The Crazee Chick's View of Life

We all need a little randomness right? I mean, what's life without focus? Unfocused? I think not! If you're random it just means that many,many things are interesting to you and that you are enjoying the life you're living. Randomness is GOOD!! If you're random, don't stop being so because it's good for your soul and it helps you to....Wow, did you know that if you pull your nose hairs really hard that your eyes will water?! Cool! I wonder why that happens? Some 'randoms' from my day: 1. While walking to school Zee is telling me that if he falls down while rollerblading and there's no teacher to help him up that EVENTUALLY he'll get up. When I don't really respond he says to me, "Mom, aren't you surprised that I used that big word?" Nope...not really. He's a smart boy. 2. While undoing his rollerblades Zee mentions to one of the parents that he had fun but that when he fell he 'twisted my bone' and points to his leg....

My life, Facebook-status style... Lisa is off to dance competition with Mo. Lisa is so happy Mo tapped so well! Lisa is mad that the judges are idiots and only gave her a silver. Lisa practised restraint when she passed the judges on the stairwell and didn't push them down. Lisa is proud of her self control. Lisa complained and swore to all her friends. Lisa calmed down. Lisa enjoyed Mo's group jazz routine. Lisa was elated that the jazz routine won first place. Lisa realizes that this is the first time Mo's group has ever won first in jazz! Lisa crawls home exhausted after a long day of dance competitions and wonders how the kids can keep up. Lisa woke up today and it felt like Groundhog day. Back out to dance competitions. Lisa didn't forget to pick up her friend's daughter. Lisa was happy to watch the Jr. Tap group perform. Lisa was disappointed in the silver medal. Lisa sucked it up. Lisa realizes that she can't be in two places at once so changes piano less...

Last week I mentioned that we brought Chili Mac to Hubby at work and I've had all kinds of inquries about it, so today my recipe is: Chili Macaroni 1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni (add another cup if you like more pasta than chili) 1 pound lean ground beef 1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup) 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained. 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained 1 can (6 oz) tomateo paste 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce 1 can Heinz baked beans liberal amount of Worchestershire sauce (once around the pan) liberal amount of Ketchup 1 tablespoon chili powder 1 tsp ground cumin (I never add this because it tastes like body odor to me. Ick!) 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese 1. cook macaroni as directed on package (leave it a little undercooked) 2. While mac is cooking ,cook beef, onion and garlic in 4-quart saucepan or Dutch oven over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until beef is cooked. Drain 3. Drain macaroni. Stir macaroni...

It was a beautiful spring Sunday! After a very inspiring and uplifting day at church we came home to bask in the beautiful weather... The sun was shining it's glorious light... The kids were playing outside.... (Well, some kids were playing, others were being studious {during Spring Break} and, well let's just say it, a little bit nerdy. Yahoo!) The water guns were out... The balls were out... And so was the pollen! Poor little guy.... Does the spring always have to come with a sting?

At least, that's how my daughter lives it. Somedays I'm not sure if I have Annie, Sharpay, Sophie or one of the 2 million Von Trap children living in my home. Each day I wonder which of these musical characters will sit down at my breakfast table Instead of a gentle hug, Kiki feels it's necessary to fly across the room with arms stretched out wide, with a smile on her face and a song in her heart (it'd be perfect if there was wind for her hair and a beach in the background...but you can't have it all) into my arms and squeeze, squeeze, squeeeeze the living day lights out of me. No matter that I've just returned from a momentary trip to the bathroom and not a week long trip to Jamaica (like my friends just did! Lucky!), I still need to receive a hug that says 'I missed you. I love you. You are my whole world.' Of course I need that.... Instead of walking from kitchen to family room, Kiki needs to piroette, jette and chasse (not sure of the spelling but th...

There's a knock at the door. Don't answer it; it's that indiscriminate and inconsiderate Mrs. F. Lu Bug again. I know it's been awhile since she's come a callin' but like her friend, Auntie Flo, she's not a welcome visitor. She usually brings something, that's true, but we really are not fond of her gifts. I'm sure she gives coughs, runny noses and body aches with the best of intentions but her need to do a little perhaps, market research, into what people really want is evident. Bring cookies, chocolate, gold even and then I'm sure we'd be much more willing to open the door. I should have known she was coming. Mr. Cough usually preceeds her visit and he's been here, lurking about and quietly making his presence known, for about a week. He even caused us to miss dance class. Nasty man. Doesn't he know that competitions are coming up? Miss Fever and Mrs. Unreasonable have also been by. Too many visitors. For now, Mrs. F. Lu...

Today we made dinner. 'Big whoop.' 'Don't you do that every day?' 'Write about something interesting.' ...you may say, BUT... this wasn't an ordinary dinner. Oh yes, the fare was ordinary...nothing more than some chili macaroni, homemade brownies and buns...but the intent behind it was extra-ordinary. Okay, maybe not EXTRA-ordinary, but definitely different than usual. We cooked it at home, but ate it at Hubby's work. And he didn't know we were coming! Yep, it was a surprise attack of food. Hubby's been keeping late hours and sometimes doesn't get time to eat (I know, I don't understand it either...I'd clearly rather have my eyes gouged out than to miss a meal, but I digress) so we decided to 'force-feed' him. Nope, didn't need any IV tubing to do so, just a crock pot, four tires, and a highway to accomplish our goal. We came ("surprise!"), we saw, we fed, we played...and we went home. Mission accomplished: F...

