Heidi invited me to go with her to her doctors appointment today and we had a great time. We were both crying we were laughing so hard at each others jokes, and it was one of best times I have ever had waiting in a doctors office. Heidi’s Dr. is simply the best, and should we decide to have another baby, it’s nice to know I could come North if I wanted to for my pre-natal care. My OB-GYN moved from town here to a large multi-doctor practice 30 minutes away from me so I will have to travel 30 minutes either North or South, depending on who I would choose, so I am happy to have another option. The OB-GYN’s that are still here in town, I have been told, are not that good, and everyone I have talked to (including several nurses that have worked for them, or had babies delivered by them) advised me to steer clear, so I have.

It was so thrilling to hear the babies little heartbeat, and it’s so exciting to know that it won’t be much longer until the exciting arrival! When Heidi was undressing and dressing, I turned my back to give her some privacy, but G didn’t give her any, she just kept staring, moving her head for a better view, trying to see what Heidi was doing, and why she was doing what she was doing. So there are no secrets between Heidi and G now, they have both seen it all. I’m so excited for Heidi’s delivery, mostly because I know this one will be so much better than her last one, but frankly there’s no where to go but up after that one. Afterwards we went and visited with Holly, then Mark and Mel, and I got to see all of Mel’s stash for her baby (such cute stuff!!!), and we just had a fun time. I have been wanting a little break, and this was it. So thankyou for the fun, the socks (Oh the SOCKS!!!), the laughing, and the bum jokes, I needed today, it was great!

   I had decided to grow my hair out right after I had G, and it didn’t take me long since my hair is like a weed and grows twice as fast. It was long when Craig and I first met, but I cut it really short midway through my pregnancy with N, and I’ve kept it short for most of the time since then. I really enjoyed it short, but I also missed being able to just pull it back into a hair clip when I was in a hurry (which is all of the time nowadays) so I decided to go for the length again. For me, short hair means I have to style it, every time, and I thought long hair would give me a choice.

Well, I’ve decided I hate having that choice and I really miss the short hair. It takes me a full 30-45 minutes now to blow it dry, and then style it, and frankly I don’t have that kind of time. All I ever do anymore is wash my hair, run a comb through it, and pull it back into a hair clip while it’s still wet. Frankly, I’m even lucky to get a shower since all it takes is turning the water on, and my kids are wanting to know what I’m doing, if I’m almost done, can I hurry up please and so forth. I think what I miss about my short hair was that I could have it dried and styled in less than 15 minutes tops, and that included throwing on a little makeup too. So I think it’s time to make another appointment with my stylist Tammy, and give her the green light with the scissors and tell her to have at it!

And that’s another thing. Can I just say that finding a great hair stylist is harder than finding a good OB-GYN! It took me 3 years to finally find Tammy, and I had to go through 4 really grumpy, cranky and untalented stylists before I stumbled upon Tammy by total accident. I like a stylist that can look at me and my hair, ask a few questions, ask me what I want in particular if anything, and just see what needs to be done. I can’t see my whole head, they can, and they need to be the best judge of what would look best on me, and some stylists can’t do that. They have a set style they rarely deviate from, just the same cut with a few little variations on the theme, or they need a picture from a book, or they need explicit directions from me, and even then it never turns out right.

One stylist I went to (she had just turned 18 two weeks before my appointment) kept complaining about her mom, and why was she so uptight about her living with her boyfriend, and why couldn’t she just deal with it, and why did she hate him, he only smoked pot sometimes, and he only hit her once etc etc. She was so busy telling me her life story and woes that she didn’t hear me when I tried to tell her I have thick hair, and I don’t like bangs, so it was an awful cut and I hated it….Another kept complaining to me that it was so late (we were done by 6pm), she had to get home to ker kids, she had to make dinner, she was so late, her husband was going to kill her, and it was so hard being there so late, and why was it taking so long to do my hair (she really said that, like I was the one doing it? Whatever!). SHE was the one that made the appointment with me, and SHE offered that time to me, so why was she telling me how inconvenient I was making it for her? And yet another one couldn’t picture what I wanted in a haircut, so she made me try and find it in the paltry pile of magazines they had in the waiting area (and NOT hair style mags, just ones like People and Ladies Home Journal, like that was going to work?) and when she was done it looked NOTHING like she said it would, or what we even talked about OR the picture we eventually found.

I had totally given up on ever finding the right stylist, when a miracle happened! I called back to the first place I had gone to (with the young mom-hating sylist that had thankfully moved on to torment someone else with her drama) and Tammy had the first opening, so I gave it another shot, and “Oh Happy Day!”, it worked! Tammy is a very cute girl in her early twenties, just married a few months ago, and she works in the nicest salon here in town. I found her right before I had G and she did a phenomenal job then, so I’m thrilled to have finally found THE ONE, here in town. So Tammy, you rock! (not that she will even read this, but she really does rock!)

