The holidays are finally- almost- officially over in my household.

Yes, they do seem to last a long time here. First we have Thanksgiving, then Christmas and New Years, then birthdays--- all right in a row.

And this year, Grandma came up for the boy's birthdays and took Chaos back down to Florida with her as a treat. (The treat was that Hubby and I got some alone time-albeit with Doc, but he's still so little and doesn't make gaggy noises over cooties!)

But, in less than a week, Chaos will be back home and life will resume as normal.

In the meantime, this next week will be insane between final housecleaning (and child-proofing now that Doc is mobile!) and a couple of small construction and organization projects.

I'm going to go back to writing on Two Weeks From Scratch soon, as well as posting some updates on a few other writing gigs I've picked up along the way. Oh- and there will be crafty posts as soon as I get the craft area moved to the other side of the house.

But, in the meantime, I'm going to go tuck Doc into bed and have a bit of snuggle time with my Fluffy Nerf-herder Hubby and try to ignore the massive amount of stuff that was moved from point A to point B during the great remodel project.

This is How We (and Mary Jane) Do It

Living with a plethora of geeks throughout the years has led me to the ultimate Super Hero ability:

No... I can't run faster than the ice cream truck. Nor can I leap over Lego Towers in a single bound.
However I can defeat the dark forces of... The Laundry Basket!

*insert menacing theme music here*

How, you might ask, do I keep the local heroes costumes so neat and tidy? Haven't you ever wondered how Superman can break through a brick wall, save a kitten from a fire, and fight off bad guys... AND come out in a mint-condition, identity-concealing costume?

The answer, quite simply:
Mom's Hero Laundry Services---No stain we can't defeat!

===============================
Seriously, though, my geeklet's costuming has taken on it's fair share of stains and grime.

To keep your costume nice and clean, I endorse these tips:

• Wash colors with colors, lights with lights. Nothing runs a Super Hero's image faster than having his whites mysteriously turn pink!
• Take two minutes to prevents snags and tears- zip zippers, button those buttons, and clasp the clasps! Even velcro should be firmly attached to it's mated piece.
• It's not Bizarro--- turn those outfits inside-out to prevent fading. Also, by treating stains from the opposite side of the fabric, you aren't just grinding the dirt further into the fabric.
  
• Don't overload the washer and hang the clothing to dry. If it's a particularly stretchy piece of costuming, lay it flat to dry on a sweater rack.

Anyone can do laundry. But it takes super powers to defeat the forces of dirt and grime!


*image from Sideshow Collectibles.

Wherein it Goes to Hell in a (cute) Handbasket

Hubby got assigned a random training class on the other side of the country.

I suspect my brain got packed into his bag and is now basking in the rays of sunshine on it's own mini vacation.

So far this week I haven't been able to cook without things going awry.

Somehow the heater got turned up so high in the house that the left-over Halloween candy melted.

I got a flat tire. (Luckily, I'm the one that handles car stuff normally since Hubby is woefully inept and could change my own tire.)

Each of the kids has thrown super-tantrums. I didn't even know that the infant could throw tantrums- he's normally incredibly laid back. I cringe thinking about it.

I can't wait until my brain comes back. Hopefully, it'll be nice and rested and ready to take on a new adventure and give my body a rest.

Home Reorganization and the Virgo

I'm a Virgo.

This drives my husband nuts because when I'm a neat-freak, I'm pretty OCD. When I'm not a neat-freak, I can still tell you exactly where everything is.

In preparation for home schooling Chaos, I've flipped the living room into a sort of topsy-turvy wreck of space.

Our living room is huge. Large. Spacious. When we first moved in a few months ago, I actually looked at the place and wondered how, exactly, I was supposed to assign "zones" like the pros at HGTV suggest. With this room taking up exactly one-third of the total floor space for the house, I'm still in awe some days at how much "stuff" I put in here... and still had empty patches.

But no more. A few thrifty shopping trips through the clearance aisles and I picked up some bookshelves, storage footstools, and a rug that was marked 95% off. My home is clearly marked out in purpose now.

However, somewhere in the re-organization, I had to make a compromise with my husband. He's taking over my craft area. I get to keep my small bookshelf over there (now neatly organized after three hours of work) to store my projects and supplies, but I no longer have the large table to use as a sewing surface. Instead, my sunny window spot will be taken over with computers. I'm not totally pleased with this.

My sulkiness at being relocated has manifested in a resurgence of my Virgo tendencies. I'm taking my sweet time to clean and put things away. I'm picking up items individually. I'm stopping to put like items together. I'm putting things away at the exact moment I pick it up. The most accurate description would be to imagine someone digging a hole with a teaspoon when there's probably a shovel sitting nearby. My husband has retreated with a laptop to the bedroom to escape the utter madness.

