Tonight after Superior Grill I made J drive past the Real World House. I have secretly been watching its progress and it is looking pretty darn good. But tonight! Tonight!!!! The lights are on. Like Christmas!!! and the cameras have got to be rollin'! I mean I knew they had to get the kids in before Mardi Gras. It's only common sense, that they get them settled in the city before the mayhem of Mardi Gras is thrown at them.Which is the reason why I have been casing the joint.
But tonight, every possible light in the house is on. and I wish I were in the Real World number. It's killing me. I missed my time. I have been watching since the very first Real World. So what's it like now, Real World #22? I don't know but this is as close as I am going to come to it and I am so excited. I think an afternoon stroll past the house will become a habit, after nap time. Maybe, just maybe they will invite us in for a drink and a cookie for the kids.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
Slow cooker Pulled beef tacos
After another week of viruses swirling around the house I was finally able to cook dinner, other than eggs, last night. I came across a really simple recipe while reading the Living section of the paper. It's so simple I am not even providing you a link to the recipe. But first let me say,
"OMG! Why hasn't anyone told me the joys of cooking with a slow cooker?!?" My crockpot is my hero and will be your hero too if you a. are a stay at home mom sinker deeper and deeper into the depths of the witching hour as you try to placate your cranky and hungry kids and cook supper at the same time or b. if you are a working mom who is just too tired to cook dinner at the end of a long day. Never fear, Nola Mom is here to tell you, if you don't have a crockpot go out right now and buy one.
Okay-the recipe.
Rump Roast Soft Tacos
1 rump roast
1 15 oz. jar of salsa
2 onions, sliced
1/2 of a beer
5 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon oil
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon cumin
Taco toppings (can be prepared ahead)
Guacamole-store bought or fresh
diced tomatoes
diced red onion
shredded cheese
chopped cilantro
Put the oil at the bottom of your crockpot to prevent sticking.
Shove all of the ingredients into the crockpot.
Turn it on high for about 6 hours and then turn down to low until you are ready to eat.
At that point, quickly shred the rump roast in the pot with a fork.
Put meat and onions on a warm tortilla. Then top with preferred taco toppings. Delicious!
I changed a few things in the ingredient list. I wanted to add garlic but forgot and I only used 1 onion and it was still awesome but I think it will be better with the added extras.
"OMG! Why hasn't anyone told me the joys of cooking with a slow cooker?!?" My crockpot is my hero and will be your hero too if you a. are a stay at home mom sinker deeper and deeper into the depths of the witching hour as you try to placate your cranky and hungry kids and cook supper at the same time or b. if you are a working mom who is just too tired to cook dinner at the end of a long day. Never fear, Nola Mom is here to tell you, if you don't have a crockpot go out right now and buy one.
Okay-the recipe.
Rump Roast Soft Tacos
1 rump roast
1 15 oz. jar of salsa
2 onions, sliced
1/2 of a beer
5 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon oil
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon cumin
Taco toppings (can be prepared ahead)
Guacamole-store bought or fresh
diced tomatoes
diced red onion
shredded cheese
chopped cilantro
Put the oil at the bottom of your crockpot to prevent sticking.
Shove all of the ingredients into the crockpot.
Turn it on high for about 6 hours and then turn down to low until you are ready to eat.
At that point, quickly shred the rump roast in the pot with a fork.
Put meat and onions on a warm tortilla. Then top with preferred taco toppings. Delicious!
I changed a few things in the ingredient list. I wanted to add garlic but forgot and I only used 1 onion and it was still awesome but I think it will be better with the added extras.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Latex paint out of carpet
My mom thinks I am lazy. She thinks my laziness is why my house looks now the same way it did when we moved in 2 plus years ago. It's not laziness it is incompetency. No kidding. Often I will get inspired and try to do something but never fails, it always ends in disaster. Let me give you a recent example. As recent as today.
My inspiration came from my friend S. She was painting her child's room and I thought, you know, W needs a boy room. Something that looks pulled together. I should have stopped right there. Atleast I reduced the size of my dream. Originally I was going to paint his whole room and then I decided to just paint the inside of his bookshelves and start small. Baby steps, you know.
