Wordless Wednesday - 14 Weeks

Gee, should I rethink nicknaming the baby "Tiny"?

What Happens in the Kitchen, Stays in the Kitchen

I have a confession to make. I'm not a gourmet chef.

In fact, I'm not a gourmet anything in the kitchen. Oh, I can cook tolerably well. (My husband has actually gained weight since we've been married, despite the fact that he does NOT live on coffee, doughnuts and fast food anymore, so that's got to count for something, right?) And yes, I do know how to bake...a little. Granted, I make THE best apple pie in the world, according to hubby, but it's not exactly the most photogenic thing in the world. I mean, it tastes to die for, but you'll never see a picture of it in Bon Appetit.


See what I mean? And that's definitely one of my better attempts.

The point I'm getting around to...(I know, I'm taking the long way getting there...can I blame my rambling wordiness on the baby? Yeah, I think I can.)

Oh yeah, the point I'm getting around to is that I'm not above taking serious short-cuts with my cooking. Now, let me state for the record, I'm NOT talking about using Hamburger Helper to convince someone I've made a killer Boeuf Bourguignon. No offense to anyone that likes Hamburger Helper, but...well, let's just say it doesn't have a place in my pantry. Ever.

So, if you're one of those "I-create-gourmet-eight-course-meals-every-day-while-maintaining-forty-seven-different-blogs-and-homeschooling-sixteen-children-AND-managing-a-52-acre-spread" *coughMaryecough* feel free to turn up your nose and walk away without continuing.

For the rest of us, here's a little gem of a recipe I discovered recently. It is, without a doubt...

The Easiest Cookie Recipe EVER!!!

Remember that commercial where the woman acts like she's been slaving in the kitchen for hours to make her family some rice-puff, marshmallow-goo treat? Yeah, you know the one. Trust me, this is ten times easier, and way, way yummier.

Here's what you do. Take one box of cake mix, any flavor. Mix that with one large egg and two cups of Cool Whip. Form dough into little balls and bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. That's it.

Seriously, that's all there is to it. See? I told you, it's the easiest cookie recipe EVER! Granted, you can fancy it up by adding a teaspoon of the flavoring of your choice, or (my personal favorite) rolling the dough balls in powdered sugar before baking, but you don't have to. These little gems are fantastic just the way they are. (To date, we've tried orange, lemon, yellow cake and carrot. I have to say, the carrot ones are my favorite so far. They have, to my taste buds, a gingerbready kind of taste to them. Especially when they first come out of the oven, all warm and soft. Mmmmmm!)

(And if "gingerbready" isn't a real word, it should be.)

But don't be surprised at how soft they are when you pull them out. I cooked my first batch almost twice as long as I was supposed to because I couldn't believe they were thoroughly cooked, and they were STILL soft and chewy. I can't tell you if they harden up later, because none of them last longer than 20 minutes or so in my house. I think five minutes is our current record.

And any recipe that's fool-proof enough to survive MY culinary ineptitudes is surely good enough for yours. Not that you have any. I'm just sayin'.

So, give it a try this weekend and tell me what you think. I doubt you'll be disappointed.

Oh, and Marye, you know that jealousy is the second most sincere form of flattery, don't you?

An Amazing Day

Yesterday was an amazing day, one we're not likely to ever forget. A day of joy, excitement, and the realization of something we've waited a long time for.









We finally got snow!




This is what we woke up to yesterday morning...
...a winter wonderland just waiting to be explored.




Wow, just look at all this snow! What should we do first?




I'm gonna catch snowflakes in my mouth...




...and I'm gonna make a snow angel.




I'm doing what I do best...look cute!





How about a snowball fight?






Okay, son, here you go!




On second thought, I'm going back inside. I think Mom said something about hot chocolate...

Who Are You?

One of mine and Eric's favorite love songs is "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman" by Bryan Adams. There's a line that goes, "...and when you can see your unborn children in her eyes, you know you really love a woman."

I can't begin to count how many times Eric used to tell me he could see our future children in my eyes; the sweet, little sparks of our son and daughter, Ben and Sarah.

But after Sarah came, I honestly didn't think I'd have any more children. After the toll her delivery took on my body, added to the fact that I'm not getting any younger, well...I just didn't think there would be even one more. And when I asked Eric to tell me if he could still see another child in my eyes, he'd say, "Well....I just don't know."