   For my birthday my Mom gave me a Womens Schick Intuition Shaver (she’s not a fan of subtlety). Perhaps I was offending people everywhere with my Sasquatch style legs, or I was just a hairy beast, either way she felt compelled to do something! Anyways, I just had to say how much I love it! It actually does what it says on TV (yes, I know, TV isn’t the only truth out there) and I don’t have a bunch of cuts on my legs either, which is even better. I really like the way the razor is surrounded by the lathering conditioner, it makes shaving so much nicer! Now, I haven’t gone out and bought any refills yet (and yes, I know that tells everyone out there that can count from April to June that it means I don’t shave my legs every day!), but I can honestly say cost isn’t going to bother me since it really gives me a very easy and comfortable shave without any nicks and cuts, and that’s what really matters, right?!! Anyone else tried this lovely piece of shaving heaven?

   To try and make up for the past few days of neglect, I have tried to do a catch-up on the weekends events so keep on scrolling as you read, there are 5 new posts on my blog. I know I have neglected my blog, and I apologize for that, but it has been so busy over here, I haven’t had a lot of time. Craig and I are still trying to get the house ready to sell, and I’m also trying to cram in as much sewing time as I can since my project pile has finally toppled over into several sad stacks on the floor, so I’m working on it. Mammy and Pappy are flying to California for Sabrinas Blessing and Hunters Baptism so I’m also frantically trying to get a few little somethings made, together, and ready to send with them for the kids. Mathes and Havens birthday was Friday, so we did some fun activities on Friday and Saturday with them for fun, and of course that took care of both of those days, then Sunday is always gone before you know it and then all of a sudden Monday is upon me, and I never feel quite ready to start another week.

   Add all of this to my regular days events and I feel a little frazzled right now, and it shows no signs of slowing down in the coming weeks. I do love Summer though, especially having all of the kids here, it’s been very entertaining to say the least. Just today I discovered Mathes had snuck into the fridge, taken out a package of cheese and hidden it in his room. Everytime I turned around he was eating a cheese slice, and I couldn;t figure out how he was doing it, until Dylan stumbled upon Mathes’ secret stash. Luckily it was real cheese slices and not the process stuff, and he only hid it this morning, so I had a good laugh over it. What a monkey! And Dylan has been keeping me laughing with all of his “Chuck Norris” facts. Here are just a few, and yes, I know I’m a total geek, but I’m still laughing

-Chuck Norris’ tears cure cancer. Too bad he has never cried. Ever. 

-Chuck Norris does not sleep. He waits.

-If you ask Chuck Norris what time it is, he always says, “Two seconds ’till.” After you ask, “Two seconds ’til what?” he roundhouse kicks you in the face.

-Chuck Norris does not hunt because the word hunting implies the probability of failure. Chuck Norris goes killing

-The quickest way to a man’s heart is with Chuck Norris’ fist.

You can see the whole list @ http://www.chucknorrisfacts.com/ I apologize in advance for anything offensive or in bad taste as I have not had a chance to read all of the “facts”.

So on that note of nerdity, I need to go and put my children to bed. Wish me luck, becasue they don’t want to go!

Yield: 3 dozen

1 (18 oz.) tube peanut butter cookie dough

OR 1 (17 oz.) pkg. peanut butter cookie dough mix, prepared to pkg directions

36 minature peanut butter cups, unwrapped

   Roll the uncooked cookie dough into 1-inch balls. Place in greased miniature muffin cups. Press dough evenly onto bottom and up the sides of each cup. Bake @ 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes, or until set. Immediatelt press a peanut butter cup in each cup; press down gently. Cool for 10 minutes; carefully remove from pans. *Note- 2 1/4 cups peanut butter cookie dough of your choice can be substituted for the tube or mix.

   We made these cookies for Fathers Day for Craig to enjoy, and the kids were able to pretty much do all of it themselves, it’s that easy! I originally tasted these cookies at a family gathering. My cousin made them and she that you can also use chocolate chip cookie dough and press caramel Rolos in after they’re baked, or even a mini Snickers if you wanted. Any ideas on what would be yummy to press into Sugar cookie dough? I really loved these cookies, they were very good. My kids did a fantastic job making them, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy them too!

Yield: about 12 servings

1 lb. ground beef 

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup grated carrots

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms(optional)

1 TBSP. olive oil

1 (28 oz.) jar spaghetti sauce (I use Ragu)

2 (8 oz.) cans tomato sauce

1 (25 oz.) pkg. frozen cheese ravioli, cooked & drained

3 cups (12 oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

   Cook beef until no longer pink; drain. Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper; set aside. In a saucepan, cook carrots and mushrooms in olive oil until tender. Stir in the spagetti and tomato sauces. Spread 1/2 cup sauce in a greased 13×9x2-inch baking dish. Layer with half of the cooked ravioli, spagetti sauce, beef and cheeses. Repeat layers ending with the cheeses. Cover and bake @ 375 degrees F. for 25-30 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 minutes longer. Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

   This is one of our favorite dinners, and it always gets gobbled up in record time. I have used 2 cans of sliced mushrooms in place of the fresh with no problems, and I have also omitted the mushrooms entirely too. I know it sounds a little odd to add grated carrots but you really can’t taste them, and it’s nice to have some extra veggies in stealth mode in case you have picky eaters. I actually make this dish more than regular lasagna, and my kids prefer it!