S gave me advice about where to go and how to paint, about the blue tape yada yada. The sheer amount of colors was overwhelming me. I picked one and it was heinous. Color is hard, especially blue. I was discouraged. Aunt Liz and Uncle Bob to the rescue. They helped me pick a color and I was back on track. Then the sweetest old man at the paint store, a customer, offered to help me. He pulled everything I needed for me and told me just what to do. I got home and realized after painting a section that the primer stunk and it was 5:30 in the afternoon and that there was no way W could sleep in there.
Incompetence. Should have done it in the morning. Ugh!
I couldn't clean the brush or the roller because it was oil based.
More incompetence.
I went back to the store today and got mineral spirits to clean the brush. Feeling better and ready to roll. I got upstairs. Shook up my paint, opened it....Ooooh! I need a wet rag for wiping up small mistakes (this tip I got from the sweet old man who told me I didn't need blue tape) so I ran to the bathroom to fetch my rag. I am feeling like a real painter at this point. I got back to
W's room and shook THE PAINT ALL OVER ME AND W'S NICE WALL-TO-WALL RUG! (forgot it was already open) I am screaming and Pman is just watching and Jessie, thank goodness she was here,came running up. There is blue EVERYWHERE!!!! I called S screaming! and we could have been a commercial for GOOGLE. Because she says, "Oh no! Google it!!!"
So I did and low and behold it worked. It took about an hour but you can barely tell what went down.
The total incompetence of it all just kills me. We're not a handy folk, my side of the family, but then again neither is J's. Anyway, this is how we cleaned up the mess.
(Actually, that wet washrag that the sweet old man told me to have handy, DID come in handy.)
1. blot, blot, blot with a ton of water. Blot from the outside in. DO NOT WIPE. Only blot. and get the carpet really wet.
2. Put dishwashing detergent in water and blot until you can't blot anymore. It can be sudsy. Don't worry.
3. Blot with a dry towel in between the blotting. It will pull up all of the moisture and the latex paint up with it. Be patient. It takes awhile.
4. Once it looks like you have gotten all of the paint up, vacuum. and continue blotting with a towel. It helps to blot with your feet..with shoes on.
So we are back on track. I have painted the first section of wall. and I still have 3 more to go. My only fear is that the whole cycle will begin again. Nothing is easy, for me anyway.
P.s. Don't tell J. There is no reason that he has to know.
My inspiration came from my friend S. She was painting her child's room and I thought, you know, W needs a boy room. Something that looks pulled together. I should have stopped right there. Atleast I reduced the size of my dream. Originally I was going to paint his whole room and then I decided to just paint the inside of his bookshelves and start small. Baby steps, you know.
S gave me advice about where to go and how to paint, about the blue tape yada yada. The sheer amount of colors was overwhelming me. I picked one and it was heinous. Color is hard, especially blue. I was discouraged. Aunt Liz and Uncle Bob to the rescue. They helped me pick a color and I was back on track. Then the sweetest old man at the paint store, a customer, offered to help me. He pulled everything I needed for me and told me just what to do. I got home and realized after painting a section that the primer stunk and it was 5:30 in the afternoon and that there was no way W could sleep in there.
Incompetence. Should have done it in the morning. Ugh!
I couldn't clean the brush or the roller because it was oil based.
More incompetence.
I went back to the store today and got mineral spirits to clean the brush. Feeling better and ready to roll. I got upstairs. Shook up my paint, opened it....Ooooh! I need a wet rag for wiping up small mistakes (this tip I got from the sweet old man who told me I didn't need blue tape) so I ran to the bathroom to fetch my rag. I am feeling like a real painter at this point. I got back to
W's room and shook THE PAINT ALL OVER ME AND W'S NICE WALL-TO-WALL RUG! (forgot it was already open) I am screaming and Pman is just watching and Jessie, thank goodness she was here,came running up. There is blue EVERYWHERE!!!! I called S screaming! and we could have been a commercial for GOOGLE. Because she says, "Oh no! Google it!!!"
