This calls for a celebration!!

1,000 views!?!?!??!??!?!? 

Wow!  Thank you all very much for viewing my page and continuing to do so.  I feel so loved!!!  I am looking into doing a giveaway so when I figure it out, y'all will be the first ones to know. :)  I hope you all know how much I truly appreciate all of you. 

A much needed Mommie break

Adios! See ya! Bye! Ta Ta for Now! I'm outta here! :)  Matt, Danielle, Heath and I are leaving for Aruba on Sunday and I don't know if I could be any happier. Don't get me wrong, I am going to miss the girls something fierce but this break is much needed.  I wanted to let my 13 followers know that I have not given up on the blogging and recipe posting, just won't have my laptop with me....need a break from that too. :)  It's just going to be me, the sun, beach, pool, kindle and drinks, lots and lots of drinks (with little umbrellas in them!). Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, week and following weekend!  I'll see ya when I see ya!  Mommie, out!

Jenna does it again

As most of you know, Matt and I are going to Aruba on Sunday, sans kids. :) We hadn't discussed it with Jenna cause I didn't know how she would take it.  Well, we decided to tell her this past Sunday, since she found out that my sister and Heath are going away (with us) and she was worried about C.  We explained to her that Grandma was going to come here Saturday and stay with her and Emily while Mommy and Daddy went away on vacation with DiDi and Uncle Heath.  She got this super worried look on her face and said, "But am I going to be able to see C?"  We told her that C & R will be staying at their house with Nana but she would see C at school.  That was not acceptable to her.  She wanted to make sure she would still see C even though we were all going to be away.  She couldn't care less about Mommy and Daddy leaving, she was more concerned about being able to see C.  Wow, ok, thanks Jenna, Mommy and Daddy will miss you even though you won't miss us. ;)  Guess I should feel good about this since she won't be affected by our leaving her for 5 days, but come on, I wanted to know she would miss us even a little bit. Guess I'll just have to have an extra drink a day to get over the pain. ;)

Jenna says the funniest things

The other day we happened to drive by a church as a wedding party was exiting and getting on their "bride bus", as Jenna called it.  Well, I pointed out the bride to Jenna and she was a bit surprised.  We asked her what was wrong and she said, "well, if she just got married, where is the baby?"  We tried to explain to her that some people get married first and then have a baby.  She said, "I know, that's why when you guys got married you then got a baby."  Matt tried to explain to her that we were married for 3 years before she came along but she kept insisting that when you get married, you get a baby.  She thought for a moment and said, "I don't want to have a baby so I'm never getting married."  Huh?!? :) 

Mommy Money

 

Mommy Money

Mommy Money

After watching PBS Gokids last night, I thought I would try a reward system with Jenna.  I have created Mommy Money.  Jenna will receive one dollar of Mommy Money each time she behaves, listens or does something good.  Not sure if I am going to take money away when she misbehaves or not yet but Matt and I will figure that one out.  I went to the dollar store and got a few things for Jenna to "buy" when she earns enough Mommy Money.  Fingers crossed that this works because threatening to call Santa is just not working anymore.  

Follow Me

10 followers?!?!?  Woo hoo!  Thanks everyone!  I know everyone was upset that I wasn't actually giving away a child (no one more than me) but I am looking into doing a real giveaway.  I will keep you all updated.  Thanks again, you all rock!  I love my followers and cherish all 10 of you. ;)

600 Hits!!!

We did it!!  Made it to 600 hits and I am super excited and super thankful to you all for reading my "deep thoughts." :)  As you all know, giving children away is frowned upon in this establishment so I won't be giving any of the children away.  You all will receive my gratitude (I know, I know....times are tough, give a mommie a break) :).  The next milestone I would love to hit would be 10 followers!  Thank you all for reading and I hope I am at least entertaining you enough to want to come back. Ok, off to my hell hour (school drop-off with 4 kids). Hopefully, we all make it out unscathed. Have a good day all!

GIVEAWAY

To thank you all for reading my blog I thought I would do a giveaway. When I get 600 hits, I will pick, at random, one lucky reader who will get their choice of a 4 year old, 3 year old, 18 month old or 5 month old.  ;)  Hope this makes one person as happy as it will make me. 

*Disclaimer: I am not really giving away a child....no need to call DYFS. ;)

Poem for Stay at Home Moms

What Did You Do Today?