But, in the efforts of harmony, I'll be nice. I'll clear a spot off the couch for him.
For now.

Tomorrow I'll be EVIL.

A Busy Mama Gets to Rest

The weeks have flown by and I'm finally settling into a routine. Of course, that routine will quite possibly explode next week, but that's just proof that I'm pretty flexible.

I spent some time in the past week getting to know my local farmer's market merchants and my local butchers. I picked up most of my groceries for dirt cheap since I got to cut out the middleman. It feels really great to know that I've got something with quality for the rock-bottom prices I paid.

Now, since today is rather rainy and cool out, it's the perfect time for making some homemade treats and sitting back with my knitting needles.

Yet Another Way in Which I Have a Moment of Fail

Earlier this summer, I lucked out and managed to get all of Chaos's back-to-school clothes shopping done. I spent a day patiently helping him pick and sort through all the new clothing rack and I felt pleased that we were not caught by the last minute rush. When we got home, we showed Dad all his new clothes.

I decided at that time, however, to wait until the payday before school to get new shoes for him. His feet have a habit of growing and his father regaled me with horror stories of his own foot growth at the kindergarten age, thus, I felt safe in putting off what I considered to be the most crucial part of his back to school wardrobe.

So, last Friday, I sent him with his Dad to get new shoes. My husband, after a child-hood of extra large feet and ill-fitting shoes is fanatical about getting the "perfect" fit for all our kids. I figured this might be a good chance for them to have some male bonding time plus an opportunity for my husband to feel useful. (He always says that I run the house too efficiently.)

After they returned, I asked Chaos excitedly about his new shoes.

"Yep," he replied rather sardonically for a five-year old. (I rolled my eyes here. This is how my Husband replies to me and Chaos thinks it's funny to act like his Dad's worst traits.)
He opens the bag and pulls out...a pair of tennis shoes... in vivid fire truck red.

I stare at them. RED?!?

Everything my son picked out for school clothes happened to be aqua. Bright. Vivid. Aqua. Not a stitch of it was red or anything that remotely matched red.

I expressed this to his Dad later and he looked at me like I was weird.

"But sweetie... all his clothes are blue. Not red. His shoes don't match. They'll stand out a mile away!"

"He wanted red shoes." My husband was firm.

"But they don't match...." I begin again.

"Sweetheart," my husband said patiently while shaking his head, "he's a FIVE YEAR OLD BOY. He doesn't care if his shoes match his purse. At that age, he wants shoes that look FAST."

I closed my mouth at that logic. I think it over. My son always picks out some really nice outfits... then proceeds to wear them in combinations that defy logic. Yellows with blues with orange stripes often get paired with mismatched socks and camo.

Then it hit me... my husband's right. He's a boy. He doesn't have to worry about his shoes matching his figurative purse.

I have to worry about his shoes matching his purse, though... because I'm a girl.

--------------------------------
As a side note: I finally broke down and bought him a few new shirts... all of which match his shoes.

So close, yet so far away.

Back to school.
It's almost here. I'm patiently waiting for it to arrive.

I know, I know, it doesn't seem like I'm waiting with any amount of patience at all. But, I am.

I love Chaos dearly, but he is SO ready for school to start. It's all he talks about.

Tomorrow there's an open house where we get to go an meet his teacher. I can't wait.

To think, in just one week I'll be able to clean the house without having to work around a child coloring on the floor!

Some days you just have to give in...

I'm up to ears in chores that need to be done just to keep this house functioning. Washing dishes, laundry, taking care of the pets, changing diapers... I end up doing about 99.9995% of the work in this house.

So, it's rare that I give in when Chaos asks me to play a video game with him.

But today, he asked me in "the tone". This is the tone that implies a bit of wistfulness and loneliness at the same time. This is the same tone that a kid uses to ask for a hug when they've had a really bad day.

When his voice finally penetrated my activity level, and I actually HEARD what he was saying, I couldn't help but sigh, wipe of my hands and agree with a smile.

The worst part? After me winning Mario Kart ten times in a row, he decided that he's "rather play something else for some alone time..."

Stinker.

I suppose it's back to tidying for me.

Rebounding Takes Forever

After what feels like a month and a half of epic FAIL, I'm finally able to stand up for more than twenty minutes at a time. This is, of course, beneficial since I'm the chief cook and housekeeper here. (For the most part, I've been prepping food while sitting down and using a stool to wash dishes.)

