Yesterday

Never a dull moment around here.

Found out the boys varsity team won their wild card CIF game and lo and behold, they need a snack bar set up for tonight.

And to think I thought my days with cans of nacho cheese sauce were over and done with.

Not so.  Not so.

I met my girlfriend at Sam's Club and now my car is loaded to the gills with junk food galore.  I seriously thought of sleeping out there last night because it smells sooooo good.

Like chocolate.

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I came home and did the 'hmmmm...gotta make supper.  Gotta make supper' mantra.

Homemade blueberry muffins for the boy with a mohawk.  Oh wait, all 3 of my boys currently have mohawks.  Shhh...don't tell the grandparents.  Though boy #2 and I are going to go to the courthouse to see if we can get the jay-walking ticket either reduced or dismissed (heard that was a possibility, and $164 is ALOT of money) and he cannot have a mohawk when we do that.  So his is going bye-bye early next week.

And to go with the blueberry muffins...a frtittata with left-over roast chicken, goat cheese and asparagus, with fried rosemary potatoes on the side.

Fast.  Easy.  Cheap.

Oh, and yummy, too.

And for your viewing pleasure...Miss Molly.

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A Recipe

A jug of fresh berries all smooshed together...

...plus a bottle of vodka and a couple of orange peels.  Store in a cool place for a month or two, strain into a cute bottle and then put it in the freezer.

Drink it ice cold, followed by a pickle.

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And why a pickle?  NO CLUE, 'cept we had vodka shots followed by pickles in a scary bar in Slovakia.  And for some reason it tasted really good in an odd sort of funky way and now we need to do it that way everytime.

Crazy.

And to that guy that I like so much...you are missed.  I especially miss seeing you drive down the street, top down, with BNL's blaring on your stereo.

I am ready for long, late suppers in the backyard...with candles and a heat lamp and groovy tunes playing in the background.  I miss you.  The children miss you.

But thanks for working so hard for us AND for coming home late AND making berry vodka.  

Come home soon.

Love,

Girlie

Randomness

Long days at school call for a serious snack...popcorn and grape juice.

I hadn't had grape juice since 1989 (and yes I remember the year oh so clearly) when I was preggo with the boy who shall soon enter his last year as a teen.

Grape juice sounded good, especially after a 4 day stint in the hospital for dehydration.  And it was good.  The first time.

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The baby of the family didn't have any knowledge of that and when he asked what grapejuice was, I knew we had to try it.  And it was yummy.

A project is in the works and as soon as I figure out what I am doing, I will let you know.

But it's ready for paint, nonetheless.

Fresh sheets on the bed....plus one cool cat.  Last night the 2 sissy's cuddled on the same chair...they haven't liked each much since becoming non-girls.  Baby steps, baby steps.

A rather lonely xbox 360, sitting on the piano waiting for it's master to turn in the algebra packet he decided to blow off.

Once I get email confirmation, it won't be so lonely no more.

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Hot Breakfast

Sometimes, a morning started with a hot griddle is the best kind of morning.

At least if you are under 11.

Or even if you are over 11.

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Ginormous chocolate chip pancakes.

YUM.

We are WET.  Really, really wet.  And somehow down to only 2 umbrellas, which is our equivalent of a snow shovel in the midwest...meaning we can't live without 'em.

So off to Target I will go.

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The grass is SO green and the trees in the neighborhood are filled with teeny-tiny leaves...spring is springing up around us!

Yesterday was a quiet day...the house got cleaned (all except for clean sheets, which I will do when I am done here) and I spent the day making jewelry.  After school was the Beavers second to last game before play-offs and as of yet have not a single win.  Sad...but my #8 is so cute!

Immediately after their game, M and the boys went to Concordia for their basketball game, so the girlie was once again left in a quiet house.

Crazy.

Today I am off to see a movie with a girlfriend...and tonight should have a full house.

Which I like.

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Rain

The rains keep coming and coming...and I am not complaining.  Not one little bit.

Fot the first time in a long while, it feels like winter in SoCal...and cold rainy weather makes me long for Spring.  And Spring is appreciated a whole lot more after you've had a few weeks of cold toes, so I am enjoying the rain.

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My garden is wet and my broccoli and cauliflower are thrilled...I cannot wait to make cauliflower curry and broccoli soup.  Soon...very, very soon.

MMmmm.

This morning in the rain, Alex and I went to the orthopedist to hear the fate of that pesky knee.  Good news...a simple sprain of his MCL, so he's in a brace and physical therapy.  Better news...the MRI showed no link to the past knee injury, so he'll be up and playing in a few short weeks.  

God is good.

