Tuesday, November 3, 2009

#2 For Dinner

I made "Stew Beef Casserole" for dinner yesterday. It's my grandmothers recipe and it's very simple and ANYONE can make it. It takes about 5 minutes to prep and 4 hours to cook and your house will smell like a little piece of heaven. I typically make egg noodles to go with it. So, I plated everyones dinner and we sat down. Charlie prayed and we ate. (I actually made myself 2 small chicken patties because I don't like beef). John scarfed down his egg noodles and rubbed his belly saying "Mmmm". When I told him to eat his meat he looked down at it and said "Ewww! Poo!!!"

Well, that made me feel REAL good to have the meal I prepared for my family compared to 'poo'. We couldn't help but laugh, though. He's only 2. He doesn't know any better. I can understand the comparison because what he 'deposits' in his pull-ups each day is very similar in color to the beef that was on his plate.

I've made it before and he's happily eaten every other time. Guess I'll be making him something different for dinner next time I make it. Charlie, Tabytha and Jessi tore it up. Charlie and Tabytha liked it so much they wanted to take leftovers for their lunch today.

My Grandma's Stew Beef Casserole
2 lbs stew beef
2 cans of cream of mushroom soup, diluted
1 pkg of Lipton Onion Soup mix
cooked rice or noodles of your choice
(I like to add a can of mixed veggies)
Combine ingredients and place into a casserole dish. Cover & bake at 300 degrees for 4 hours. Serve over cooked noodles or rice.
(told ya it was easy! Enjoy!)

Friday, October 30, 2009

Handmade Memories


A package came in the mail today for Tabytha from my Aunt Georgette. She'd been cleaning out a closet and found a box that had an afghan crocheted by my mom's mom (my Babci). Babci was always crocheting. Baby clothes, doll dresses, scarves, hats, afghans. . .if it could be crocheted, she did. She always hummed while she crocheted. I still hear it every time I think of her.

Babci passed away nearly 6 years ago. Tabytha was 2 years old. She has no actual memories of Babci, but I have lots of pictures of them together. Tabytha was her first great grandchild.

So, out of sheer curiosity for what could be in the box sent from Aunt Georgette, I opened it. (I felt 'justified' opening the package because the label was addressed to "Tabytha, c/o Charlie and Jamie"). I read the note and then took out the afghan. Tears began to well up in my eyes.

My mind was flooded with memories of my Babci. I loved her so much. I got teary eyed for the short time Tabytha had to know her, but this afghan, crocheted with Babci's own hands will be a treasured possession for her.

So, after composing myself I took the afghan back to Tabytha's room to lay it out on her bed for her. I waited outside for the school bus to bring her home and told her she had a surprise waiting for her in her room. She perked up and wanted to know what it was. I told her it was something made by Babci many years ago, before she passed away and she wanted to hurry up and see what it was. I told her to go look on her bed. I followed her back to her room and heard her exclaim "AWE!!! It's SOOO beautiful!!!"

My heart melted.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Grandmothers Are Special

Tabytha brought home an assignment she'd done in school. It was titled "Grandmothers Are Special". While I was reading it I immediately knew which grandmother she was talking about. My mom. It was a fill in the blank paper. Here's what said (her answers are in italics). . .

"Grandmothers Are Special
Grandmothers are special in many ways. My grandmother treats me in special ways because she 'takes care of me when I am hurt' and 'talks to me on the phone.' Sometimes grandmothers have hobbies. My grandmother's hobbies are 'praising the Lord' and 'making breakfast'. My grandmother lives 'over the bridge'. When grandmothers get older they begin to change. Now that my grandmother is older, she 'has hair that changes color' and 'has a deeper voice'. My grandmother is very special because 'she loves me for who I am' and 'she loves me and I love her'. I love my grandmother."

I'm not sure about the 'deeper voice' thing, but all in all it was touching to read what makes my mom, Tabytha's grandmother, so special to her.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Paging Dr. Mom

All children dream of what they want to be when they grow up. I was no exception. I wanted to be an actress or a teacher. Neither of those career choices panned out. At least not in the way I expected.

As a mother I am indeed an actress and teacher in my own way. I'm also a head chef, personal shopper, chauffeur, accountant, house keeper, Laundromat, events coordinator and Doctor among a few others.

During my pregnancy with Tabytha I worked at a nursing home and received my CNA and GNA certificates (Certified Nursing Assistant and Geriatric Nursing Assistant). I took care of the elderly's basic everyday needs (bathing, feeding, dressing, changing. . .ect. . .). This helped prepare me for motherhood in it's own way. Most of motherhood is 'on the job training, though, no matter how much "prep" you do for it and advice you get from other mothers.

I recently received some tips on how to fend off the cold and flu viruses that are floating around. I reminded Tabytha the importance of washing her hands and coughing into the crook of her arm if she gets a tickle in her throat. I told her it was also important to use the Germex that's kept in the classroom as often as possible to keep the sick bugs away. She told me "I always use it. It says it's 99% so I use two squirts so I get the whole 100".

