RECIPE
1 lb ground beef
1 package Taco Seasoning
Mix together thoroughly
Shape into 1 inch eyeballs
Bake in oven for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees
Get your taco fixins
Use sour cream and sliced olives for the eyes
Happy Halloween!
Soooooooooo, 99% of you guessed right.
Meet the “Beauty”:
Meet the “Beast”
I don’t have photographic proof of her beastliness, you’ll just have to imagine it.
Don’t be deceived by that angelic look.
Ok, be deceived by it. She IS an angel. It’s just when she’s sick she’s well, um, there’s just no other way to say it….she’s beastly. But I’ll give one admission… that apple doesn’t fall far from this tree. Payback, I suppose. In any case, I’m just glad she’s back to her old self.
Mesa Verde, CO. This looks like a postcard doesn't it?
Have you ever made a Love List? When I was in college I remember making a one and hanging it on our apartment wall. It was an open invitation for anyone to write what they loved. I enjoyed this list. People would write things like “snow” or “the smell of old books” or “grass” or “kisses” from certain boys names (not revealed here). I wonder if I was the only one who really looked it over on a regular basis, I don’t know, but I felt like anyone who wrote on it silently bonded with the rest of us. We also had a “hate list” but it consisted of things like certain school subjects or professors, but especially references to boys and their behavior, dating habits or whatever (some boys might have been regulars on that list). I don’t need a hate list. But I miss the love list.
Can you guess what’s coming? Yes, I started a new one. Call it corny, call it awesome. It’s to help me remember all the good things in this life, and I want YOU to add to it. Look at it then contribute your own. Just hit the comment link and write as much as you want. I’ll type it onto the list. Even if you don’t write very often, or have never written. Do it! You know you want to. It’s like you’re in my college apartment and we’re gathered around the kitchen table, bonding over some hot chocolate while the Smashing Pumpkins are playing in the background… ok maybe not…
What will I put on the list? Today I visited my sister, Mariam, in the hospital. She had a baby boy. We walked into the room and there he was wrapped up in his blanket, so sweet, so snuggly. I love holding sleeping babies all wrapped up in their blankets. Having one in your arms takes away any worldly care that’s hanging on the brain. Unfortunately I didn’t hold him (with my kids being sick and myself feeling kinda funky…and not dance funky) I quarantined myself in the corner of the room. I looked on like a wallflower and leaned in slightly when Mariam showed us his looong toes. He’s adorable. So , there’s something for my love list…..
Among our many adventures this summer, Chunk #1 learned to ride a bike with no training wheels. He loves his bike, but he was afraid to ride it with just the two wheels. Back in the spring, one of his training wheels fell off. I told him this was an opportunity to learn to ride without them. He was hesitant. So hesitant he didn’t get on for a long time. Finally, in the great state of Idaho, where summer is paradise, I convinced the boy that he could do it and I would follow.
Followed, I did. But then he didn’t need me.
It took him five seconds to get it.
I hardly needed to run with him.
He had it!
And away...
...he...
...goes!
Mama’s so proud
My children are two completely different entities when they are sick.
The first one just goes along and deals with the discomfort, hardly saying a word. You have to ask this child “Are you ok?” “What can I do for you?” and this child ends up reassuring us: “Don’t worry, I’m ok.” This child just looks pitiful but is very, very sweet.
The other child is very vocal in communicating what is causing discomfort. We know something is wrong from the get go. When you ask this child “Are you ok?” We get a “No!” When we ask “What can I do for you?” this child just cries, “I don’t KNOW what I want!” This child also looks pitiful, but quite frankly, is not very sweet.
The first child, Beauty, had some kind of flu on Tuesday and Wednesday. This child diligently took the nasty tasting (yet very helpful) herbs that I offered every couple of hours. The fever was gone within a day and recovered very well.
The second child, Beast, caught the flu on Thursday. This child was a master at avoiding the nasty tasting (but again, very helpful) herbs that we offered more earnestly. The fever stayed for a day and a half. Last night I ran for the Motrin because the fever was spiking at 105. It was berry flavored. This child still wouldn’t take it. I forced it to the mouth thinking once the taste gets to the tongue it will be swallowed. No dice! The Beast got even more angry and started gagging and barfing it up (good thing I got the “no dye” kind cause it was allllllll over both of us). I gave a choice, take the herbs or the motrin, but take something! After begging, pleading, threatening, and then throwing in a trip to Legoland (which was already planned, heh heh), this child then took some herbs.