So I did and low and behold it worked. It took about an hour but you can barely tell what went down.
The total incompetence of it all just kills me. We're not a handy folk, my side of the family, but then again neither is J's. Anyway, this is how we cleaned up the mess.
(Actually, that wet washrag that the sweet old man told me to have handy, DID come in handy.)
1. blot, blot, blot with a ton of water. Blot from the outside in. DO NOT WIPE. Only blot. and get the carpet really wet.
2. Put dishwashing detergent in water and blot until you can't blot anymore. It can be sudsy. Don't worry.
3. Blot with a dry towel in between the blotting. It will pull up all of the moisture and the latex paint up with it. Be patient. It takes awhile.
4. Once it looks like you have gotten all of the paint up, vacuum. and continue blotting with a towel. It helps to blot with your feet..with shoes on.
So we are back on track. I have painted the first section of wall. and I still have 3 more to go. My only fear is that the whole cycle will begin again. Nothing is easy, for me anyway.
P.s. Don't tell J. There is no reason that he has to know.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Snoopy and Monkey
When I was 3 my great aunt Evelyn, gave me Snoopy. He was the love of my life. He was white and soft and a bean bag to boot. I still have Snoopy. He's been with me through thick and thin. My other friends used to hang him from my ceiling fan when I wasn't looking. They tortured him. Torturing Snoopy tortured me. But we made it through and we are the stronger for it.
Papa gave W Monkey when he was just a baby. I can only wish that W and Monkey have the same relationship that me and Snoopy have. Like Snoopy, Monkey rarely leaves the house. He's a house monkey if you will but he is someone for W to talk to and play with, sleep with and someone that W can just sit with. I noticed that Monkey and W have become a lot closer. W talks to him, a lot. Just the other day I saw him whispering in his ear. W saw that I saw and seemed a bit sheepish about the whole thing. I just smiled and I certainly didn't make him feel like it was wierd. because it's not. I know what it is like to have a friend in a stuffed animal. Like the Velveteen Rabbit-they are "real". Call me a nerd, call me silly, call me plain crazy but Snoopy will always have a special place in my heart.
I recently took Snoopy down from his high shelf to introduce him to W. I thought it was time. Horrors in the Deep! It looked like he had bugs burrowed down into him. I almost cried. I still can't figure if it's just dirt or what but I can't let him go. He has no ear, or eyes and a lot of beans coming out of him but to just throw him out......makes me sick to think about it. If he can just hold on a few more years, I know that he and Monkey will have a lot to talk about.
Tuesday, January 05, 2010
OPERATION 2010-still going strong
The first night of OPERATION 2010 went relatively well. I served up the boys' plates, put them on the table and called them for supper. W hopped right into his chair and began eating his french fries. He didn't whine. He didn't cry or complain. He didn't eat anything but the french fries, either, but the lack of negative attitude was a HUGE step.
Pman on the other hand was in a mood. He ended up falling off of his booster seat, busting his chin and lip and never attempting to eat. I didn't force the issue.
Day 2 of OPERATION 2010.
I almost gave in to pizza. It's J's birthday. Happy Birthday, sweet husband!
and he wanted tacos. Gotta love that. Easy and delicious but I wasn't sure the kids could wait for him to come home. But I broke up their taco shells, put some taco meat mixed with shredded cheese, guacamole and salsa on their plate along with a half of a banana and a half of a cheese stick. I didn't hear any complaining from either one. and W even ate more than Pman did although Master P at least tried the ground meat. My only fear is that they will waste away to nothing. They had a great snack of hummus and pita chips (they are so hard to figure out, I would have taken seasoned ground meat and cheese over hummus any day at their age) so at least tonight they had something substantial. and they topped it off with Red Velvet Cake I made for J's birthday.
Pman on the other hand was in a mood. He ended up falling off of his booster seat, busting his chin and lip and never attempting to eat. I didn't force the issue.
Day 2 of OPERATION 2010.