Today I left some dishes dirty,
The bed got made around 3:30.
The diapers soaked a little longer,
The odor grew a little stronger.
The crumbs I spilled the day before,
Are staring at me from the floor.
The fingerprints there on the wall,
Will likely be there still next fall.
The dirty streaks on those window panes,
Will still be there next time it rains.
Shame on you, you sit and say,
Just what did you do today?

I fed a baby till she slept,
I held a toddler while she wept,
I played a game of hide and seek,
I squeezed a toy so it would squeak.
I pulled a wagon, sang a song,
Taught a child right from wrong.
What did I do this whole day through?
Not much that shows, I guess it’s true.
Unless you think that what I’ve done,
Might be important to someone,
With bright brown eyes and soft brown hair,
If that is true … I’ve done my share.

Author Unknown

by funfelt on December 28, 2009

http://www.fun-activities-for-kids.com/poem-for-stay-at-home-moms/

Feel Like I'm Doing Something Wrong...

I know Jenna is 4 going on 16 but most days I feel like I am just doing it all wrong.  She is so "fresh" to me and that's putting it nicely.  This morning I had to threaten to call Santa and she says, "well, if you call Santa on me, I am going to call him and you will get nothing too!"  There is no respect there and I am at my wit's end with her.  I wake up every morning and promise myself I won't let her "get to me" and I will not yell at her and she comes down the stairs demanding to wear this or that and she "won't take no for an answer."  WHAT?!?!?  No clue where she got that from but I end up breaking that promise to myself within the hour.  Her newest "trick" is rolling her eyes....that one sends me over the edge, especially when she does it while I am telling her not to do it.  I really hope she grows out of all of this sooner rather than later.  That is all...

What is it with kids these days?

Ok, I am sure I sound like an old lady when I say that but after people watching yesterday at Great Adventure, I am not sure I am ever going to let Jenna or Emily out of the house when they are pre-teens.  I can not get over the clothes (or lack there of) that some of these girls were wearing.  Now, I know I am going to take a lot of heat for saying this but, more importantly, what is it with parents these days?  I know most of those girls were not old enough to have jobs to make money to buy their own clothes so I know the parents are buying the clothes for them.  I just don't think it's right for a teenage girl (if she was even THAT old) to be walking around with her butt cheeks hanging out of her shorts!  Sometimes, having to buy that medium isn't so bad if it means your daughter's @ss is not on show for everyone and their mother (or father)! 

Choosing outfits

Jenna is a 4 year old (almost 5) fashionista! Not really sure who she gets that from but it's getting a bit old.  Every night we pick out her clothes before bed and she refuses to wear pants unless we give her a damn good reason for it (going to RU game, going to be outside playing all day, going somewhere "fun").  She only wants to wear skirts and dresses and she wants to wear the most off the wall outfits.  She has so many demands.  The skirts or dresses have to "go out when I turn" and if they don't then the shirt has to.  She wants to wear her white Easter shoes with everything even though I have tried to explain to her that Mom (my mother) says you can't wear white after Labor Day. :)  Last night we put out a pair of pants for her to wear only because I told her she got to pick the top and I would pick the bottom.  I will bet you dollars to donuts she will come down this morning with a whole nother outfit on.  It's not easy being the mommie of a fashionista but I'm trying.

Olive Oil shower anyone?

So I was getting dinner ready tonight and had a measuring cup on the counter with olive oil in it.  I turned my back for one second and Em ends up pulling the cup from the counter and it spills down all over her like a shower.  Of course I wanted to give her a bath in the middle of getting dinner ready.  That was totally my plan all along!  :)  Just another day in the life of ME!

