Hey good lookin', whatcha got cookin'

Halloween is one of those holidays that I don't always get into. While I was like "whatever" in terms of costumes. I felt compelled to come up with something spooky for dinner before the kids headed out to trick or treat. It probably helped that Halloween was on a saturday and I felt like I had a lot of time to pull things together. When my kids came down to dinner and saw what they would be eating, they were a little bit horrified. They wanted to know where I got these things that we were going to eat. I calmly told them that I had caught someone trying to sneak pieces of the Halloween candy when they weren't supposed to. The result was our dinner.

Hands! Yummy, especially with whipped bone puree and blood sauce. There were many requests for the middle fingers (giggle, giggle) and the dinner was enjoyed by all.

On another front, I was getting my hair cut and my hairdresser had an adorable paper shoe filled with candy on her shelf. I decided I had to make some 'cause it was so freaking cute. I googled "paper shoe with treats" and got the pattern I needed. Isn't the internet a wonderful thing? I honestly don't know how I ever lived without it. Anyway,this is how it turned out-sorry for the blurry picture.

And, the song and artist for today are "Hey Good Lookin'" by Hank Williams Jr. Listen to it on my playlist. This is also my ringtone when Jason calls me.

Just call me Martha...

Martha Quinn that is. What? You don't know who Martha Quinn is? You obviously were not around in the 80's. She was a vjay for MTV and most recently is a djay on XM radio's 80's on 8. As I was dancing in my car the other day I was thinking that so many situations in my life can be described by song lyrics. I was thinking how cool it would be to speak only in song lyrics for an entire day. The people who knew the songs would be like "whoa, that totally fits" while the people who didn't know the songs would just think you were crazy. I'm ok with that. The problem is, I don't really have the mental time to devote to this project right now. Instead I decided that from now on, the title of all of my blog posts will be lyrics from a song. Anyone who reads my blog (my imaginary audience) can play "name that song" for their own amusement. I will put the answer at the end of the post. Doesn't this sound fun!!! Just so I can practice, I will write another blog post.

Cheesy Pizza Pasta

Come and see it at www.mycrazykitchen.blogspot.com

More new recipes

I have another new recipe to share. It is on my recipe blog at
www.mycrazykitchen.blogspot.com
This is where I post new recipes and old recipes that are "keepers". Enjoy your visit!

New Recipes!

My sister Mandy has been doing a fun thing on her blog. Every week she tries a new recipe and then writes about it. I am going to join her in the hopes that we can keep each other motivated! Here is her blog address http://blahblahblahblog.typepad.com/. I have actually tried many new recipes but I always forget to take pictures! Here are the last couple and the pictures that I managed to take. Enjoy!



Orange Marinated Pork Tenderloin (Allrecipes #58941)

1 c Orange Juice

1/3 c Soy sauce

2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

3 tsp minced garlic

Pork tenderloin



Make the marinade by whisking together all of the ingrediants. Pour over tenderloin and marinate for at least one hour, preferably overnight.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drain pork, reserving marinade. Place on baking sheet and season with salt and peper. Roast for about 20 minutes until internal temp is 160 degrees.

Strain the reserved marinade and bring it to a boil in a small saucepan. Use as a sauce for the meat.



This recipe could not have been easier. I made the marinade on satuday night and then put it in a ziploc bag with the meat. (I had to cut the tenderloin in half so it would fit) It stayed in the fridge until sunday evening and then we cooked it on the grill. It was super tender and had a nice flavor. My kids all took leftovers to school the next day. Great option for a nice looking main dish with very little fuss.

Here we go again

It's that time of year again. Summer vacation is officially over; back to regular bedtimes, and a little bit of peace and quiet the day. While I'm as ready for this as the next mom, I'm not sure if I am ready for all of the other activities that inevitably come along with the school year. There's piano lessons for Baylie and Lexie, which continued through the summer but now move to the evenings, there's violin lessons, which will replace piano lessons for Kelsie, there's soccer for Hallie, which involves a practice night and a game night, there's Activity days for Lexie and Kelsie and then there's cross country, play practice, young womens, and a very part time job for Baylie. On top of all of this I need to fit in math and LA for everyone, reading time, practice time, dinner as a family and a reasonable bedtime. I limit my kids to 1 activity at a time but with 5 kids it is still crazy! I feel like we barely have time to get through homework and practices and then it's time for bed. I would love for Lexie and Kelsie to also have a physical activity and Hallie to have a music or dance activity but there is no way we could fit it in. I waver between feeling good that we sit down together almost every night for dinner and feeling guilty that I don't let my kids take advantage of all the activities that are available. I know that I would have a hard time being a good mom if I were constantly running around every night, I know that it is important to choose between good things, and I know it is important for my kids to spend time in our home and with each other. So why do I feel like a bad mom whenever I hear about so and so who is a classical pianist, accomplished dancer and straight A student? (this is merely an example and is not meant to implicate a real person) I know people who seem to pull these things off and it doesn't appear to exact a toll on their family, why can't I do it?

And there you have it, the ugly truth of the matter. Unfortunately, I guess it all boils down to the usual "what's the matter with me". Not that that is a usual refrain for me. I try really hard to accept myself and not compare myself to others. I guess I am just sensitive about having my parenting abilities judged based on the skills of my child. We all want what is best for our kids, I just wish it were more obvious what the best things for each child were. So, for now I guess I just need to trust that I am doing the best that I can and try not to second guess myself too much. In the meantime, if anyone see's any glaring insufficiencies in my children, break it to me gently.

My sanity spot

The other day I was able to finish cleaning up my storage room. Now, while I do this several times a year, apparently I forget how nice it is to have it clean and organized. It's way too easy to just drop off a case of this or a bag of that or pull a bucket out just to grab something. This is why I have to clean and organize several times a year. Ever since I finished the other day, I have found myself just going in to look at it at random times during the day. Every time I am in the laundry room, I can't resist a quick look at my storage room. Weird, huh? I was thinking about why it makes me so happy and I realized several things.

1. It is probably the only room in the house that nobody but me messes with. Occasionally I send the kids down to get something, but other than that they never bother with it. This means that for better or for worse, it always stays just how I leave it. That in itself is miraculous to me.

2. You can't hear the phone ring in the storage room. Need I say more?

3. I can use my label machine to my hearts content. Can you say neatly labeled buckets, shelves and cans. Aaah, contentment!

4. The kids frequently forget that we have a storage room, so it is a good hiding place when I need a time out. It also dampens the sound really well so that when they're yelling for me, I can honestly say "I did answer you, you just didn't hear me!"

5. I'm surrounded by food, duh!

Here are a few pictures of my haven. Baylie-when you read this, consider yourself initiated in some of the important details of motherhood. Hold them sacred and secret!

PS. I know there are empty shelves-Empty shelves in storage room=not good. I'm working on it! Baby steps people,baby steps