After the flu of death, came the fractured rib of doom. This was soon followed/joined by the mini-relapse of the flu of death.

My husband seems to think I do too much, too soon.
I seem to think that no one else will get their bottoms off the chairs long enough to clean.

I'm hoping to be able to get my craft-table organized again. As things went, my craft table became everyone else's catch-all. I'm not cool with that. Not at all.

But, in the end, I should be fully up and around just in time to celebrate school starting.
I have the entire first day of school planned out:drop kids off at school with embarrassing hugs and kisses, leisurely breakfast at a coffee shop, a quick doctor's appointment, a calming lunch at a nicer restaurant, a pedicure, trim, and color at the local beauty college, before I get home and wait for the kids to get off the school bus. If it was a good day for them as well, I may decide to splurge on some ice cream cones (sorbet for me) and a trip to fly kites at the playground before the Hubby makes his way home. And I believe that once he gets home, I have permission to order a pizza, rent a movie, and sit back and knit a little.

Yay!

I'm contemplating another blog, this one entirely devoted to cooking.

I was writing my grocery list and I noted that very little on my list was pre-made besides the bacon and pasta.

This gave me pause.

I'm pretty well known among my friends for being the person that rarely buys what I can make. (That's not to say I can't make my own bacon or my own pasta- I just sincerely don't believe I have to available kitchen tools or space to devote to such undertakings.) So, as I looked over the menu plan for the next two weeks, I noticed that while I was making a majority of the items on the list, most of them were pretty simple items to make ahead.

So, my new blog will be born of the notion that it is possible to make two weeks of meals from scratch.

So, I hope you'll also join me over on Two Weeks From Scratch- my journey in providing balanced and homemade food for my family.

Sometimes, Even Mommy Can't Fix It.

After four children, it's very rare that something comes along child-related that I can't handle.

I can cook dinner while coaxing an infant to eat jarred turkey. I can vacuum while balancing a basket of laundry and two misplaced wine glasses. I can perform surgery on all the stuffed animals in one night. I can even soothe an argument between sick children while bathing the cat.

But, in one fell swoop, I undid all my years of Mommy-karma.

My husband, being the little boy of the 80's that he is, was over-joyed to hear of the re-release of Transformers as a live-action movie two years ago. He promptly went out with Chaos and began buying action figures. The two would sit for hours and "transform" them from robot to vehicle and back again.

You would think, since Chaos is only five, that the toys would be simple to transform. Not so. The intricate turns and flips and clicks needed completely befuddle me.

This week, my husband was assigned to one of the rare night shifts that come along in his line of work. So, while he was asleep during the daytime, Chaos walks up to me with panic in his voice and says, "Mommy, I can't get Bumblebee back together!"

I took the toy and fumbled with it for a good half an hour. Slowly the hope dies from Chaos's eyes. After one final try, he takes the toy from me and says, "Never mind. I'll get Daddy to do it later. I forgot you're a GIRL."

Sigh.

images courtesy of Hasbro.

Unionization of the Shorties

This morning, the children formed a union. (Now, they didn't exactly realize they'd formed a union, but as I looked at my husband while they recited their negotiations we knew what had happened.)

The demands for today:
Swimming
Going to the Movies
Going to the Park
Bowling

Or else.

The "or else" implied that they would not be forth coming with their chores unless demands were met.

Typically we don't negotiate with those who strike terror in our hearts... but something in their grins was infectious and we were reminded that, from time to time, we all deserve a break from our day to day routine.

So my little unionists are getting their demands met... for today.
Tomorrow I'll start adding some more complex chores to their list and see if the break has helped any.

Chore Skirmishes and Putting my Size 10 Foot Down

Over the weekend, my husband finally unpacked the box the geeklets had been waiting for. Somewhere, in the depths of that box, the Wii was hidden.

This prompted a rush of "I wanna play Mario Kart!" and "OOOOOO.... Cooking Mama!"

I looked at my children, so eager to play a video game yet so desperate to get out of common household chores.

The lightbulb went off.

"Fine," I said. "You can play the Wii tomorrow until lunchtime... IF you get your chores done."

"Okay!" "Yeah!"

See, what you have to understand, is that I'm not an evil Mom. I just have an evil sense of humor. Ever since school has let out, my children have taken a cue from my husband and become, shall we say, domestically-challenged.

My five year old, who has been making the bed since he was three, suddenly decided he had no clue what I was talking about when I discuss putting the pillow back on his bed.
My eight year old who loves to cook and has finally been given a certain amount of autonomy when it comes to making a bowl of cereal or a peanut butter sandwich can't figure out how to put a dirty spoon in the sink.