It was a long night. A looooooong night.
This morning this child slept until 11:00. I heard footsteps coming down the hall and, at just a glance, I could see that the Beast was gone.
“How do you feel?” I asked.
“GREAT!” Not just good, great.
I’m so glad that’s over. Oh, in case you sense some sort of favoritism, the other child, that is so sweet when sick? We know that child is doing better when the teasing begins.
So, for those of you who know my Chunks, riddle me this: Which one is the Beauty, and which one is the Beast? (only when sick of course..otherwise they’re both just plain awesome)
(Go ahead, take a guess. Click on “leave a comment”.)
I’ve neglected updating my boy sweetie’s link! Last spring he got rid of his old blog because one of his students found it, and, well, buh-bye blog. So if you’ve clicked on his name over there you got squat.
Here is a link to his new photoblog and I even updated it over there ——————————->
in the column on the right.
Enjoy!
Un beso,
La
Yesterday, we played Memory.
We had fun.
We watched conference this weekend and I loved it. To sum it up, here is what we learned:
Yes, we will work harder at being good.
It was a wonderful weekend. Did you miss it? You can still see it here. (Chunk #1 would be happy to compare tie colors with you later….)
Dear La,
You haven’t talked about me for some time now. I feel neglected. What gives?
Yours Truly,
Larry Bird Bucket List
My Dear Larry Bird Bucket List (can I call you LBBL?),
Don’t you fret my love, I really have been thinking about you. In fact, let me tell you all about it.
This summer I accomplished #14 on the list. See?
That's me!
Hmm, perhaps you don’t believe me because it’s taken from such a great distance. Here I’ll show you. Here I am before:
It was cold.
And here I am after:
Yep. That would be me.
And here’s another shot of me. Watch the Pro at work:
Oh wait, that's not me. Heh heh.
The other thing I worked on this summer was #28. Unfortunately, this was not done with my husband as specifically stated in our contract. I hiked the mountain with Scott, Phoenix, and Travis. I also did NOT make it to the top. Huge bummer but I have my reasons. I need to DEVELOP the pictures. You know, film, dark rooms, chemicals….so you’ll have to wait to see those.
Oh, and HELLO! #18? Have I not mentioned that enough? Well OK then.
Do you see my dear LBBL, you have been on mind all along. I just needed to give more proof. There is more to come.
Always and forever, Baby!
La
My in-laws are in town and last night they took us out to eat at the Cheesecake Factory. In spite of the novella which one has to read when choosing what to eat, I like that place. The company was even better. As we drove away El Jefe made a sharp turn and I could hear our boxed up food shift in the back. I heard El Jefe jokingly cry “Oh no, the cheesecake!” to which I quickly responded and unbuckled myself to scramble through the seats and over the back to check. “Not my Key Lime Cheesecake!” I thought. And no, I wasn’t joking.
The food was fine, so I plunked myself between my two little chunks in the back seat.
“Mom, are you gonna sit with us?” came the excited voices.
“Yes!” I smiled.
I nestled between them and immediately felt one warm arm slip around my left arm and one cold hand holding my right hand.
I propped my bare feet on the arm rest between the seats and listened to the tunes of Jeff Buckley on our car stereo. At each stop light El Jefe reached over and gently tickled them (I know I have previously mentioned my “feet touching” issues, but with El Jefe they don’t exist).
After awhile Chunk #1 took a rare moment to actually tell me about things going on at school. Then Chunk #2 sang another rendition of her song “Mommy, I la-la-la-la-lo-o-ove you! Do do do do.”
Perhaps it was the music, perhaps it was the warm little bodies of my favorite boy and girl sitting next to me, perhaps the Cheesecake Factory injects something “special” into their food… but I noticed myself pressing pause on life and just feeling the moment and loving the fact that I am a mommy and have a wonderful husband.
So I spoke: “I’m having one of those ‘It’s good to be alive’ moments.”
Pause.
Chunk #1: “Ya, me too, but sometimes I wish I were a dog.”
Judging by El Jefe’s laugh, I think he agreed with me.
