"May I never miss a sunset or a rainbow because I was looking down." ~Anonymous

With the everyday madness that we call life,

we just need to step back and find our rainbows and sunsets

These are mine...

Your husband meeting you for lunch cause your weekend's jam packed with parties

Watching your kids write their name with sparklers(Yes I realize he's writing his name from right to left!)

Pinata loot!!!! (find some chocolate for mama)

A 3 yr old Evil Kanevil

Sisterly love
A summer evening ride with ALL of my offspring

(Wow, are they really all mine??!!)

Take the time to appreciate these things

It all happens too fast!

It's Friday people...smile!

Just one of my pet peeves...

Went to the local mall for lunch and as I'm walking around I always look at whoever passes me and I smile.

WHY oh WHY??? do people not give you eye contact as they're passing???

Are they really that scared of a woman walking past with a sack full of lunches?

It's Friday, you're at the mall...what's the problem??

Of course, it's not just today, it's every day and every where you go? I find it funny that people don't look at each other or even acknowledge that someone is walking past them.

Am I the wierd one?

Do you smile at people when you walk past?

Wheehhh... I feel better know!

Happy Friday, Have a GREAT weekend!

First attempt at a Wordless Wednesday

Ahhhh...peace

Exhausted children after a good vacation

Haha....Good try Girls!

My girls are older now

15 1/2 and almost 13

and they're home on Summer break

which means they get extra chores to do

Mom LOVES summer break!

Usually means the home is somewhat clean

and sometimes I get them to start dinner for me

Now don't get me wrong, this aint no sweatshop

But I'm just preparing them to be able to take care of themselves

Mama's not gonna be around all the time

They need to know how to sweep the floor, wash dishes

seperate, wash, and fold laundry

babysit,

how to take a bus,

they've been lost before and it took everything in me just to let them figure it out

(I was on the phone with them every 20 mins to make sure they were ok)

These are all life skills that I think alot of the kids these days are not learning

And no, they're not home all day cooking and cleaning for me

I think they should be able to relax and be kids so they're

walking to the mall

hanging out with friends

going to the park, beach, etc

just having fun

So yesterday as they were calling me with their updates during the day...

I told preteen she could go to the park, but she needed to be home by 6 to make rice for dinner

(This girl can make some kick butt spanish rice, she does it better than me, therefore she's making it whenever it needs to be made!!)

Ok Mom she says.

Good try #1 - 5:45 text received: Mom, Kirstie wants to to go the burger stand, can we go?

Ummm...no dear, you're supposed to be home in 15 mins to make rice!

I also called the teenager around 4:30 and told her at 5:30 I need her to start the chicken

huh??!!

So precisely at 5:30, I sent her a text of step by step directions

(this is full of good tries of trying to irritate Mom to the point where she says

"Just forget it, I'll do it myself!!!!!")

Me: Season both sides of chicken with garlic herb, salt, and peper.

Put 2 tbsp onf olive oil in large skillet, add 1 tbsp garlic(from fridge) and 1 slice onion

Then add chicken, put cover on, and cook 8 mins ea side

#2 -Teenager: What's a slice? Like a square or like the onions you put on a cheeseburger?

Me: Just 1 slice thru the onion in the fridge. Use the whole thing, seperate them up.

# 3 -Teenager: Where's the cutting board, I looked everywhere!

Me: Behind the coffee maker

#4- Teenager: Where's the garlic

Me: In the fridge, in a plastic jar

AAArrrrrggghhhhhhh! Is precisely how I'm feeling, but I'm gonna let them figure this out

I arrived home about half hour later

the house smelled scrum-deli-umptious

Preteen had her friend in the kitchen cutting up onions

She's stirring up the rice, searching for the bouillon cubes

Teenager's chicken is in the skillet lookin good!

So I'm in the room folding laundry and here comes the preteen

#5- Ummm....Mom, the rice is burnt, I dont think it's gonna be good

How do I throw it away?

No, girl, you're gonna cook it. We'll throw it away after it cooks

Ok.

As we're sitting there enjoying our dinner

Teenager asks "How's the chicken?!!!" with a smirk on her face

It's really good, thanks for making it

She says...

#6- Well I didn't know what a slice was, so I cut up the whole onion

Me:That's ok, it makes the chicken taste better anyway

#7- And I didn't really know what I was doing with the seasoning so I put A L O T on!!!

heehee

Me: Well it's really good, you did a great job!

Did you really think doing a bad job was gonna get you out of cooking dinner again?

Hahaha...GOOD try!

I would just teach you how to make it better!

They must forget that I was once a kid and I'm sure I've pulled that quite a few times!

Happy Fourth of July Ya'll

From the wild wild west!

The Truth Hurts

From the first time I heard her voice, I fell in love

Mariah is my all time favorite singer- hands down

(Haters-please leave the comments to yourself! and sister I promise not to tell anyone that you sung along to her songs at the concert!)
I know she's a little coo coo at times

but you cannot deny that noone can belt it out like she does

and since she writes alot of her own music

most of the songs DO end up sounding exactly like the last one,

she repeat what she's said before

that just makes it easier for ME to learn the words,

so it's all GOOD

Love you Mariah!!

Since I have such a love for this girl

her music is always playing in my car

If I've got a 6 disc player, probably 4, if not 5 out of the 6 are full of her cd's

I know, I know, you can hook up ipods, but that's just too much damn technolgy!

Her music blasts as loud as possible from my speakers

I sing at the top of my lungs

and yes, if I'm really into it,

I'll even do the one finger holding my ear just to make sure I'm on key!

(now if you've ever heard me sing, you know just how wrong that is!!)

Since I know babies are soothed by the sounds that they hear in the womb

With baby #3, I was sure that it was gonna be something I could stand to listen to over and over

You may think I'm crazy

but to this day (my boy is now 3 1/2)

if he is/was EVER fussy, crying, screaming in the car

pop in MC (Emancipation CD is his favorite!)

within the first two bars

S I L E N C E

People are actually quite amazed at how this works,

Grandma would always yell, Where's Mariah??!!!

However as your children get older

they come to realize the truths in life

Their parents are just not quite the super human that they believed them to be

(My girls are now 15 and 12)

This is what they proceed to tell me as we're driving down the street the other day...

Teenager: I remember when I thought you could sing like Mariah

Pre-teen: oh yeah, me too

Teenager: I used to tell ALL my friends you could sing just like her

Pre-teen: I got in a fight with a kid at school about it

He said his mom could sing like Mariah

I said no, my mom REALLY does sing just like her!

Me: What do you mean? You think I don't sound like her?

Maybe it's cause I had the music up so loud

Teenager: No, I think it's cause now we're allowed to sit in the front seat!!!!

Sometimes, the truth hurts!

My boy and hubby went home the other night to an empty house

This was the first night for the girls to be at their dad's house for their weekly visit

And I had to go to off to do a show right after my day job

(I'm also in the business of putting the Passion and romance back into the lives of couples)

So there they were, just the boys

ALONE in the house

with nothing but their McDonald's in hand

he looks at his daddy and says,

Daddy, my heart is bothering me

Why? asks Hubby

Cause my sissies and mommy aren't home!

(of course by now his lip is purched out)

His daddy let him call his sisters...

he asked them to come home right now!

Aaaahhhh...talk about heart wrenching!!!!!!!!

Oh, the guilt I felt!!

Unfortunately he was already asleep by the time I got home that night.

But the next morning, he hugged and kissed me like never before

He's never been much of a mama's boy

Maybe absence does make the heart grow fonder!