Anxiety

It's a killer. Let me tell you. Don't just hope it will go away, be proactive about it. I am going in to see my doctor soon because I am having a hard time going to the store since my wallet was stolen. It may sound ridiculous. People get robbed all the time. It's a terribly cruel world we live in. But it literally shattered the security I had been happily living in with my family. Now I am scared to go get groceries.

I wish DH would go with me. He hates shopping though. Plus as a SAHM it's my job. He doesn't ask me to come hold his hand at his job. I am pathetic.

I sucked it up and went today though. After picking my DD up from the bus stop. I went to a completely different store. It was sad how panicked I was in there. Prayer helps. But it keeps coming back. Adulting is hard.

Remember the good days

Today was a crappy day.

I dropped DD off at school this morning and went to Walmart to have them check the tire pressure on my car because my tire light was on. Then I decided to go in and pick up a few pantry staples we were running low on. I set my wallet in the basket and started to buckle my son into the cart and someone grabbed my wallet when I had my head turned looking at something on the shelf.

It was very upsetting. I handled it well though, I filed a police report, cancelled my card, reported the already fraudulent charge to my account. I did this all within a matter of minutes. My driver's license needs to be paid for in cash at the DMV or online with a card, neither of which I had, so I will deal with that tomorrow.

I am so grateful that all they got was my wallet though. It could have easily been one of my kids. I am lucky it happened in a store where the wallet was just taken and I wasn't robbed at gunpoint. Today was a crappy day. But I am thankful to the Lord, for He protected me and my family today.

Hugging my kids extra tight tonight, and reminding myself how lucky I am, even on the crappy days.

Sickness spreads like fire

In this house at least.

DD started school almost 2 weeks ago. DS got a fever yesterday. Not super high, but high enough to make him miserable. I kept him hydrated though. He was very cuddly and had a rough time when I had to put him down for anything, so I tried not to put him down, as much as I could, during the day. Find out mid afternoon that DH was also not feeling well.

DS got better over night. DH....let's just say not so much. He was up many times during the night. Called out of work for maybe the 4th time in his 8 years with this company. He feels awful anytime he has to call off, but I think everyone else would rather him stay home than get the whole store sick.

Our female dog is also in heat right now for the first time. She's only 9 months old, I knew it was coming, but I still wasn't prepared for it. about 2 more weeks of this and I am dreading keeping our two dogs apart for the whole time. We do want to have puppies, and that's why they're not fixed, but she's still too young and her vet said we have at least 1 more heat cycle after this before we can let them mate.

I truly admire all you parents out there who have it all together. I feel like I am falling apart every day. I just keep plugging through though. I have a super support system.

Good night sleep and morning cuddles

DH put DS to sleep last night after I gave him a bath. I tucked DD in and went to bed myself. After quickly jotting down a grocery list, I turned on a favorite movie and fell asleep. I woke up this morning when my alarm went off at 7 and realized I got over 8 hours of sleep! It's been a long time since I've gotten that much uninterrupted sleep. DD woke up early and climbed into the crib with DS and read him books. I love them so much.

After getting up and packing school lunch, putting breakfast together quickly, and getting everyone dressed I actually had time to cuddle both of my kids before school! Those mornings are so rare and I treasure them so much.

The rest of the day will be pretty boring. DS is going to nap, hopefully it will be a good nap. I am going to make brownies and rice krispie treats. DD will get home from school around 4 and do her homework. Then we will start on dinner. I am ready for a quiet weekend at home.

Back to school cleaning hustle

I am a TERRIBLE homemaker. I have issues keeping up. I blame my depression for a lot of it, but I am also lazy. That runs deep and makes it hard to find the motivation sometimes.

My MIL is a huge help. If I fall behind, she comes over to help me catch up. She checks in on us to see how I am doing. She power cleans when I go visit my mom every summer.

She knows this first week back to school is tough, adjusting our routines and just getting back into the swing of things. So she always makes time to come over and we pop through things, and do one big project on my house so that it's easier to keep up in between times on my daily cleaning.


My husband made dinner last night. I've had a craving for this simple chicken he makes and he wanted to do it for me.

2tbps EVOO
Chicken breasts or strips cut into cubes
Montreal Steak Seasoning

Season the chicken generously and pan fry in the EVOO.


This chicken goes well in tacos, cheesy rice, stir fried veggies, or just by itself with a few sides. Last night we ate it with corn off the cob and applesauce. DD and I like to dip it in A1 sauce also!

I'm the book mom!

I love books. I love to read books, share books, buy books. I love watching my DD find the right book or series to make her light up. My sister in law is my go to. She is a teacher with an extremely extensive classroom library. She loans out her books to students (current and past) or their parents! She's always on top of what's coming soon in the book world. She should be a book reviewer I swear!