Ben is, in pretty much every way, the son I'd always wanted. And Sarah seems like the perfect female counterpart for him. Together, they are what I always hoped a brother and sister would be like. They occasionally butt heads with each other, but underneath the childhood veneer of each being their own rather independent person, no matter how many times one might snatch a toy from the other, or go about completely ignoring the existence of the other, down at the heart of it all, where their future selves are being formed, they truly love and care for one another.

(In case you don't notice it right off, they're holding hands. Doesn't it make you wanna say, "Awwwwwww......"?)

So now I'm pregnant with mine and Eric's third child, and I find myself asking the question, "Who are you?" Who is this new life getting ready to make its way into our home? Who is this new person about to take their place in our family?

In the grand scheme of things, I know it really doesn't matter. I'll wonder about it off and on over the next couple of months, but who they are isn't nearly as important as what they are.

Loved.

You Know You're the Mom of a Large Family When...

...you get excited about 12-packs of toilet paper being on sale for $4.99.

Technical Stuff

I'm in the process of fixing some technical issues with this blog, namely getting my Feedburner subscribers from my old blog moved over here. If you originally subscribed to "Barefoot in the Kitchen" because you wanted recipes and aren't particularly interested in me blathering on about being pregnant and raising the kidlets, I'll understand if you unsubscribe.

However, if you DO decide to continue following my life, please come to my page and re-subscribe because I'm changing my feed information after this post.

And I promise to throw in some recipes occasionally, too. Thanks!

What Some Bloggers (ahem...I) Do When They Go AWOL

So, for the past several months I've been completely AWOL from the whole blogging thing. What, you might wonder, could I possibly have been doing with myself all that time? Well, let me tell you...

First and foremost, I've been homeschooling the kids. Despite some people's beliefs that I'm completely inadequate for the job, I insist on persisting with it. Frankly, I don't think the girls would let me quit if I wanted to. They enjoy it too much. (And so do I!)

We actually went on a week-long vacation for the first time in years. It was an awesome time, and I only hope we get to do something like that again while all the kids are still young enough to enjoy spending an entire week with us parental units. (Bonus portion of the trip...my sister and her husband joined us for two days before continuing on to Washington D.C. for their own vacation. After not being able to visit for two years, I can't tell you how good it was to see her again.)

And then, there's the weight-loss thing.

For months, I faithfully exercised, working my way from forty minutes a day, five times a week to sixty minutes a day, five to six days a week. My weight slowly (to me) but steadily went down, and my clothes got so loose I could pull my jeans off and on without undoing the zipper.

But a funny thing happened in October. My period was late. By a whole week. And for me, who's always been as regular as clockwork, it could only mean one thing. I must be pregnant, right?

Wrong.

I took a test, it came out negative, and the next day my period came just like it was supposed to, albeit seven days later than it should've.

I was devastated.

For three short minutes, I entertained the idea that I might be pregnant again. When I found out I wasn't, I almost couldn't believe how disappointed I was. Suddenly, the idea that my biological clock really is winding down hit me like a sledgehammer. Menopause. Change of life. No more monthly cycles.

No more babies.

I tried not to worry about it. I really did. But then November came, and once again my period was late.

Well, that was it as far as I was concerned. I was entering menopause. It was the beginning of the end. Never again would I have the joy of feeling a precious new life growing inside me. Never again would I be able to turn to my husband and randomly say, "Oh, by the way, we're having a baby." Gone were my hopes to give Benjamin a younger brother to play with, and Sarah would forever be the baby of the family.

Just to drive the point home, I bought another pregnancy test. This time, I got one of those digital ones that show the words "pregnant" or "not pregnant". No guessing at the lines for me. I wanted it spelled out in black and white.

It said, "pregnant". I've never been more happy to be wrong in my life.

Since then, I've dealt with some of the worst nausea I've ever had. It hasn't been morning sickness. It's been morning, noon and night sickness. But that's finally coming to an end now, and I'm getting back to my normal self. Well, as normal as I can be while pregnant.

Eric, of course, is thrilled. The girls were surprised when we told them, naturally, but are very excited to have another baby joining us soon. Even my mother-in-law congratulated me this time.

So, my weight-loss is on hold until after the baby comes. Thank goodness I not only have baby clothes for either sex, I still have my maternity clothes, too.

And once a day, I can turn to my husband and randomly say, "Guess what? We're having a baby."

Feels Like Starting Over

So here I am, starting a new/old blog over. Again.

Oh, and I'm pregnant, too. Again.

Isn't it nice to know that some things never change?