.

Heaven only knows what she tells herself but she comes across like one of those - I don't know - just very entitled people.

That's her 5 inches of law, that's her property line for parking, blah blah blah.

Oh at some point I sarcastically said "Should I call the cops when all 3 of your dogs are barking up a storm??" and she says "You really want to play this like that?" and I said "We already are. YOU already called the police!!" That's when she switched to the lawyer thing that made me laugh.

So we have a plan to paint a line on the curb when it's warm enough and we're gonna put up a low fence - this fence will be fun - only because when she "claimed" her few inches of lawn - she put down rocks - that are VERY clearly over the line into our yard. And we didn't complain of course - but I'll get to move them when we put the fence up.

I look forward to it with glee.

I promised the cop I would go back to being overly agreeable.

I don't want to talk to that woman ever again. I have real issues in my life, kwim? I don't need to deal with that kind of person.

I just don't get it.

And I don't want to!

But I am gonna enjoy moving those rocks.

Finding Peace

Old Post: Peace

Just thinking about this today. I'm going there in my mind.

MY CD.

This will really only be shocking to my sister. Sorry about this folks....

I've been looking for one of my Jewel CDs for forever - like several months.

And today I found it.

In. My. Husband's. Car.

That's right, Leah. My husband stole my JEWEL CD.

Unbelievable.