So, in my evil sense of humor, I began writing a list. I slipped it under their door as they slept last night.

1) Wake up. Should go without saying, but they refuse to wake up at the same time and often throw tantrums.
2) Use the bathroom. Wash Hands. I feel rotten that I have to remind them to wash their hands by this stage of the game.
3) Brush teeth. Again, by this point you'd figure they have it down. But, no.
It goes on with more tasks such as pick up the toys from the floor to making beds, taking care of their laundry, etc...

At the bottom of the list I wrote in big letters: Any fighting, crying, tantrums, or whining will result in this agreement being voided.
"What's that mean?" the five year old asked.
"It means we can't play the Wii if Mommy thinks we're acting like brats..." The eight year old told him solemnly.

Their room is spotless. They've only had a couple of minor squabbles that they quickly suppressed without adult intervention.
It's been such a pleasant morning.

I'm already writing tomorrow's list. I wonder if either of them can use a steam cleaner...?

On PlayHouse Disney and the Space-Time Continuum

As a parent, I love channels that show simple-to-follow children's shows filled with themes of cooperation, friendship, and acceptance.

Thus, as a geek, I cringe fully inside over one of my son's favorite shows: Handy Manny.

In the odd event you've never heard of Handy Manny, let me sum it up for you. In an extremely inter-cultural small town, a man sets up a repair shop with his animated and intelligent tools and begin performing acts of random kindness with no apparent transfer of payment.

1) Handy Manny apparently has some method to speed up time. In almost every episode, he has to paint something and nothing requires drying time. It's instantly ready to be used as a skate board ramp, sat on as a park bench, or knocked on as someone's front door... all within mere seconds of the final paint stroke being lifted.

2) And what's with the intelligent tools? In Dungeon's and Dragons, there are intelligent items and animated items. Occasionally there are intelligent-animated items. Either way, they are classified as "magical" items and the crafting of such items takes a lot of time, gold, and XP. (Oddly enough, Dwarves are considered one of the better races to be craftsmen. You can see where this is going, right?) So, apparently Snow White's little dwarf friends spent a bunch of time learning to craft magical tools so we could have Handy Manny the TV show.

3) Manny can fix ANY thing with his seven tools, which are a phillips-head screwdriver, a flat-head screwdriver, a hammer, a saw, a pair of pliers, a tape measure, and a wrench. I certainly hope he never has to put together anything from Ikea... without an allen wrench and a level, he'll be hard pressed.

And now, as my kids have glued their eyes to the screen, I have to conceed, there IS something magical about the show: it has kept my kids from picking on each other for the last half hour which is a rare thing indeed.

With Love,
Meg

What a Difference Hot Water Makes

I'm so excited.
I'm CLEAN.

We moved in about a month ago, and since then, our hot water has been pretty hit or miss.
For a while there we were resetting it twice a day. Then, the landlord gave us a key and we were resetting it every time we used it.

Then, on Monday, it died.
Yep. No hot water since Monday morning.

Cold showers don't appeal as I always end up feeling twice as dirty as I did going into the shower.

Today, they fixed it. As in, REALLY fixed it.

I waited impatiently for the time frame they suggested to allow the water to heat. Then, towel in hand I jumped into the shower.

The kids reported they heard me squealing with joy. (I used lots of nice soap and broke out my fancy shampoo!)

I'm clean! So lovely.

So, here's to hoping all my readers get a chance to enjoy the simple pleasure of a warm shower...

With Love,
Meg

Entertaining on a Budget: Snack Food for Gamers

Every Thursday (and sometimes Mondays and Wednesdays as well!) the local gamer's group makes its way to my kitchen table to sit for hours and chat and play various Role-Playing, card, and board games.
While during the summer time my schedule is a bit too hectic to join in most of the play, as the hostess of the games, I find myself stretched to provide some basic snacks for a crowd that ranges in size from 7 players to 20 players depending on the week.

Early on, I came up with what the perfect solution: I set up a Make-Your-Own-Nacho Bar.
And the basis for my nacho bar- the one item that everyone has deemed a "MUST" is home-made tortilla chips. (It's also the one item everyone has tried to recreate on the rare occasions that someone else has hosted.) In fact, it's become a bit of a joke that one player actually keeps trying to buy different pre-packaged chips just to figure out which ones I'm using--- even though he's stood behind me and watched me make them!

Fresh Tortilla Chips
--------------------
1 package corn tortillas
Sharp knife
Heavy Pan
Corn, Vegetable, or Canola Oil
Fine Sea Salt

1) Place stack of corn tortillas on cutting board and slice into sixths. (You could fry them whole, in quarters, or in eighths as well. My group just seems to prefer the size of sixths.)


