Lately, I have been feeling the need for an outlet. (Not an outlet mall, although that would be fun too.) I need somewhere to write about stuff going on in my life, in my head and in my walk with God. I don't know if anyone will be interested in reading and I honestly don't care. This is not a blog intended to entertain. I just don't have it in me. If that is what you're looking for may I suggest:
www.tylerstanton.com That guy is hilarious!
So I have been thinking about my little family today. My husband, Tom, is out of town. I miss my man. I may get frustrated with his quirks and his snoring, but without him close by I have been feeling all out of sorts. I hate that feeling. He's an amazing man. He has a truly kind heart and does an awesome job keeping up with the whims and drama of a house full of females. He's also brilliant. If he can't fix a computer problem, I am willing to bet good money it can't be fixed. Speaking of which, that is another thing I miss when he's gone; he fixes my little problems. For instance, our kitten Samson has managed to remove my F9 key from my laptop and I have no idea how to put it back. Tom will know, or he will find some creative way to make it work. Lucky for me, his business trips are few and far between so these times are really good for us in an "absence makes the heart grow fonder" kind of way.
Our oldest daughter, Taylor is 6 years old and in first grade this year. This morning she came down the stairs with her nose stuck in a book she's read before. She would want me to make sure I said it was a chapter book. That is a very important distinction among the first grade crowd. She is definitely like me in her love of reading. She has been amazing us lately with the words she is able to read. She was reading something to me and spit out the word "accomplished" like it was one of the three letter words on her reading list for school. I love watching her grow and learn new things. I remember when she was a newborn, being overwhelmed thinking about all the things she didn't know, and then as she grew, being in awe of how quickly she learned everything she needed for each stage of life she's passed through. One thing she hasn't learned yet is how to pull her own teeth. Her first tooth came out with some help from me. The second came out with many tears and months (no joke) of wiggling, and ultimately I still ended up pulling it for her. The third came out in a bagel and the fourth was inadvertently swallowed while eating dinner. That is not like me at all. I yanked those suckers out as soon as I possibly could. Those teeth were worth money. Tom gave her a dollar for her tooth (further evidence of his kind heart) because I told her the tooth fairy wouldn't come without an actual tooth. I'm hoping the next tooth will entail much less drama.
April is our youngest daughter. She is 4 years old and in preschool. She is such a funny little person. She is as rough and tumble as she is sweet and sensitive. She is generous and cares deeply about our family. She also says some of the funniest things I've ever heard out of a mouth so young. I plan on capturing some of those things here in my blog for posterity (and future blackmail). I think she has her father's sense of humor. She loves to snuggle but she's way too active to sit still so it's more like she tackles you and then wiggles around using her knees and elbows to show you how much she loves you. One of the ways Tom bonds with his girls is by playing Mario on the Wii. When I say they play Mario, I mean any and every Mario out there - the old NES versions, Mario Kart, both Galaxy games and now we have the Super Mario Bros. Wii where 4 people can play at the same time. Both of the girls can play better than I can, but April is really starting to come into her own. The problem is, when we play the 4 player game Tom and Taylor like to get all the stuff- the coins and the secret hidden treasures. April sprints past everything and runs straight for the finish line and ends up killing the rest of us when we're pushed off the screen. Hey, the girl likes to win. I can't fault her for that.
So, that's my little family. I love them to pieces This is already pretty long as posts go so I'll leave stuff about me for another day. They are more fun to write about anyway!
What does this look like to you? My first thoughts were that I was looking at an ancient torture device or perhaps one of the many tools my husband "needed" to do one of his projects. Well, as it turns out this is a do-it-all apple thingamabob. That's what I'm going to call it anyway. I'm sure Pampered Chef has another name for it. You can check it out here. It slices, peels and cores an apple in about 10 seconds. This thing is amazing! I acquired mine when my Nana died, but I haven't had a reason to use it until now. With the calendar telling us it's fall, but the temperatures holding tenaciously to summer, I felt a little apple therapy (ooh and candy corn) was just the thing to make it feel more fall-ish. My favorite blogger/southern cook, Christy Jordan has all kinds of apple recipes (among other fabulous recipes) so I decided to make her recipe for Apple Fritters. They were really good and it gave me the chance to try out my apple thingamabob. The girls loved helping turn the crank and we watched in amazement as the peel came off in one long strip and the apple popped off the end all sliced and with no core. I only needed about 2 apples for the recipe but we did 4 just because it was fun. Here's what the finished product looks like: Amazing!