Brian went to play at a friends house, Alex went to play at a friends house and for most of the day I was home alone.  And it was quiet.  Too quiet, actually.  I had a few jewelry orders to fill, which btw...who would've thunk (and yes, I KNOW thunk is not a REAL word) that this little jewelry business would've worked?  Not me.  I am assuming it will slow way down now, though I just donated 6 pendants to 6 different silent auctions.  

Cool.

Supper tonight was C.O.R.N.  Also known as Clean Out Refrigerator Night.  One had pasta and sausage, one had chicken pot pie, one had stroganoff AND pasta AND chicken pot pie (any guesses on which boy that was?) and I had a salad with my neighbors homegrown lettuce, which I am sooo addicted to.  It was especially yummy with homemade thousand island dressing that Tom made while he was here.  Yum.

M is working tonight and is getting weary from the 7 day work weeks.  Summer is coming, summer is coming.

Tonight, once he gets home late, we'll watch the Bachelor together...I made a super, super, super yummy brownie pudding from Ina for dessert.  It only called for 2 sticks of butter, which for Ina is low-cal.  Can't wait.

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Date Night

Last night, after a lonnnnng day of auditions, that guy that I like so much picked me up in his really cute car.

Cuz we had tickets.  FREE tickets, actually.

In my book, those are the best kind of tickets to have.

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We started at Maggiano's and sat under a picture of Norm himself, while drinking red wine and eating lobster fettucine.

YUM.

Oh yeah, dinner was free too...thanks to a bunch of gift cards with remnants on them.  Works for me!

We walked across the parking lot (and across the street, through a business complex and a rather damp field) to the Samueli Theater.

Charming.  Actually beyond charming.  Lots of little tables, candlelight and cocktails.

Can't find anything wrong with that, can ya?

And new to us....Matt Dusk.  A 30 year old crooner with a rockin' combo behind him.

This morning, M was out the door by 6am...turns out the choir was on the road yet again on a Sunday morning.  The younger boys and I, of course, followed quite a few hours later to hear them sing.

After, another new to us place...PJ's Abbey, an old church turned restaurant.  Awesome.  Beyond awesome.

Their huevos rancheros were so amazing, that not much was said by the guy who ordered them.  For me...a california omelette full of avocado.  Oh MY.  With champagne and the best blueberry muffins ever...well, it was worth every bite.  Brian had an omelette the size of his head and Alex ate enough for a whole table.  YUM.

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Drove home via downtown Orange, threatening crazy boys with a trip to the antique shops if they didn't calm down and saw the old Bank of Italy/masonic lodge.  Don't ask me why the picture is green...I am pretty sure the sky was a normal blue when I took it.  But then again, you never know.

You can give a girlie a fancy camera, but you can't make her read the instruction booklet.  

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It's now time for a sunday afternoon movie and nap...nothing beats a sunday afternoon nap.

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Val's Day

I am sitting here relieved that I found the concert tickets for tonight.

That guy that I like so much is sooo excited about this evening and I had to give him a heads up that somehow, sometime, somewhere...I couldn't find the tickets.

But then I remembered that I had given them to him for safe keeping...and there they were, tucked in his drawer with all his important guy stuff, like his gym locker combination and his cigar from some foreign country.

So tonight we have a big date...just me and that guy that I like so much.  Our youngest two will be home enjoying either Del Taco or Chik Fil-A...whichever one sounds better to them at 4:45pm when their daddy picks it up for them on his way home from work.

Cuz yes, in the joys of college life, today is an all day long scholarship audition fest in which bright young college bound hopefuls belt out their rendition of Silent Night and America the Beautiful.

And my Simon sits and chews on his pen.

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After, we'll head to Maggiano's and to a concert.

Alone.

I am not a valentines day-ish kind of girl...but I am looking forward to tonight.  Especially now that I found the tickets.

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My mom and Tom were here for a visit...it had been a year and a half since we had seen them, so it was long overdo!  They came to see Alex play, which didn't happen, but they did get to see their eldest grandsons and play a bit in the SoCal sunshine.

For the locals...we went to Orange and walked my favorite antique places and yesterday walked Balboa Island and took the ferry, which they really liked.

Tom put a bunch of my house back together, which was awfully nice and my mom discovered TJ Maxx HomeGoods.  Not sure she'll ever be the same again.

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Alex is doing well.  He's up.  He's walking.  The xray showed stuff, but it was probably previous injuries and the MRI will be on Monday morning.  He is in great spirits...they ended their season 27-1, with the only loss being against a sophomore team during some summer tourney.  

We have an awesome orthopedist and an even more awesome physical therapist...and a few weeks off before spring league begins.

All is well.

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