   Mathes LOVES vehicles of any kind, so he has been absolutely dying to see the new Pixar movies “Cars” so today we took him to see it for a birthday treat. He sat on my lap for the first 2/3 of the movie, completely entranced, and did great until the last part of the movie. It gets a little involved int the story, and he wanted more of the racing carws, so he decided to run down to the front of the theater and race up and down in front of the screen. Lucky for everyone, he isn’t tall enough to be in the way, and he just ran up and down in front until the movie was over. Craig kept an eye on him while I stayed with Haven and Noah, and we finished the rest of the movie that way. We all really enjoyed the movie, and will definitely be buying it once it;s released to DVD.

   Mathes had a great time, and for the rest of the evening he kept making revving sounds and running around like a race car. Definitely the perfect choice for a little brithday treat for Mathes. I’m planning parties for both Haven and Mathes but I’ve been so busy lately that I’m postponing it for another week or so. That’s why we decided to take each of them out for a birthday treat so they could each have a fun day, and they both did!

   It’s Mathes and Haven’s birthday today, and they’re 3 and 5 years old! For Haven’s birthday I took her to get her ears pierced (with her Daddy’s reluctant OK) since she has been asking to get it done for quite a while now. I called ahead to make sure there would be two girls there to pierce her ears simultaneously since I thought it wouldn’t go over very well if we did it one at a time. (Although, for those of you that don’t know, Livy had hers pierced and she had hers done one at a time, and she sat still for the whole thing!) Haven sat in the chair all by herself, and sat very still since she was feeling a little shy and was also a little apprehensive about it as well. Haven picked out her favorite pair of pink sparkly flower earrings, the same ones Livy has, even though her first choice was the GIANT cubic zirconia pair that looked like they were stolen straight off the ears of a very rich rap artist! I explained she needed to pick a smaller pair that were more flush with her ear so they wouldn’t get caught on anything.

   She knew it would hurt a little, but she was determined to get her ers pierced, so she sat quietly and let Miss Brittany mark the dots on her ears for the earrings. Miss Brittany had Miss Kim come over to help, and the two of them on the count of three pierced Haven’s ears! Haven’s face crinkled up in a little grimace, so we told her it was all done and she looked beautiful and that was it. She didnt’t even cry! I was so proud of her for being so brave, and she absolutley loves her new earrings! I’m glad we got it done at this age since she’s old enough to ask to have it done, but not old enough to really get that it’s a hole in your ear. She told me it “only hurt fast then it didn’t hurt anymore”. Afterwards we went to Orange Julius for a fun treat and I let everyone pick out their favorite smoothie. Afterwards we went to Grammy Lesa’s since she had some presents for Haven and Mathes. They had a great time there, and loved their presents! Mathes loved running all over the backyard and going in and out the dog door, with the dogs right behind him! Haven was showing everyone her new earrings, and telling them all about her experience and how brave she was.

   (You know Anne, I still have my pierced ears from you. An ice cube and a needle in your professional ear piercing hands was all it took, and here we are this many years later, and they’re still pierced! We had a lot of fun that summer!)

   After a very nice visit we went home so Daddy could see her earrings, even though he wasn’t all that thrilled to have his baby girl get holes in her ears. He was a good sport about it though, especially since he knew how excited she was to have them done, and told Haven she looked like a princess, which she did! Happy Birthday Haven! Happy Birthday Mathes!

   Today my sister-in-law came to visit, and to pick up a baby sling I had made for her to use with her new baby. Kathy and Raymond just moved back from Oregon, and we’re so hapy to have them back! I got to see her new little guy, Riley, and he was just adorable, and Christopher and Rebekah have gotten so big! We had a very nice time catching up while the kids played their hearts out, and they didn’t want to leave when it was time to go. At least we live so much closer now, and we’re definitely going to plan a fun outing so we can all get together and let the kids have a blast!

   I grew up with baked Macaroni and Cheese, homemade by my mom, which I prefer over the boxed variety. It’s still one of my favorite dinners served with a little sour cream on the side, baked ham, and pretty much any vegetable side dish (although lately asparagus is a reigning fave with it). My Mom made hers starting with a basic seasoned white sauce to which she added the cheese, stirring until it melted, poured it over the cooked elbow pasta, then baked it in the oven until it was bubbly.

   I am always curious to try other recipes for this, so I am posting two from some well known “kitchen ladies”. My mom’s recipe isn’t “officially” written down yet (I ususally eyeball the ingredients), but I will post it as soon as I can get it down on paper. I also remember from one of our visits to Canada that Auntie Barb made a really yummy stovetop one with canned cheese soup that was fast and easy, and maybe someone will pass the recipe on to us down here! Let me know what you think of these other two, and if you have a baked/stovetop mac and cheese recipe of your own that you love, please share it!