Hidden Food

I have to learn code so I can use my own fonts.  I have SO many!  I like this plain one okay, but I'd love to dress it up.  Alas, not possible right now. : (

Mary Claire came home sick again today!  She's had that tummy ache since Saturday, and hasn't been able to eat.  She has no fever, no throwing up, and no weird poop.  I took her to the doctor, thinking it really could be something.  At our house, nothing is impossible!  The doctor told us to try Zantac (he says maybe acid reflux?) liquid 2x a day, and come back Monday if it's not better.  He also gave us a prescription for dissolving Zofran for when she's so sick and she can't eat or drink (especially when she's high or low!).

She was asking for a Zinger this afternoon, so I'd say she's at least 50% better!

I have been working on some items to donate for Springdale High's choir.  My friend is the choir director, and she's having a silent auction to raise money.  I made two monogrammed cups:

And I was working on making a white bath towel with an appliqued SHS, but I'm having trouble.  I don't know why the design on my jumpdrive won't show up on my sewing machine...  I'll keep working on it.  I've never done appliques with my embroidery machine, but I'm always up for learning something new!  I've heard that you just put the fabric on top of the item you are monogramming, then cut the fabric from around the stitches.  I know, it can't be that easy, but I'll let you know if I ever get it to work!

And while I'm laboring away on my computer/sewing machine, here's Ethan.

Just "working" away!  He tells me he's writing Happy Birthday and Congratulation notes for Mommy and Daddy and Everyone, and that he needs to mail them away to people.  He used most of a post-it pad, but I was glad to see him stay so focused for so long.  He's not crazy about writing (or coloring or drawing..), and I can't help him.  He's left-handed, and it's hard to teach when you are right-handed.  We colored lots last night, and he's trying to learn to stay in the lines.  We also worked on drawing people, since he's not-so-good at that (well, he just scribbles for people), but we'll keep at it.

You can't really see it, but his shirt says, "Bad Hair Day" with a spinosaurus, and I thought it fit him well today.

Alrighty, folks!  I have now made the Chicken Rice Soup from Double Delicious.  It took me two days, but All in the Name of Healthy. (I would totally suggest you take two days, since my entire family walked in our house yesterday-at different times-and told me how sTiNkY it was!  (It was the day I made the purees to go in the soup: Hidden Food.  I made cauliflower and carrot, and bagged them.  Apparently the cauliflower smelled super-gassy!)

This is the big head of cauliflower-it took forever to get into it-the green at the bottom was so stiff, and then they were packed tightly!  I had to just cut into a :stalk: to get into the thing!

Albino Broccoli

My first strainer-works in any size pot!  You have to keep the water level below the bottom of the strainer, or it'll leach out your vitamins!

My slightly fancier steamer!

All those carrots made just one cup of mush puree.

Obviously, cauliflower is full of hot air.  Remember the really full blender before?  It cooked down to this.

And here are my finished purees!

So..I finished the soup today, but I didn't take a picture.  All the chunky chicken, rice, and veggies were at the bottom, so it looked like orange-y water.  It tasted okay, not great.  I don't think I'd make it again.  I also made her cheese bread (I'm sure she called it something fancier) with bean paste (kinda like hummus: white beans, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper) and mozzarella on bread.  It was pretty good, but I'd toast the bread first next time, so it's crunchier.  I broiled it in the oven on a cookie sheet, so the bottom was just bread.  It was all just okay, nothing to write home about.  Sometimes all the work is for naught.  Yes, I still learned (that my sweet husband will eat anything I make, and that sometimes Clay will, and rarely Mary Claire.  Ethan gobbled up his cheese bread, but didn't like the soup.  Mary Claire was skeptical-she kept picking off the cheese asking what was under it.  I don't know why Mrs. Seinfeld hides beans-my kids love them!  I think they'd prefer to just eat them.)

Broken Glass

A life is a series of one lifetime lived after another, a day at a time.  Whew.
Another great VBS today-and Mary Claire has remembered her Bible verses every day!  Yay!  I just asked her the one for tomorrow-and she already knows it: I will study His teachings, and follow in His footprints.  I looked it up, and don't know where it's from.  Now I really want to know!  It's on her little bracelet, so I'll tell you tomorrow.  : )
I had a really rough day.  I think it was my 9th day without Lexapro or something.  I cried and was pathetic, and I just couldn't deal with it.  It's like having a child that keeps whining about one thing, and you just want to tell them to move the whining to their room for a while.  I wanted to put it back in the closet for a while.  And it worked.  I took one right before I picked up the kids, and it took a couple hours, but...better.  Less crying is always good.  Maybe I'm not ready yet to get off?  I mean, is there ever a right time?
Ethan and I went to pick up the kids then met Ches for lunch, then I took them all to the Fayetteville library-leaps and bounds ahead of Springdale's!  They have a good section of parenting books, and I got one on Left-Handed kids.  I haven't read it yet, but it talks about when it develops, and why (in utero).
Then, we got stopped in traffic for twenty minutes on the way home- i think it was construction or something.  We saw lots of trucks picking up the cones and signs telling us to merge left.  ??  I'm just glad we got out of it halfway home-it could have been worse! 

Then, I got out of the van and dropped my phone.  It certainly changed the course of my day.  I went in, and started making calls and checking online for service.  I found out that you only have 90 days of coverage.  Even if you have the AppleCare plan (extended insurance), it still doesn't cover accidental or intentional glass breakage.  AT&T didn't used to have insurance available for the iPhone, but they don now-for $13.99 a month!  I didn't have that option when I got mine last September.  So.. onto the next options.  I could get a refurbished phone for $249, get a new 3GS 16gig for $349 or a 3GS 32Gig for $399.  Umm-no thanks!  So I explored other options.  My phone was still working great-it was just my glass!  If I'd thought it would make it, I would have let it go a few days, but already when I wiped my finger across it, it was losing chunks!  Dangerous.
I found a guy locally (Paul) on craigslist.com that would change out the glass for $50.  It totally seemed worth a gamble to get it fixed for only $50.  Since my next best option was $250!
I got totally nervous.  I had Ches and the kids go with me, just in case.  My plan was to have Ches go with me to the door (an apartment complex), to be safe.  Then I thought-what if they kidnap us both and the kids are out waiting in the car?  I called my mom and gave her the guy's address-so she could give it to the police in the event of our kidnapping.  She ended up staying on the phone with me while I gave the man my phone (minus the sim card!).  I only had $49, so we ran to Wal-Mart to get Zyrtec and more cash!
By the time we got back, he was done!  It was so fast, and it looked good!  I have to say I was so happy! : )  It was perfect.  I put my sim card back in, and it worked great.  It totally turned my day around to have if fixed!  Ahh..a bad thing made me stop and think, and appreciate the good.  I'm pretty sure that's why He allows the bad to happen.
I'm thankful for honest people who can perform much-needed services.  I'm thankful for warm little-kid hugs.  I'm thankful for not getting kidnapped.  I'm thankful Ches changed his plans to go with me.  What a life! : )