Or to be more accurate...4 down, 26 more to go. I'm sewing poodle skirts for Kiki's dance class. Each skirt has a petticoat with tulle-ing on it. So essentially, it's 30 skirts! Phew... With each skirt though, I'm catching my stride. I'm remembering little tips and tricks as I go. By the time I finish the last skirt it'll be worthy of The British Museum! Okay, not really...but you know what I'm saying. I remember now why I stopped sewing: consumption/OCD... Yep, it consumes my thoughts. This morning in the shower I was drawing diagrams on the steam coated shower door to try to figure out how to 'cheat' a zipper (basically, I'm leaving a zipper out but still keeping the opening) with the serger. I think I actually figured it out. But that's not to say that this morning in the shower was the first time I thought about this. Oh no... I also spent this morning lying in bed, which was preceded by last night as I was falling off to sleep, ...

I've been saving. Really saving. Not even going to the mall type of saving. I've had a goal: a new camera. It's been torture! Well, yesterday I bought it! A Canon Rebel XS! I was so excited to go to the store and pick it up that I could barely breathe. I had butterflies for the first time in a long time. So, how do I feel now? Overwhelmed,scared, incompetent. It's so big and so new. I thought I'd better break it in, so to speak, so I went out and took a couple of shots. I don't know anything about the camera yet and I don't know anything about aperature, shutter speed or lighting, so don't expect miracles. That information will come. For now I just wanted to press the button and here it go 'click.' As sound as heavenly to me as the sound of someone unwrapping my favorite chocolate bar.... I'm shallow. I know. I accept it. Here are some pix.

It was a beautiful, crisp and clear morning. The perfect day to go to the temple site and watch the spire and the angel Moroni be placed upon the pinnacle. As the temple grows, so does my hope that one day our entire family will be able to go and recieve the blessings that only the temple has to offer. My children look at that sacred building and know that one day, if they live in accordance with the gospel, that they will be married to their sweetheart there. It's a wonderful visual reminder of what can be. To be there today was such a blessing. To see the beauty of the golden statue called Moroni, to see the details in the sculpture such as creases in his golden gown, waves in his windblown hair and toenails etched into his feet was a once in a lifetime event. Who is Moroni and why does the LDS church put him on their temples? I found this explanation... "The angel Moroni is the heavenly messenger who first visited the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1823. As a mortal named Moron...

Today's Monday post is a recipe, but not for food. It's a recipe for free music from iTunes. Now, I am not always the sharpest tack in the drawer so there's a good chance you already know about this and I'm toooooo late to be an imparter of knowledge, however, if you are blissfully unaware then let me be the one to enlighten you. Every Tuesday you can get 3 free songs from iTunes! Yep, free!! The first thing you need to do is get an iTunes account (it too is free, just go to http://www.apple.com/itunes/ to download) if you don't already have one. Then, every Tuesday, go to the iTunes store and download the free Single of the Week! Sometimes the songs are great and sometimes they, well, ....suck, but that's a minor issue. By now you are probably saying to yourself, 'Oh Lisa, imparter of knowledge, you said we could get 3 songs but you have only told us about 1. Are you stupid and can't add or are you just a lying wench?' Well, my friends, wait no lon...

Kept my nose to the grindstone, my shoulder to the wheel, my eye on the prize and my ear to the ground this week...am I forgetting any of the five senses here?...as I tried to accomplish everything on my list. On Monday Zee read 20-ish books so that he could finish his 'reading sheets.' His kindergarten teacher started the reading program in January and asked each child to try to read 100 books by April. Zee likes to do 'blitzes' so he'd go for about a week without reading and then read a bunch of books in one day. He is one of the few kids in the class who has already completed his goal. On his report card, he got an 'exceeding expectations' mark (weird way of marking but basically it would be a high A) on reading! Yeah!!! I'm so happy for him because he is one of the youngest kids in the class....due to his late birthday...and it's so great to see that he's keeping up with the others! On Tuesday or Wednesday (I can't remember which), I open...

I grew up on the most wonderful bran muffins, and although I haven't been able to procure the recipe from my parents yet, this one comes suprisingly close. Yummy... Bran Muffins 2 cups natural bran 2 cups boiling water 2 cups raisins 2 cups boiling water 3 scant cups white sugar 1 cup cooking oil (I used olive oil...it's a better fat...and it didn't add any weird taste) 4 eggs, beaten 2 cups buttermilk or sour milk 5 cups flour 5 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1/4 cup dark molasses Soak natural bran in 2 cups boiling water. Soak raisins in 2 cups boiling water until puffy. Drain off excess water from raisins, but not off of the bran. Mix ingredients together. Add bran and raisins last. Bake at 350*F for 30-35 minutes (I do 20 minutes...) Fits perfectly in an ice cream pail. Keep covered in refrigerator. Keeps up to 6 weeks and makes about 6 dozen muffins (no it doesn't, I only get about 3 dozen) Don't bake on the same day as mixed and don't mix after putting in re...