Making an Emily

Now this story is not nearly as exciting as Making a Jenna was but I love my little peanut so I am going to share her story too.  I found out I was pregnant with Emily when Matt was away for a week.  Of course, I found out Sunday and had to wait a whole week to tell him or anyone else and that was killer!  When I was pregnant with Jenna, I made Matt a "Proud Father to Be" t-shirt.  Matt came home from his trip to find the t-shirt on his pillow with "again" written under neath it next to a picture of Jenna wearing a shirt that said "Big Sisters are the Coolest."  He was stunned and speechless but happy.  Now my pregnancy with Emily was not nearly as easy as my pregnancy with Jenna.  It wasn't all that tough but add in the fact that I was also taking care of Jenna and C, it was trying.  I was having blood pressure issues throughout my pregnancy and was put on bed rest for 4 hours a day.  Here's another tough part....Matt was told he would be leaving for Afghanistan "soon".  Well, I was due March 31st.  The first date Matt was given was in the end of Feb.  Now, they tried to make the "deal" sweeter by saying it would only be 30 days at the most.  Here's a tip for dealing with the military....don't believe a word they say!!!  The date kept getting moved and we finally got a date of sometime in May, with a week of "training" before that.  Even with all of my blood pressure issues, Em was just too comfortable and wasn't even thinking of coming out early.  Add to all of this the fact that Em was breech. Not even just breech and that was that, she kept flipping back and forth.  Great, now they wanted to talk about "flipping" her.  Hell no!!!  I have heard that is super painful and I was in no way ready for that.  Yes, I know I gave birth to Jenna naturally but after seeing what my sister went through with C, I was more nervous for this delivery than I was for Jenna's.  They (who are they anyway?) say that your 2nd child (labor and delivery) are easier than the first but how can I top 4 hours of labor?  I was so nervous that Em was going to be 48 hours of labor and I couldn't even imagine how I would survive that.  Well, Em helped me out of that.  Being that she was breech and there was no way of telling if flipping her would work, my doctors discussed a c-section.  All of the doctors in the practice knew Matt was scheduled to leave and they wanted to work with us.  My c-section was scheduled for my 39th week, March 24th.  We go in that morning and they are about to roll me into the OR and the doctor decides he wants to do a quick ultrasound to make sure Em is still breech.  Well, she wasn't....of course!  I had a feeling this would happen so at dinner the night before, Matt and I discussed what we would do if this was the case.  The doctor said we had three options.  (1) we could wait her out and have her come on her own (seeing as how Matt was leaving in 2 weeks, that was not an option for us) (2) He could induce me and we could see what happens but he didn't think I would progress any and would most likely end up in a c-section (after laboring for lord knows how long) or (3) continue with the c-section and meet our little girl within the hour.  We chose option 3 and moved right along into the OR.  The c-section was uneventful and my recovery was as well.  When I had Jenna, I didn't have an option of sending her to the nursery at night so I could get some sleep (which was hell!) but with Em I did and I did just that every night.  I don't think I have ever had such wonderful sleep before. :)  The percocet didn't hurt either.  2 weeks after Em was born Matt was off to do his week-long "training" and I was left with a Jenna and an Emily!  :)  He came home for a few days and was gone again for way longer than 30 days!  So there you have it....Emily's story.  See, I told you it wasn't as exciting as Jenna's.  But they are entirely different girls and I love it that way!

Holy Screaming Batman

Jenna had to get some shots today to be up to date enough to stay in school.  Seems we fell behind when she had pneumonia last year.  Anyway, we get to the doctor's office (my second time today) to find out she doesn't even need to see the doctor cause she doesn't need a well-visit.  We get in the examination room and Jenna crawls into the corner under the examination table....gonna be a good time!  The nurse comes in and Jenna freaks.  Now, the nurse was wearing a Yankees t-shirt, but I know Jenna wasn't just freaking because of that.  The nurse says she has special alcohol pads that will numb Jenna's arm so she won't feel any of the 4 shots she has to get...you believe that one, Jenna, Mommy has a pony she wants to sell you.  The nurse leaves to get the shots ready and Jenna is on edge.  If I didn't know any better I would say she was going through withdrawal something fierce. She was pacing, jumping up and down, crawling into corners, hanging on the door.  She was out of control.  The nurse comes back with her "special pads" and Jenna tries to crawl into my shirt.  I have never heard Jenna scream like that before in my life.  I am sure all the people waiting in the waiting room were bout ready to turn hide and run.  They probably thought she was being murdered.  I am pretty sure I dread the shots more than Jenna does and I know it's only going to get worse.  I haven't told her she has to go back next month for her 5 year old well-visit which included the flu shot. :(  Not touching that one till we get to the office.  Maybe I will call in sick that day and Matt can take her.

My favorite time of day

It's my most favorite time of day (next to bed time).  It's NAPTIME!!!  Emily and R are both sound asleep and I love when they do that.  Don't get me wrong, I love both of them with all that I have but a girl can only take so much! :)  

This morning was Em's 18 month well visit and she did wonderfully.  She had to get 3 shots and she took them like a champ...not even one tear!  I am very proud of her and am thankful.  Jenna has her well visit this evening and I know she will be the exact opposite.  She cries just walking into the office.  I've already promised her ice cream for after the visit but I don't think that's going to be enough.  May have to bribe her with a new car or a pony.  Wish me luck!

