Stories From the Trenches

Here are some more funny facebook status updates concerning the twinados:
Jonathan first -

Dec 10, 2010 - Austin and Lanna helped answer that age old question - what does eighteen-hundred baby wipes look like spread out in a single room... up until now it's worked out well shopping at Costco and buying boxes of baby wipes at a time so we have enough to last for months. I guess Lindsey and I need to go put a lot of baby wipes into ziplock bags if we don't want to throw them all away.

Jan 4, 2011 - You know what would be awesome... if my two and a half year old daughter would stop referring to me as "hey guy."

Jan 14, 2011 - I had to break up one of those violent screaming/pushing/hitting toddler fights this afternoon. When I finally made sense out of the sobbing I figured out that they were fighting over an IMAGINARY bean! What’s even worse is that they both looked at me like I was stupid when I tried to convince them that I had another imaginary bean so they could each have one…

Jan 16, 2011 - Last night the kids just would not go to sleep. We could hear them in the room but we were trying to just wait them out. I finally went in because Austin had been crying for a while.  It turns out that after emptying the contents of the entire tall dresser we had in the closet he had somehow scaled the thing, emptied the contents from the top shelf of the closet (where we put stuff because it was "impossible" for the kids to get to it), and was perched up there stuck because he didn't know how to get down...

Jan 16, 2011 - In other news, I'm starting to think that daddy's spankings might not be too intimidating... Last night I had to spank Austin for one of the ten thousand things he did yesterday. As I was trying to leave their room Lanna kept saying "spanking daddy, spanking daddy". She cried when I left because I refused to spank her...

Feb 10, 2011 - My kids are currently fighting over which "time out" location they are sent to. This has gone too far...

and a few from yours truly-

Sept 5, 2010 - Just heard my husband saying "Lanna, daddy's not stinky, quit pulling my pants down to check!" hehehe :)

Dec 1, 2010 - I was just changing Austin's diaper and he told me "gentle with man parts mama" Time to start pushing the potty training a little more...

Dec 7, 2010 - Lanna just dropped her milk cup and then put her hands up to her cheeks and said "oh my goodness gracious" where do they get this stuff?

Dec 10, 2010 - What does 1,800 baby wipes look like when randomly strewn about in bed room? stay tuned...

Dec 11, 2010 - I grabbed a bite of chocolate and tried to hide it from the twins but Lanna caught me. She said "mama, what you have in mouth?" and I said "Busted!" Then she walked up to Jonathan and said "I want busted." :)

Dec 13, 2010 - This morning I heard Lanna ask Austin for something and he told her "no" and she said "You do not say no to me!" Wonder where she got that from?! ;)

Jan 5, 2011 - Yesterday in Target we passed an old man with a long white beard and the inevitable happened. Lanna yelled "Santa!! Why there you are." Then Austin informed me he must be on vacation. lol, at least the man was nice about it :)

Jan 16, 2011 - I just told Austin "you are growing up too fast! slow down!" and he said "ok mama, slow down" then a few minutes later he came up to me and said "can't slow down mama!" At least he tried right?

Jan 31, 2011 - All I wanted was a shower!! I guess that was asking too much. White carpet meet cranberry juice, cranberry juice...white carpet.

Feb 9, 2011 - Lanna's toy cars spent a good chunk of time this morning trying to send Austin's cars to timeout...

Feb 16, 2011 - Lanna just told me "I can't go to time out because you didn't ask nicely!"

Feb 16, 2011 - Lanna just informed me "we go to church because someone ate the real apple" and then Austin chimed in "the GIRL!!" hahaha, not sure what to think about Austin's addition ;)

Feb 24, 2011 - Lanna just told jonathan to put two hands on the steering wheel :) hahaha


 I love how they are funny without meaning too these days.  On the other hand, they repeat EVERYTHING and they usually chose to repeat what you should NOT have said and at the worst possible moment.  The least embarrassing example of this that I can think of features my lack of patients while driving.  I tend to "talk" to the cars around me while driving and apparently the phrase "move it or lose it people" comes out of my mouth with some degree of frequency because one day we were standing in line to check out at the grocery store and Lanna yelled out "MOVE IT OR LOSE IT PEOPLE!"  oops!  