2) Place two inches of oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Bring up heat until oil temperature is approximately 375 degrees F. (If you use a deep fryer, you can just use the "French Fry" setting.) Place "chips" into hot oil and fry until they begin to float. Flip and continue frying on the other side until lightly golden colored. (Note: If you are using fresh oil, the chips will burn before they turn golden. So, test a few chips to know what color you are looking for.)

3) Remove chips from oil and drain. (My draining method is the paper towel lining of a deep bowl.) While still warm sprinkle with salt. Serve with your favorite toppings, dips, or spreads and enjoy!

These chips are wonderful and NOTHING like the store-bought ones. Not only can they hold up to the most liquid of salsas, they can handle chunky guacamole and bean dips too! As a plus, they are cost effective; for the $1.50 it cost to buy the tortillas, I made the equivalent of FIVE bags of tortilla chips. Pre-made tortilla chips run $2 bag for the generic store brand here. I saved myself $8.50 by making my own chips!

Now I'm off to save myself some more money by playing with my new washer and dryer. (A post on those later, I promise!)

With Love,
Meg

And the winner is...

The winner of my last giveaway for a reusable shopping bag and gift card is....

Richelle!

I'm sending out an email to you in just a moment.

Thanks to everyone for entering! I should have another give-away in a few weeks.

With Love,
Meg

Sore Feet, Satisfied Soul

This last move in our household was so hectic. I was given literally 2 days to get the kids evacuated from the last house, and I wasn't given any time to contemplate the new place before the lease was signed and we walked in the door.

I've spent most of the last 24 hours finally setting the house to rights. There's still a bit of "temporary" furniture, mostly items loaned to us from our neighbors, but it's starting to look and feel like home.

I woke at 4 am this morning and while the kids and husband were still sleeping I drove to Walmart in a drizzling rain.
Why?
Because, I promised my husband that I would BUY him a TV. You see, for the last five years, we've been renting our TVs (along with most of our furniture) and he had had enough. The expense was too high, the customer service poor, and over all, it was just time for us to break down and buy one. We've been making do for the past two months with a tiny little 13 inch (non-digital- the HORROR!!!) model and no cable connections or other TV channels to take their minds off the situation at hand.

My husband (and children for that matter) can't live without a certain level of technology in the house. I'm fine with reading, cooking, and knitting for entertainment. They aren't. It's a sad state of things when my own family can't sit still without having a zombie-inducing box to stare at. However, what really made me decide that today was THE DAY was the simple fact that my children were driving me insane. The weather has been rotten for the past week. So they've been watching movies... the same five movies... let me repeat that: THE SAME FIVE MOVIES...over and over and over and over and over and... well, you know where this is going. I swear, I can tell what movie they are watching by the sound the birds or crickets chirping in it make, let alone the dialogue or characters.

So yes, I broke down, had cable installed, and bought them a television.

While the husband was distracted by the new shiny object of adoration, I began what I deemed phase two of making this place livable. I began putting soft objects around the house. I hung curtains. I couldn't find a rug of suitable size so I bought several smaller ones and I've duct-taped them together to make a giant rug. I've run cables and wires and hidden them behind masking tape that just happens to match the walls. In other words, I've been a stubborn idiot with a distinct fear of heights who has spent the day on ladders and chairs.

My feet are swollen. My hands have a few blisters. But I've wielded a drill and a screwdriver with an ease that my husband can never match. And I'm tired... in a good sort of way.

So, how has your day gone?

With Love,
Meg

Free Things To Do With Your Kids: 1

Fly a Kite.

That's right, I'm serious. Go fly a kite.

Chaos had never flown a kite before. Always before, when we tried to get him to fly one he got very bored with it and wandered off. We'd given up.

Suddenly, with his new-found love of all things engineering based, he decided he needed to learn how a kite worked.

Here are the results:
First attempt- Note, the kite is in the tree by the fence.


Second Attempt: The kite escaped back to the trees and Chaos fell over running to get it.

Finally a satisfied Chaos decided he'd had enough. Although he finally agreed to head home... as long as we came back soon for more kite flying.

A quick admin note

If you are coming back for a second or third time, you might notice that prior posts are suddenly appearing with pictures.

There's a simple explanation. They were supposed to already be there, but since I had a mental face-palm moment I couldn't find them on my computer to upload. Now that I've figured out which file they are automatically downloading to and corrected the path, I can begin uploading a few more graphics.