In the list of tips for fending off the cold/flu virus it said to swab the inside of your nostrils with warm salt water or peroxide and to gargle with warm salt water. So, I collected the peroxide, warm salt water, tissues and Q-tips. I had Tabytha gently blow her nose and then swabbed the inside of her nostrils with peroxide and had her gargle with the warm salt water. When she was finished I swabbed inside John's nose with peroxide. While I was doing that Tabytha asks "Mommy, when you were a little girl, were you a doctor?". I chuckled and replied "No sweetie. I was a little girl when I was a little girl".

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Step By Step


For quite a while now Jessi's been standing up independantly and cruising along the furniture and bracing herself on the wall side stepping down the hallway (when she isn't speed crawling to catch up to big brother or big sister)

This past Friday I was in the living room with her and she stood up and took 3 small steps towards me. I was able to witness her very first steps (which is not something I can say for Tabytha or John). I scooped her up in excitement and smothered her in hugs and kisses and "Good Job Baby!!!!" and "That's my girl!!!". I set her down and grabbed the camcorder and tried to get her to take a few more steps so I could record it. After about 15 minutes she still wouldn't take anymore steps, so I put the camcorder away and called Charlie to tell him what his little angel just did.

He said it was great and he was a little sad he couldn't be there to have seen it for himself so I told him I'd push her down if she tried to take anymore steps before he got home from work. (Of course I wouldn't actually push her down, but it made him feel a little better, lol)
So, when Charlie got home Friday I sat down a few feet away from Jessi and called her over to me and she took 4 small steps towards me for Charlie to see. He was so excited!!! She's so close to being a walker and she's not a year old yet.
I'm certainly ready for her to start walking. I've heard from a couple friends of mine who have a couple kids of their own that the last one was always the hardest to watch grow up. Not the case for me. I'm honestly ready for it and look forward to Jessi growing into a toddler.

Monday, September 21, 2009

Chicks Dig Scars


If you've been keeping up with my blogs, this one will come as no surprise. Over the weekend John sliced his pinky toe open. We had company over during the day and I cooked steaks and chicken on the grill for everyone. There's a BBQ 'tool box' next to the grill that has steak knives, grilling tongs, wire brush for cleaning the rack, etc. There's also a large long handled knife to use to cut and check the center of the meat w/o putting your arm over the flame.

Fast forward to after our friends left to go home. Charlie went outside to cut the grass, Tabby and Jessi were in their room playing. I was on the front porch swing and John was coming in and going out of the house to the back deck. He often goes out on the deck and plays with his riding toys and the dog. After cooking on the grill I forgot to close the grilling 'tool box' and while John was outside he got hold of the long handled knife and sliced open his toe. I heard him fuss a little, but it didn't sound like a major injury cry. He came in the house looking for me and found me out front. He came outside and I saw all the blood. I sat him in the swing with me to get a better look and saw his pinky toe was split open from his toe nail to the joint. I told him to sit tight and I'd get something to clean his foot up. I saw a blood trail, so I cleaned it up on my way back outside to clean up the wound. The next time Charlie came around the front of the house on the tractor I got his attention and called him over. I couldn't take my hand off John's foot cuz every time he moved his toe it would start bleeding again. Charlie took John to the hospital to get stitches. (Did I mention it was 6:30 in the evening when this happened?). A simple band aid wasn't going to work to keep him from making a bloody mess in the car, so Charlie wrapped John's toes to the ball of his foot with a paper towel and painters tape. It was secure and immobilized good enough to get to the hospital.

Off they went. I stayed with the girls and waited for updates from Charlie. He was there for about 2 hours and had his own set of troubles while he was there. In the hustle to get to the hospital I forgot to send the diaper bag and John's social security number with Charlie. And of course, when the boys get there John had a load in his pull up and the nurses wouldn't get a fresh diaper for him until he go back into an exam room. Poor John had to sit in his stink for about 45 minutes. Since Charlie didn't know John's SS# the staff couldn't pull up John's name in their system, when they finally found it they turn to Charlie and ask if he's 'Jamie L. Simkins'. He said he wasn't and they asked who he was. He told them he's John's father and they gave him looks, as if they weren't sure to believe him. The doctor comes in and says his toe is too small to stitch so a nurse was gonna come in and use butterfly strips to close it up.

It's finally time to leave. Charlie stops by Walgreens to get an antibiotic for John (to prevent infection) and they head on home. Charlie said John was really good and hardly fussed at all at the hospital. Once John gets in the door he begins whimpering and reaching out for me, lol. I take him in my arms and sit on the couch and snuggle him. He stayed up about an hour longer and then I put him to bed and Charlie and I went to bed. It was about 11pm.

John's getting around just fine now. Aside from the butterfly strip and cut on his toe you'd never know he got hurt.

Friday, September 4, 2009

Never A Dull Moment At The Zoo!