While I am on the topic of doctor visits, what the hell is up with co-pays!!!  What bs!  When Matt was in the Army we had tricare.  Ok, so they weren't THE best doctors around but everything was taken care of.  Never once a co-pay and now today alone I am paying 2 co-pays to the same doctor in ONE day!  WTH is that all about?  If I am in there within 24 hours then I should only have to pay one co-pay.  I will not get used to this and I will continue to miss the Army.  

So I know some of you are looking for recipes.  Last night was a leftover kind of night but let me just share what I did.  It was pretty good, if I do say so myself and I just did. :)  Anyway, Saturday night Matt and I went out with friends to a restaurant in Brooklyn.  The atmosphere was nice and the food was delicious (expect for my dinner).  I ordered Fettuccine with Chicken which claimed it had mozzarella cheese and tomatoes in it.  I couldn't find either but I was full enough from the ceasar salad (YUMMY!) and calamari and antipaste so it didn't really bother me that my meal had no taste.  Anyway, I ended up coming home with almost 2 lbs of pasta (yes, it was THAT big) with some chicken and red sauce.  Sunday, I made some gravy (red sauce for you non-eyetalians) because we were all out so I had some in the fridge.  I heated up some gravy, added some milk, a fresh tomato from our garden, some pepperoni and some leftover chicken.  I through the left over pasta and chicken into a skillet and added the gravy mixture.  It was pretty yummy and a great salvage of a not so hot meal. :)  Hope this inspires some of you to bring new life to leftovers. 


Not making a special dinner tonight either since Jenna's doctor appointment is tonight and Ellie has a doctor's appointment tonight too.  Think her Lyme Disease is flaring up and she is not getting around so well.  When it rains, it pours!


Feels like a baking kind of day for me.  Thinking I may make Matt's favorite cookies....Black and Whites.  


Making an Emily is coming soon! ;)  Gotta say it's not as entertaining as Jenna's story but I don't want to leave her out.

Making a Jenna

Ok, so here's the story of my pregnancy and delivery of Jenna, our first daughter.  In case you didn't read my first post, Jenna was born 9 months, 2 weeks after Matt came home from Iraq from his 2nd tour.  We were living in GA on post where everyone else was getting pregnant as well.  Not really that uncommon for a military post.  We did, however, beat most of them to the punch.  I was told my due date was Oct. 30.  Then it was moved to Nov 16th....what?!?!?  How does that happen?  Anyhow, I was then given a date of Nov 11th and, being that it was Veterans Day (how appropriate), I stuck with that one. So, I had a pretty uneventful pregnancy, which was wonderful since I was so far from "home" and Matt was gone for a few weeks at a time here and there.  Matt had me walking everyday and he swears that's why everything went the way it went....I just go with it. Ok, so fast forward to Nov. 10th.  I talked to my mother that morning (as I did EVERY morning) and she asked how I was feeling.  I told her "I am going to have this baby this weekend."  She and Matt were questioning how I could possibly know that but I just had a feeling.  Matt had a four day weekend (what else is new in the Army) for Veteran's Day so we were running errands and such on that day.  Came home around lunch and started to feel a bit "off'".  I drank a tall glass of water and laid on my side to rest.  After 3 large glasses of water and an hour of rest, I called the hospital and the nurse told me to drink water and lay down.  She then asked when my due date was and I told her "tomorrow." She rudely stated "just because it's your due date, doesn't mean you will have the baby then."  Umm, ok, whatever.  Figured she would know better , but come on....don't be a bitch about it.  So, after dinner we were watching TV and I just decided to time my "contractions."  Don't you know, 5 mins apart.  I go to lay down in bed to get some rest but the contractions were just not stopping.  By 11pm I ask Matt to take me to the hospital.  The woman, Ruth, said "you are NOT in labor...you just need to go home and get some sleep and drink water" (more DAMN water). She tells me I am not even 1cm dilated which was funny since that week at my doctor appointment I was 2 cm. Gives me some tylenol and tells me to go home and sleep.  Yeah right, sleep while your child is trying to rip itself from your uterus....sure, no problem.  We get home around 1am and Matt and Ellie (our dog) fall fast asleep while I continue to labor anywhere I could get comfortable.  Finally, Matt hears my screams and comes running.  I had been trying to call Labor & Delivery for the last hour and the line was constantly busy (hind sight, I was probably dialing wrong, considering I was in full labor) so I threw the phone at Matt and made him call.  He gets through on the first try (of course) and the rude woman says, "well, if you are in THAT much pain, come back in." Get up to walk to the car and, BAM, my water breaks...take that bitch!  Not in labor, my ass!  Side note....you should have seen Matt's face when my water broke.  It was as if he didn't believe it was time till he saw that happen.  He was in shock and awe.  He asked if I wanted to shower or eat something....what?!?!?  In his defense, the nurse who taught our child birth class told us that when our water breaks we should not rush to the hospital...we can take our time, get washed up and eat something since you don't know when you will be able to eat again.  Well, if you know me you know I am anything but "by the book."  So we get in the car and we had a 2 min drive to the hospital but it felt like 20 mins.  We get to the hospital and the nice security guard gives me a wheelchair to get to L&D.  Matt pushes me around the corner into L&D and I see that bitch, Ruth with her jaw on the floor and I scream "Ruth, I'm having a baby!"  The whisk me into a delivery room and I am begging for an epidural.  They tell me I have to get the gown on and in bed first before they can give me anything.  I have never stripped so quickly before (ask Matt) and jumped into bed.  They want to check me first (check what? The baby is still there!).  Turns out I was 9 cm and was not able to get the epidural. WTF?!?!?!  So Ruth was off trying to get the doctor and another nurse (I swear it was her first night) was trying to draw my blood and give me "something to take the edge off."  Well, I don't know if any of you have tried to give blood while you were in labor but it's near impossible to remain still so they can get a vein.  I am feeling SO hot and tell this to the new nurse who runs off to find a fan.  WHAT?!?!  She comes back with a fan but can't seem to find a place to plug it in or turn it on or whatever the hell she was doing.  I told her I had to push.  "Oh no you don't dear. Just relax." No bitch, I have to push.  Ruth comes back in and I tell her I have to push, she checks and says, "oh yeah, you do, ok, hear we go."  The doctor literally walked in, said, "Hi, I'm Dr. Hamm....it's a girl!" 2 pushes and 20 mins after entering the hospital (for the 2nd time that night), Jenna was born. Holy cow, what a whirlwind.  We didn't even have our camera because we left the bag in the car, thinking Matt could get me settled and go back and get it.  Not so much but I wouldn't change a thing.  5 mins after she was born I called my parents and they were on the road within an hour.  Their plan was to get the call I was in labor and get in the car and be in GA just in time for her to be born, since most first time mothers have 10-24 hours of labor.  Once again folks, I am not so much by the book and apparently, neither is Jenna.