In other news, Jonathan and I took them to The Children's Museum yesterday.  It was really cool, they had a lot there.  So as long as the green paint comes out of every one's clothes we will probably go back again ;)  








This crawl space was so small, I was impressed Jonathan braved it :)









painting the castle green :)















 
To give you an idea of the twins personalities, all the other kids were using the fake flowers to make floral arrangements...Austin and Lanna were trying to sword fight with them...


grocery shopping


















running through the hanging foam noodles












this things was like a "car wash" that the kids drove through on tricycles, it was a cool idea, but totally did not translate well into reality!  there was always someone stuck or tangled with someone else, but all the kids loved it!

The Fluffy Muffin Of Love Is In The HOUSE!

Jonathan's mom has been out here hanging with us in Phoenix and today she decided to buy a dog!  I make that sound like a spur of the moment decision, but she has been researching for a while now.  Anyhow...today The Fluffy Muffin of Love came into our lives.  The Fluffy Muffin of Love (who will hopefully be given a shorter name in the near future) is a tiny little poodle.  SUPER CUTE.  Austin and Lanna are in love.  Chaos is on the prowl for a snack.  I kid, I kid!  Chaos has been good with The Fluffy Muffin of Love, the only problem is that he is roughly 11 million times it's size.  Chaos and The Fluffy Muffin of Love were playing tonight and it was all well and good until Chaos would trip over the tiny fluff ball at his feet, but they would both shake it off and go right back to playing. 

The Fluffy Muffin of Love getting owned

not really, I just snapped a picture at an awkward moment...



Look, they are already sharing...maybe they could teach the twinados a thing or two...

neglect

My poor neglected blog...starting to wonder if I would ever again grace it with more pointless ramblings of my life.  But here I am!  Many times I have had fleeting thoughts about updating my blog, but they are always quickly drowned out with high pitch screaming.  Some of the more experienced moms I talk to tell me that "toddlerhood" is filled with phases.  It's frustrating because once you get a handle on one phase, they are two steps ahead of you and well into the next phase that you did not even see coming!  We are currently in a screaming phase.  Screaming at the top of their lungs seems to be the default reaction to everything.  If one or the other (or both) gets mad, they scream, if they are happy, they scream, scared...scream, bored...they scream for the heck of it.  I am not entirely sure what's holding the neighbors back on the whole calling social services thing, maybe they are giving us a grace period, we did just move in and all. 

All screaming aside and boundary testing, I am really loving this stage.  Now, not only can we do things with them, but they remember parts of it and understand more of what is going on.  It's so amazing to see their worlds expand as they learn about things around them. 

looking at the Condors


checking out the tiger


checking out the fishies:


So, if anyone has any recommendations of things to do it Phoenix that is toddler appropriate, let me know!

Living With Toddlers

Someone shared this with me and I thought it was too funny/true not to share with you all!  From http://www.suburbansnapshots.com/2010/06/10-reasons-having-toddler-is-like-being.html