I almost gave in to pizza. It's J's birthday. Happy Birthday, sweet husband!
and he wanted tacos. Gotta love that. Easy and delicious but I wasn't sure the kids could wait for him to come home. But I broke up their taco shells, put some taco meat mixed with shredded cheese, guacamole and salsa on their plate along with a half of a banana and a half of a cheese stick. I didn't hear any complaining from either one. and W even ate more than Pman did although Master P at least tried the ground meat. My only fear is that they will waste away to nothing. They had a great snack of hummus and pita chips (they are so hard to figure out, I would have taken seasoned ground meat and cheese over hummus any day at their age) so at least tonight they had something substantial. and they topped it off with Red Velvet Cake I made for J's birthday.
Monday, January 04, 2010
Mom's New Year's Resolutions
It's a new year and with that comes resolutions. But this year my resolutions aren't about dieting or drinking less or working out more. (although all of those things will certainly be in the back of my mind). This year I have two resolutions.
1. To get my new blog website up and running while posting consistently with more focus.
and the most important resolution is #2.
2. OPERATION 2010
What is OPERATION 2010, you ask? Well, as a mom, I feel there are many times that you have to break your child of bad habits. Like pooping in their pants but we finally have that down. The bad habit on which I will focus is the bad habit of my children only eating crap. Yes, that's right. I will stand for it no more.
If you are a fan you know what my children eat. Any type of cracker (goldfish, chip etc.). French fries, pizza, chicken nuggets, veggie nuggets or grilled cheese. They do eat a smattering of healthy items like most fruits, yogurt and cheese but for the most part on any given day they eat crap. Not only crap but frozen crap. Which is a huge pain in the arse when you are trying to cook supper. It's my fault. I admit it. But I resolve to change today. I resolve to no longer be a short order cook. I resolve to cook one meal for everyone. I resolve to never ever ever give in to whining and tantrums over food.
If you too are a short order cook and think you may be able to make this resolution work for you. Join me, my friend. I would love the company. Strength in numbers, you know.
I have received some advice from my pediatrician. He tells me to cook dinner and in addition to what I have cooked to include something they like. For example a piece of cheese. Then if they want something supplemental after supper is over it is okay to give it to them. It's not okay to cook anything else but you may give then a pb&J, an apple, a banana, something that is healthy and easy.
So here we go team. tonight we are having turkey burgers (just patties), rice pilaf, green beans sauteed in garlic and olive oil and french fries. I thought I would be gentle the first night and make french fries which is the food they like. I'll fill you in on my results tomorrow.
1. To get my new blog website up and running while posting consistently with more focus.
and the most important resolution is #2.
2. OPERATION 2010
What is OPERATION 2010, you ask? Well, as a mom, I feel there are many times that you have to break your child of bad habits. Like pooping in their pants but we finally have that down. The bad habit on which I will focus is the bad habit of my children only eating crap. Yes, that's right. I will stand for it no more.
If you are a fan you know what my children eat. Any type of cracker (goldfish, chip etc.). French fries, pizza, chicken nuggets, veggie nuggets or grilled cheese. They do eat a smattering of healthy items like most fruits, yogurt and cheese but for the most part on any given day they eat crap. Not only crap but frozen crap. Which is a huge pain in the arse when you are trying to cook supper. It's my fault. I admit it. But I resolve to change today. I resolve to no longer be a short order cook. I resolve to cook one meal for everyone. I resolve to never ever ever give in to whining and tantrums over food.
If you too are a short order cook and think you may be able to make this resolution work for you. Join me, my friend. I would love the company. Strength in numbers, you know.
I have received some advice from my pediatrician. He tells me to cook dinner and in addition to what I have cooked to include something they like. For example a piece of cheese. Then if they want something supplemental after supper is over it is okay to give it to them. It's not okay to cook anything else but you may give then a pb&J, an apple, a banana, something that is healthy and easy.
So here we go team. tonight we are having turkey burgers (just patties), rice pilaf, green beans sauteed in garlic and olive oil and french fries. I thought I would be gentle the first night and make french fries which is the food they like. I'll fill you in on my results tomorrow.
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