Here goes nothing

Hi everyone! My friend, Cindy, suggested I start blogging so here goes.  My friend, Matt, helped me come up with the name. :)  We went through a lot of different names and when we started thinking of play on movie titles (i.e Fast Times at the Phelan Household, Momminator, etc) he came out with Dinner and a Mommie which is perfect!  When I put the idea of starting a blog out there on FB, a few friends said they wanted to see recipes since I have been posting so many on FB. There you have Dinner and a Mommie!  Couldn't be more perfect.  

Ok, so if you are reading this, you know me so you can skip this next section.  If, by any chance, you happened upon me for whatever reason, here is a little of my back story.  My husband and I met in college in 1999.  We graduated college in 2002 and he enlisted in the US Army.  While he was stationed in AZ, we were married in 2003 and I moved there in 2004.  We were then moved to GA Aug. 2004.  He was deployed Feb 2005 - Jan 2006.  Nine months later, our first daughter was born. :) That's a whole 'nother story for another post (coming soon). When our first daughter, J, was 6 months, my husband was deployed again so J and I gave up our post housing and moved to NJ to be closer to family.  My husband came home July 2008 and was stationed in NJ.  We bought our house in Sept 2008 in my hometown (which I said I would NEVER do) and we couldn't be happier.  Our second daughter, E, was born in March 2010.  My husband finished his time in the US Army and after 8 years, we closed that chapter in our book of life. 

I am a stay at home mom and I also care for our niece, R (5 months), and nephew, C (3 years).  So, you can say I have my hands full.  J & C are both in preschool full time (thank goodness) so during the day I get to hang out with 2 really cool girls. People ask me how I do it and, to be honest, I have no clue.  Some days go by in a blur and others draaaaaaaaaaagggggggg ooooooooonnnnnnnnn (you get the idea) FOR-EV-ER!  I feel burnt out most days but I wouldn't trade it for the world.  A lot of mothers aren't lucky enough to be able to stay home with their children and I get to see my daughters, niece and nephew grow into little people and it's the best thing EVER! 

So, I think this blog title pretty much sums up what it's going to be.  I will be posting recipes that I find and think look tasty and simple (some not so) to share with you guys.  I will also be filling you all in on the daily shenanigans that are my life with 4 kids.  

Thanks for reading and I look forward to the feedback!