Why Having A Toddler Is Like Being At A Frat Party

10. There are half-full, brightly-colored plastic cups on the floor in every room. Three are in the bathtub.

9. There's always that one girl, bawling her eyes out in a corner.

8. It's best not to assume that the person closest to you has any control over their digestive function.

7. You sneak off to the bathroom knowing that as soon as you sit down, someone's going to start banging on the door.

6. Probably 80% of the stains on the furniture contain DNA.

5. You've got someone in your face at 3 a.m. looking for a drink.

4. There's definitely going to be a fight.

3. You're not sure whether anything you're doing is right, you just hope it won't get you arrested.

2. There are crumpled-up underpants everywhere.

1. You wake up wondering exactly how and when the person in bed with you got there.

There were also some funny additions in the comment section!  Jewels like:  -At least one person is lying on the floor, either face up or face down, singing at the top of their lungs.  -Your one goal is to get someone in bed and, when you're finally successful, you're so tired all you want to do is go to sleep.  -All around you there is babbling and drooling, and at some point, someone will be drinking from the dog's bowl.  -Every time you turn around someone has taken off another article of clothing.  -There is always someone coming out of the closet wearing a boa and plastic heels.  -Someone is telling jokes that don't make sense and everyone is laughing hysterically anyway.  -You can't understand anything anyone is actually saying so you interpret wild gestures and intensity of screaming.  -If you sit down, chances are that someone will try to sit on your lap.  -There's always that one person who's just begging to be picked up.


In other news, I recently went to the gym for the first time since we lived in Georgia.  It's always a little awkward, your first time back in the gym if it's been a while, and it's even worse when it's a new gym.  When I have not been to the gym for a while I can't for the life of me remember, even ball park figure, what weight I have been lifting on machines or free weights so half the time I don't put on enough weight and end up stepping it up little by little and feeling kind silly or I put on way too much and can't even budge the darn thing with is even worse because inevitably someone happens to be looking my way and gives me that "you seriously thought you could lift that?" look!  And being that it's a new gym, I can't find the machines I want and end up wandering around after using each machine looking for the next one I want and there is always that one guy who thinks the reason I am walking past him for the billionth time is I am checking him out and not that I am hopelessly lost twin mama just trying to look descent in a bath suit come summer! 

That's all I got for now.  Besides, I am much too sore from thinking I could work out like I did back in the day to type too much more!


Adios from AZ :)

2 Recipes

I can't tell you how many times I have started a blog but not been able to finish it.  A kid starts crying and I don't make it back to the computer until I have totally forgotten what I was going to blog about and then I just end up deleting what I have.  But there are a few recipes that I want to put in here before I manage to lose them!  The first one is from a college friend who, in our house, is called Jet Li (her name is actually Li Jett, I am sure she currently has no idea she has this nickname and that her pasta is well love in this house)!  Anyhow, here it is, with no real measured proportions but maybe some day I will try and figure out how much I use...I am big into "eye-balling" it. 

-Saute a generous amount of butter and a teaspoon of minced garlic.
-Toss in mushrooms (u can use canned or fresh) and fresh spinach.
-Saute until the spinach "welts".
...-Then throw in shrimp.. garlic salt, salt, pepper to taste. (Don't cook the shrimp long, they will get rubbery)
-then pour in the jar (I don't make Alfredo from scratch) of Alfredo. I use the Bertolli kind... its the best.
-Pour the sauce on top of noodles and top with fresh diced Roma tomatoes
(U can add jalapenos to the saute pan if u want it spicer)

 That's how Li gave it to me, she also mentioned you could sub marinara sauce for Alfredo and use olive oil instead of butter which is how I have fixed it so far....my waist line can currently not afford the Alfredo but once it can I am totally trying that! 

I also recently made The Pioneer Woman's Chicken Tortilla Soup!  Here is her recipe:

• 2 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1-½ teaspoon Cumin
• 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
• ½ teaspoons Garlic Powder
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 cup Diced Onion
• ¼ cups Diced Green Bell Pepper
• ¼ cups Red Bell Pepper
• 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 1 can Rotel Tomatoes And Green Chilies
• 32 ounces, fluid Low Sodium Chicken Stock
• 3 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
• 4 cups Hot Water
• 2 cans Black Beans, Drained
• 3 Tablespoons Cornmeal Or Masa
• 5 whole Corn Tortillas, Cut Into Uniform Strips Around 2 To 3 Inches
• Garnishes:
• Sour Cream
• Diced Avocado
• Diced Red Onion
• Salsa Or Pico De Gallo
• Grated Monterey Jack Cheese
• Cilantro