Well DD is now in an AP program at school, so she got transferred to a whole new school. The teacher is amazing. DD and I both adore her. So we started talking about books and she was very happy with how many books I have at home for my children, and asked me if I'd like to help her coordinate the book orders from Scholastic this year. YAAAAAAYYYYY!!! I love getting book orders. I love it when they come frequently. I know some people don't, but it really is better that way. They are published once a month and teachers should send them home once a month. No pressure to buy, but you know if you don't see anything you like this month, or can't afford it, or your kid is behind on the reading they have anyway, there is another book order right around the corner.

I jumped at the chance to coordinate the book orders. I am so excited to get more books in these kids hands. I am like a book junkie, spreading my habit all around! Working as an Usborne Books & More consultant didn't really work the way I had hoped it would. Someday, I hope that I can jump on the ball again and get it in motion, but for now, I am happy to have them accessible to my children and our friends. We are always happy to share our books.

Here is my shopping site for UBAM. The books are truly wonderful and I am always available for questions via the "Your Consultant>Email" at the top or the "Contact Me" at the bottom.

The Third grader and the Toddler

Nothing major to report here today. Had to cancel a few appointments due to DH's schedule getting switched a bit for this week. Works out well for me though as I wasn't looking forward to either appointment I needed to cancel. DD started third grade last week. Our school district starts midweek every year, so this is the first full week. We managed to make it to school on time today even with our snafu this morning. Her teacher and I spoke this morning about doing book orders together. I am a book lady, so anything I can do to help get book orders to the families in my DD's class, I am on it. We are going to meet one day this week after school and discuss the game plan.

DS doesn't nap well lately. Today was no exception. We got about 45 minutes of nap. This is very sudden, after being a great napper, 2-3 hours at a time. The resulting attitude is crabby. Praying this is just a phase or teething or something.

Dinner tonight was simple cheesy chicken and rice. We've had it before and everyone enjoys it, cheap and easy. Last night, I tried something new. I found a baked ziti recipe that uses cheddar cheese instead of mozzarella. I added ground beef and baked it up. I didn't like it. My family LOVED it though. So much, that DH and DD took the left overs for lunch.


Extra Cheesy Baked Ziti

8 oz cooked pasta (I used Rigatoni)
16 oz Sauce. I didn't have homemade so I used DH's favorite jar sauce from pre me.
1lb browned ground beef
1/2c parmesan cheese
1c shredded cheddar cheese

Cook ground beef and drain. Pour sauce into pan to heat. (this is when I doctored the jar of sauce. I added 1TBSP garlic powder, 1tsp parsley, 1 tsp basil). Once the sauce is heated through, mix in parmesan cheese until melted. Mix in pasta until combined. Pour into a baking dish. Cover with cheddar cheese. Cook under the broiler 3-4 minutes until cheese is melted and slightly bubbly.

Football rant and a syrup recipe

Football has taken over my life again. I don't actually hate football. I hate that my husband (DH) loves it so much. Thursday-Mondays are all football football football.

He will text me at work, "Hey I'm behind can you record the game so I can watch what I missed?"

Sure babe. Because I love nothing more than taking time out of my football free period to locate the channel of said game, the exact time it starts, "should I add this extension??", and make sure it records for you. All so that you can come home 45 minutes late, grab your plate of dinner and sit watching football on the good TV. So we ALL have to watch.

I am good to make snacks on Sundays, sit down and watch our teams play, cheer, the works. Oh, my team is on MNF this week?? Sure I'll do tailgate food 2 nights in a row. Thank you Pinterest. But I don't need it 5 days a week. I don't care about college. Or the 87 million other teams besides the TWO I cheer for.

I will let him love it, I know it's only temporary. But he has to let me hate that he loves it.


Okay, rant over. I woke up this morning in the mood for french toast. Truth be told I wanted it Thursday, but DH left for work before I was awake enough to cook, and he LOVES french toast. It's his very favorite breakfast. So I don't make it when he's not home to enjoy it.

So it's Sunday and I finally got to make french toast. However, about halfway through cooking I remembered I needed to add something to my shopping list, and as I was jotting I spotted "Syrup" already written down. Because darling daughter (DD) used the last of the syrup on Wednesday night. Rats! The coating was already made and the first 2 pieces are almost ready to come off. Google to the rescue. I found a recipe for pancake syrup that did not involve maple flavoring. Whipped up a batch, altered the flavors a bit, smothered my french toast and dug in! Yum, yum, yummy!

DD told me it was just as good as the stuff we normally buy (Mrs. Butterworths) and that it was okay with her if we used this kind forever. Awwww ♥  Even my picky DH liked it.

Here's the recipe:

1c packed brown sugar
1tbsp butter
1/2c light corn syrup
1/2c water
1/2tsp cinnamon
1/2tsp nutmeg
pinch of salt

Bring all ingredients to a rolling boil. Stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Serve warm or room temp (room temp is slightly thicker).