Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Wordless Wednesday - Walking



Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Picky Kid's Syndrome

Ok, I am not a bad cook more like a reluctant one. It would seem that when homemaking skills were given out or taught in school, I must have been absent. I wish some of the time that I was one of those mom's that got excited about grocery shopping and cooking for my family, but honestly, I just don't. In part this is due to what I like to call the Picky Kid's Syndrome. Now I bet you are wondering; what is Picky Kid's Syndrome?

Symptoms of Picky Kid's Syndrome
*Have you found yourself in the grocery store and are unable to remember what you are there to buy?
*Have you had the experience of after returning from the grocery store you are unpacking and putting the groceries away and realize that you have spent way too much and have no actual meals?
*You and your spouse are grocery shopping and they ask (passive aggressively) "So it looks like we have a lot of "snacks" and not a lot of meals"? In response to their inquiry you want to pull out your hair and cry.
*Do you find yourself eating cold left over french fries and fish sticks (or chicken nuggets) for dinner?

Signs of Picky Kid's Syndrome
-Tired mom
-Hungry frustrated mom
-A lack of desire to cook
-Grocery shopping seems like a new form of punishment designed to make you remember what a snotty teenager you were.
-A willingness to eat out almost anywhere just so you don't have to do the never ending amount of dishes that magically appear in your sink.

If you answered yes to any of the above you too might be suffering from Picky Kid's Syndrome.

Seriously, I used to like to make dinner and try out the occasional new recipe, but since my DH is often working late (at an awesome company that feeds him) and my children in most cases won't even try something I have cooked, I just gave up trying. DD will try things but often won't like them enough to take more than one bite. DS won't even try something new, nor will he eat a banana or any other fruit if it is bruised even in the slightest. Some might think that this is silly and they should just eat what ever I make or not eat, but that just isn't the kind of mom I am. I have two wonderful children and I respect that they might not enjoy what I do so I end up making them the few things that they are willing to eat. Unfortunately, that means that either I make two meals, one for them, and one for me (since DH's work has catered dinner, which I will touch on at some time soon, along with the magic notepad and pen) or I eat what they eat .
In practice what happens more often than not is that I make the kids food, work some while they eat, realize I am starving and eat the cold left overs. (Rather pitiful, huh?)

It is my goal to reawaken the inner cook in myself and find some new inspiration for cooking for my family and myself. So, I am ordering some interesting cookbooks including Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights: Recipes for Every Season, Mood, and Appetite & Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics: Fabulous Flavor from Simple Ingredients. My next step is to actually write down a meal plan and try to stick with it.
Wish me luck!

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Wordless Wednesday - S.F. Love





Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Paper Hearts

I guess it is just that time of year when everyone is sick...me included. As a mom having a cold is just not allowed. Working from home and being a mom is really, really, not allowed. So what does this mom due when she is feeling ucky and would like nothing more than to curl up in bed...well, for starters try to keep her very inquisitive almost 5 yr old DD busy so that she doesn't make gigantic messes. In an effort to keep little Miss.Mess Maker entertained I discovered that she didn't know how to make a paper heart.
Here are some pictures of the fun DD had while I tried to get some work done.

Just in case you forgot how to make a paper heart here is what you will need;

Paper and Crayons
Oops, almost forgot you will also need scissors to cut out your heart (no pun intended).
Next you will want to fold a single sheet of paper in half.
Draw your half heart on the side of the paper that is folded (not the side with the edges of the paper). We found that using a dark crayon made it easier to see when you the lines when you cut it out.
First heart! Not bad at all.


The second heart came out a bit better. DD found it easier when I drew the heart and she cut it out.
Lots of great hearts! DD made one into a card for a friend at school.