The last blog I wrote about John was when he got into powdered cupcake mix and poured it all over the baby, himself and the girls bedroom. Well, he's gotten into LOTS of other little mishaps like that since then. Instead of writing about them each time, I've compiled them into one neat and tidy blog. You can't turn your back on the boy for a second or it's chaos! Here's why. . .
Some weeks ago, Charlie had just gotten home from work and I was plating up dinner. While Charlie was putting Jessi in her highchair he smelled an overwhelmingly strong scent of baby powder, within a couple seconds I, too, smelled the baby powder. We go into the living room and John had figured out how to open the baby powder and pour it ALL OVER the living room. All over the couch, chair and floor. This was all in a matter of about a minute and a half!!! I sent him straight to his room for 'time out' and while he was in his room I managed to get a few pictures of the baby powder mess. (I try not to take pictures of 'incidents' because I don't want him to think it's OK to do these things cuz 'mommy thinks it's funny and is gonna take pictures of it', so I don't always have a photo to go with the story) But he was in his room and I thought it was kinda funny. One picture has our dog's paw prints and John's footprints in the powder. I got all the baby powder vacuumed up, living room straightened back up and called John out from his room and we all sat down to our dinner.

August 15th Charlie spent the day at Bud's Creek watching his buddy drag race and I was invited out to celebrate a friend's birthday in the evening. My in-laws came over to watch the kids so I could go out. About an hour before I wanted to leave John had slipped out of our sight and went back into the bathroom in the girls room and turned on the sink faucet. It overflowed onto the bathroom floor. I was actually in the kitchen with my mother-in-law (who was feeding Jessi) while I was getting dinner cooked for her and the kids. When the pizza was in the oven and Jessi was done eating her food we went into the living room. I noticed John was soaking wet and I heard water running in the back bathroom. My first thought was he turned the shower on, not THAT big of a deal. I asked Tabytha to go turn the shower off while I cleaned Jessi up from her dinner and changed John's wet clothes. She comes running back up the hallway saying the bathroom's flooded! ARG!!!! I was in the middle of changing Jessi, so my mother-in-law went back to see how bad it was. She said there was water everywhere. I finished with Jessi and got all the towels out of the closet and Tabytha and my mother-in-law started cleaning up the water while I dealt with John. I disciplined him and had him go in the bathroom to help clean up. It was a mess, but it wasn't the end of the world. My father-in-law was the most upset, but no one was hurt, nothing was ruined and the water got cleaned up (about 15 bath towels later). I'm glad this happened before I left. It was handled and after the kids ate their dinner they went out back to play and I used that opportunity to head out for an evening free of the kids to hang out with a couple friends. It was great.

John's gotten into an odd habit of sleeping all over his room. Each night Charlie and I look in on him before we go to bed and find him in some of the most unusual places. He's been asleep beside his bed, in the middle of his room, at the doorway of his room. . .etc. . .Well, one night after I put Jessi in her crib for the night I looked into John's room to check on him and he was nowhere to be found. He wasn't in his bed, on the floor, behind his door, next to the closet. So, I go back into the girls room to see if he found his way in there and he wasn't anywhere to be seen. I looked all over the girls room. No John. I go into Charlie and my room. He's not in our bed, next to my side of the bed or Charlie's side of the bed, he's not even under our bed. I'm getting worried and a little panicky. I can't find John!!! There's no way he could have gotten past us in the living room before I put Jessi to bed. I go in his room again, this time I turn the ceiling fan light on and start checking under stuff and that's when I found him. He was in the far corner of his room, on the floor at the foot of his bed half hidden under a teddy bear. I breathed a sigh of relief and chuckled a little. I left his room to get the camera and show Charlie the boy's new sleeping spot. He got a chuckle out of it and I got a picture.

John's most recent escapade was this evening. Tabytha asked if she could make herself a peanut butter and marshmallow sandwich. I said she could. John saw her making her sandwich and she asked if she could make one for him, too. I said “yes”. She made him a sandwich and they sat at the table and ate. Well. Tabytha didn't put anything away after making the sandwiches. About half an hour after later, Tabytha's biological grandmother and aunt came to pick her up for the weekend. While I was in the living room inviting them in and saying hello, John comes running out of the kitchen to say 'hi'. (He likes Tabytha's biological Aunt). He looks like a ghost. He's covered in fluff!!! He's got it all over his face, up to his elbows, on his shirt and all in his hair. I wanted to cry. At first I had no idea what he had gotten into. I couldn't figure it out. So I went into the kitchen and there was fluff all over the counter and sink. He had been playing in it while I was distracted with our company at the door. I called Tabytha into the kitchen and had her clean up the mess and put everything away like she should have done when she was finished making the sandwiches. As soon as Tabytha left I put the boy in the shower. Thinking it was gonna be really hard to get the marshmallow out of his hair, but it was really easy. It washed right out of his hair and off his face, arms and hands.

He's quick and sometimes sneaky, but I love the boy. I'm going to have so many funny stories to tell him when he's all grown up.