Long overdue...

Well goodness, it seems that it's been a while since my last blog.  I'll blame it on life. 

I went out to dinner with a friend of mine (from middle school and high school) a couple weeks ago.  We had a really good conversation.  She's been a housewife for a little over a year.  She is currently going through certifications to be a Community Patrol officer for her neighborhood.  Listening to her tell me about all the classes she is taking and what she will be doing once she is certified was so exciting.  She spent the last year trying to figure out what she wanted to do with her life.  She has two degrees (undergrad and a masters) but didn't know what she wanted to be when she "grew up".  Which got me thinking, what do I want to be when I grow up?  I've always wanted to be a mom.  Always.  When I was in elementary school I dreamed of getting married, having kids and being a stay at home mom.  Check, check and check.  Although, don't tell my dad that, he would be disappointed that he spent so much money on my college education.  Ha! 

Some days I wonder what I'm doing with my life. When I run into people from my past and they ask "What's new?" I don't really have an answer.  Because there isn't anything new.  It's the same old stuff every day.  I mean, sure there's variation to my days (do I go to Publix today or Target?).  But for the most part, it's the same old same old.  The kids wake up, I get them breakfast, I help them get dressed, I make Katie's lunch, I take Katie to preschool, Ellie and I run errands (or go home and hang out), I make Ellie's lunch, we pick up Katie from school, we run errands, I put the kids down for nap/quiet time, I clean the house, I make dinner, the hubs comes home, we eat dinner, we hang out as a family, we put the kids to bed, etc, etc, etc.   The weekends are spent running errands and/or hanging out as a family.  That's my life, at least for the forseeable future.  So I wonder is staying home with two small children enough?

My friend told me that night, that was I was doing - raising two children to be well adjusted human beings- was important.  I know that.  It is very important.  Teaching my girls how to be compassionate, thoughtful, caring members of society is my job right now.  I am doing the very best that I can...but I sometimes miss working outside of the home.  I definitely miss bringing home a paycheck.  I miss adult interaction on a daily basis.  I miss critical thinking.  I miss having an identity outside of being Katie and Ellie's mom.  At times, I feel like *I* get lost.  For all those reasons, I'm so glad that I get my nights out with my friends, or my afternoons away to myself.  It's so nice to recharge as just me, where I don't have to cut up my kids' food before I can eat mine, where I can just do things for me.   I don't want to come across like I am whining about my life or even that I have a case of the "poor me's".  I love my girls and my family.  I am very grateful that my husband makes enough money for me to stay home with my girls.  My girls make me laugh on a daily basis and I cherish all those precious moments when they are just as sweet as they can be. I sometimes wonder if it's the whole "the grass is greener" because I'm sure that if I had to work outside of the home, I would be wishing that I was home with the girls. 

I think about the future, when the girls are in school.  What am I going to do? I really don't know.  I could do the "volunteer at their school/PTA thing" or I could get a part time job, or maybe a full time job?  I really don't know.  I don't know if I would be good at the PTA thing.  I'm fairly introverted and not very good at the chit chat with other mom's at Katie's preschool, so I don't know how I would do.  My degree is in political science and I've always been interested in government, the law, and criminal justice.  At dinner the other night, my friend mentioned paralegal work.  It piqued my curiosity and I looked into it.  So that's an option too.  But I have several years until I need to make a decision.  So in the mean time, I will continue doing what I do- raising my little girls and deciding between going to Target or story time at the library. 

Recipe review

I found a recipe for Crockpot Ranch Pork Chops on pinterest.  It had me at "three ingredients" and "crockpot".  I'm all about easy meals, so only three ingredients (well, actually four if you include the water) and being able to dump it in the crockpot, turn it on, and four hours later- BAM! Done.  Sign me up. 

Sadly, the hubs and I weren't fans of it.  The pork chops were very dry.  The flavor was good but once you started chewing, the pork chop turned to saw dust.  I added a can of water, instead of doing the second can of Cream of Chicken soup.  So the sauce was very runny.  I should have just done two cans of the Cream of Chicken.  But I don't think that modification would save this recipe.  The pork chops were just too dry.  I will not be making it again.  Bummer.

My new color.

A few weeks ago, I posted about how I was going to color my hair.  Well, I did it.  It's red.  Very red.  I'm not sure if I like it.  I think it's too dark.  I didn't get blonde highlights because my stylist didn't want to add any bleach to my hair (my hair is somewhat damaged from hair loss due to my weight loss).  So it's all one color and it's dark.  But I figure, red fades very quickly and maybe it will grow on me.  So here's a before and after picture.  What do you think? Too dark? 