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix cumin, chili pepper, garlic powder, and salt. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil on chicken breasts, then sprinkle a small amount of spice mix on both sides. Set aside the rest of the spice mix.
Place chicken breasts on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until chicken is done. Use two forks to shred chicken. Set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a pot over medium high heat. Add onions, red pepper, green pepper, and minced garlic. Stir and begin cooking, then add the rest of the spice mix. Stir to combine, then add shredded chicken and stir.
Pour in Rotel, chicken stock, tomato paste, water, and black beans. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 45 minutes, uncovered.
Mix cornmeal with a small amount of water. Pour into the soup, then simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Check seasonings, adding more if needed—add more chili powder if it needs more spice, and be sure not to undersalt. Turn off heat and allow to sit for 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Five minutes before serving, gently stir in tortilla strips.
Ladle into bowls, then top with sour cream, diced red onion, diced avocado, pico de gallo, and grated cheese, if you have it! (The garnishes really make the soup delicious.)

I added extra chicken because we are big meat people and I thought I had cornmeal and did not so I skipped that!  I am also not into soggy tortillas so I skipped it, but I did have tortilla chips available in case Jonathan wanted them.

 Ok, going to post this for now and try and get around to posting more happenings and pictures later!

Congratulations Short Stuff

My little brother Devin is currently home for his 2 week R&R.  Timing worked out and he was able to make it back on time for his birthday and (drum roll please) he is engaged!  He asked his girlfriend Leslie to marry him and she said yes! 

Here is a picture of them that I stole from Leslie's facebook page:


Congratulations Short Stuff!  I love you!

The Beginnings of My New Years Goals

I am sure I will be rambling about goals for the New Year will into February, but I guess you just have to start with what you have and go from there.

This year I want to say the encouraging/positive things that go through my head to the woman around me.  So often I see the lady checking out my groceries at the store and think things like "wow, that shirt looks great on her" or "I love her hair style" but I walk away without saying a thing.  It's so great to get a random compliment, so why not verbalize those things to other people?  As women we seem to struggle with self confidence and self esteem so much and maybe this can make a small dent in combating it in the lives of women who cross my path.  So there you have it, go look in the mirror and tell yourself you are fabulous because you are fearfully and wonderfully made and then go tell someone else!

Another New Year goal?  Eat better, I have almost no self control when it comes to what I put in my mouth.  It's a good thing I have twins and don't have much time to eat or I am sure things would not be pretty.  But I do want to take better care of my body and start throwing it a bone (a healthy one, like a salmon one, or chicken, not one made of solid sugar) more consistently, like maybe 3 solid times a day.  But along those lines, I also want to learn not to beat myself up so much about the unhealthy stuff I do eat.  It's not like all I eat is unhealthy, while I want to improve, I also don't want to obsess and make myself feel guilty when I do indulge!  Sounds like two opposing goals?  Maybe, but I think I can make it work!

Well there is a start, but be prepared to hear more ;)

Stolen and Crashed

I have not written a blog post in a while partly due to the holidays but mostly because my hard drive crashed.  And while it was going down it too my pictures.  Really it took everything from January 2009 to present.  Where is everything before January 2009 you ask?  On a laptop that was stolen.  If I knew where it was there would be a seriously butt kicking going on right about now.  Anyhow, there is still some small hope of recovering the pictures on my crashed hard drive, so I have not lost all hope yet. 

In the mean time I have been thinking a lot about what I want for this coming New Year.  I have never been one to make New Year's Resolutions and start off with a bang January 1st, but I like to kinda spend some time thinking about what I want to accomplish in this New Year and slowly start making changes.  I have recently decided I want to come up with a bucket list of sorts.  There are tons of places I WANT to visit but I really want to put thought into it and come up with things that are really important to me that I do, not just all the millions of places I want to travel because that list could go on forever! 

Anyhow, that's all I got for now!  I would love to hear other people's goals and dreams are for 2011 because they always inspire me.  Happy 2011 to everyone out there!