Recipe Rave!

Goodness, it's been a while since I last posted.  So here's a recipe rave for you.  I found a recipe for Penne Pasta with Sun-dried Tomato Cream Sauce on pinterest.com.  I made it last night and added shrimp.  It was delicious.  My girls loved it.  They both had seconds and thirds.  My husband and I both really liked it.  In fact, we are looking forward to the leftovers tonight.  I tweaked the recipe just a bit because I used a full pound of pasta, instead of the 8 oz. that the recipe called for (I like to have leftovers, less nights that I have to cook, the better- ha!).  I also added a little more garlic powder and dried basil to account for more pasta.  It was easy to make, not a whole lot of clean up, and tasted delicious.  I sauteed the shrimp with a little olive oil and Italian Seasoning, then added it to the pasta/cream sauce.  I will definitely make this again.  Maybe next time, I'll add chicken instead.  Big fan, over here. 

* Recipe and picture from www.verybestbaking.com

I'm old.

Want to know how I know I'm old? Because I can no longer drink alcohol like I could when I was 23.  I went out for drinks on Friday night.  I met some of my former co-workers for happy hour.  I was the first one to get there at 4:50.  The next person to show did not get there until 6:15.  So looking like a total loser, sitting at a table for six by myself, I decided to just drink.  I was on my third beer when my friends showed up.  I then proceeded to drink another three beers, a Malibu and diet Coke, and a shot (some fruity concoction) through the course of the night.  I had a great time.  I really did.  But then I woke up Saturday morning....totally hungover.  And I stayed hungover all day.  I was miserable.  Every time I stood up, I was dizzy and nauseous.  Basically, I was in a horizontal position either in my bed or on my couch all day.  The hubs was so sweet.  He took the girls out for a few hours and told me to go back to bed. 

At 3 o'clock, I was able to stand up long enough to get dressed for our date night (dinner and going to see The Hunger Games with another couple).  Normally, the text I received from my friend would have been awesome.  She texted me a couple hours before the movie to let me know that she was bringing water bottles full of Diet Coke and Malibu rum (for us to enjoy during the movie).  I felt nauseous just thinking about drinking it.  Needless to say, I passed on the offer.  The good news was that by the time the movie started at 4:45, I was feeling better.  Thank goodness.  But I have learned that I am no longer 23 and my body is not a fan of drinking that much anymore.  It's official, I am old.  Ha!

I hate when my kid doesn't nap.

I really hate when my kid doesn't nap.  She goes into her room like she's going to take a nap.  Then five minutes later, I hear her door open.  She'll stand there, completely still, and wait.  That's usually when I tell her to "go lay down and take a nap."  But I can't say it too loud because then my youngest will wake up.  Rinse and repeat for the next 30-45 minutes.  I don't so much care that she isn't taking a nap.  I just want her in her room and quiet, so I can have a few minutes to myself, to have just a few precious moments of silence.  You know what I'm talking about, the moments that aren't "Mom? I want a drink."  "Mom? Can we play outside?" "Mom? Is Daddy working?" "Mom? What are we going to do after I wake up tomorrow?" "Mom? I want a snack." etc, etc, etc. 

As a stay at home mom, those moments of silence are gold.  It's my time to recharge my batteries and veg out, whether that means surfing the internet, blogging (as I'm doing right now), reading a book, or taking a nap.  It's just my time without my kids.  And it is glorious.  Because let's be real, I can't start drinking this early, can I?  It's 5 o'clock somewhere, right? Right? MOTY, right here. 

Recipe review: Lemon Orzo Salad with Asparagus and Tomatoes

I found this recipe on pinterest the other day and had to make it.  It looked and sounded delicious.  I made it tonight. It was fairly easy (although there were more pots/bowls to wash than I wanted).  I added shrimp to it because today is Friday, and it's Lent, and I can't eat meat.  I have to say, I really liked it.  The lemon zest, lemon juice and garlic were perfect.  It gave it a really good flavor.  Plus, the parmesan cheese- delish!  My kids weren't thrilled with the tomatoes or the asparagus but they are three and 20 months old, and I didn't expect them to be.  I ended up using 16 oz. of the orzo pasta (instead of the 12 oz. that the recipe called for) because I didn't want to keep the remaining four ounces in my pantry.  Besides, I have a feeling I'm going to really enjoy the leftovers tomorrow.  Yum.  I would definitely recommend this recipe.  I think chicken would be good with it too. 

*recipe and picture from abigmouthful.com