Brownies... with Spinach?

Popeye would like em!
In part of my sisters "Operation: Domesticate Kim" one of her cookbooks she gifted was the Jessica Seinfeld sneaking in the veggies cookbook. Now I was skeptical, but willing.
I thought I would start off easy. Start with brownies. It said to add 1/2 c of spinach puree and 1/2 c of carrot puree to all the chocolate and sugar. I went out and got my supplies.
I get home and start cooking. Andrew walks in just as I am pouring in the spinach puree and all he sees in green stuff going into his brownies. His eyes light up and he says "Sweet Kim, I didn't think you were into that anymore." "I'm not and it is spinach" I say and he says "Well that is disgusting."
Much to my dismay they were actually really good. A bit dense, but Andi liked them and I told the nurse to give one to Lily with lunch. It is packed with fiber and antioxidants! I am excited and am now going to sit down and make a list of what else to make and go shopping for what I need. I just can't tell Andrew when I am doing it, because he is refusing the brownies. Strange though, I know he would have eaten them had it been some other type of green I chose to bake in them.
Reminds me of the time I made a meatloaf with ground turkey one night without notifying Mr. South Dakota meat and potato's and he took one bite and said "What the hell is that?" He sounded like a big bully hillbilly. We looked like Bud & Sissy. Anyway he refused to eat it and I never again made ground turkey. We will see what I can get away with. I know the kids will be easier than he is.
So tonight we have a little shindig to go to. Saturday will be filled with piles and piles of laundry and maybe if I am lucky, a drink or 5 with my friends.
I will try to get on again before we say goodbye to 2007 and hello to 2008. I have to say 2007 was a very good year for us, health wise and I pray 2008 will be the same or even better!
Oh by the way Andrew has a 2nd degree separation and fractured collar bone. He goes in next week for an MRI to see if there is damage to his rotater cuff (????). Let's hope for the worse, so he doesn't go snowboarding anymore this season.
What? Is that wrong?

Sooo? How was your Christmas?

I had my first "official" white Christmas. Let me tell you, totally overrated! I mean it was pretty and all, but holy popsicles, it was cold! We tried to take the kids sledding. It was about -10 with the wind chill. Yeah, not cool. Well yes very very cool, down right cold! But not cool in the sense of being awesome.
We had a good time. My little family opened our gifts on Sunday morning and that was fun. Andi totally dug Christmas this year. It was the first year she sort of "got it". She got a sweet Princess purple car with pink seats and a working radio. She didn't want to leave it. We told her it was from Santa and she said "ohhhh I want to see him and hug him and tell him thank you". She can be evil, but that girl had manners. Lily's present wasn't up and working yet, daddy is building her a swing set and my parents bought her a special needs swing that she will love! Daddy just needs to get his ass in gear. I don't know when though, now that he thinks he really messed up his shoulder snowboarding. Sigh.... He is going to the ER today to get a MRI. Don't feel too bad. I firmly stand by the fact that you only get hurt doing stupid things. That is why I am very cautious and I only get hurt by accident. And of course being accident prone. Side tracked....
Lily did get some cute clothes and jammies and gifts from family and friends. Kim aka Starbucks gal, got her the solar system that you put on her fan. It lights up and Lily will LOVE it. It isn't set up yet since we got home late last night.
I got my game boy DTS or whatever. It is so fun! I love the crossword puzzle game, Starbucks gal gave me and the word game and vision focus game. I just need brain age and I am set. Of course Target is sold out, but I will get it soon. Before you know it I will be shocking you with some fabulous vocabulary! Don't hold your breath. Although I am now a scholar student. Not sure why though since it took spell check to figure out how to spell scholar. Side track...
We drove the 4 hour drive up to my parents home in Greer, AZ. It was freezing cold and cold.
We got up with still some daylight and for the next 3 days I got my fill of family time. I think it is different when it is warm and we all do things outside, but we were all in the house all day and night. Some went snowboaring, I myself stayed home with the kids. It is an extremely long day when your bothers caregiver, girlfriend some times, lets keep this PG needs meeter, is there. I tried I really tried the first day. She has been with my brother for about 6 years now. They date off and on, but she takes care of him. She thinks she is a martyr, we think she is a mooch. She lives with him rent free, he buys all the groceries, alcohol, crystal meth... just kidding, not anymore. Sigh... Anyway, she is class less. He is too I am noticing. You know those people who sit and smoke and you can't tell them anything, because they know everything and to argue just gets you nowhere? Ugh... let's see they told me I don't know how to raise a puppy. She is 7 weeks old! I am training her. She has accidents. She bites, she has puppy teeth. Sorry I don't beat her for those reasons. But since they seem to be the dog whisper arguing my points got me nowhere. Oh and this dare I call her a woman, called my daughter, "evil", "rude", "mean", "brat", I am trying remember if there were any other versions of those words she used on my Andi, but I am coming to a blank. I don't care if she was, and she was, all those things you do not tell someone else's kid that she is evil. Those words are for her parents and her parents only.
We were dealing with two kids who did not sleep there. Of course best behavior Andi was not on.
Don't tell me I am judging because she has no top teeth. Oh did I not mention that. That has nothing to do with my reasons for my disgust for her. She is not a good person. She mumbles under her breath crap about all of us. She won't work a real job, b/c they take money out for child support. Yes, two daughters she does not see. And she is judging my kid and my parenting of a puppy? Give me a break. I tried, I really tried. I even got her a Christmas gift.
Christmas morning was fun. My mom went overboard as usual. Not that I am complaining. I got amazing loot! Nikkon D40! Christian Dior black purse! Great GiftCards! The kids did very well themselves as well as my hubby. My sister is still in opperation "Domestication Kim" and got me two very nice cook books and it was fun seeing my nieces and nephews get their goods. That was fun, it was nice. It was good family time. But it wasn't before long she'd chime in again...
It is amazing that one person can put a damper on a family. I always have an amazing time with my family and overall it really wasn't fun b/c I was stuck in a house with that thing for three days. My brother even got an earful from me, b/c I had had it with her and since it wouldn't be right to rip her a new one, I did let my brother have it. I was so over it by yesterday afternoon. I couldn't leave soon enough, when Andrew who wanted to go a half day snowboarding ruins his shoulder and I had to drive back home. A long drive, very mountainous and freaky if you ask me.
Sorry this was not meant to be a bitching post, but it is. Sorry. I have so much work to do, I best be on it.
I am so ready for my next holiday. At my house. With my choice of characters. I'll be around tomorrow before another nice long break. Again, in the sun. At my house.

If you aren't on "the list"

See Juno!

I know I have recommended a few movies lately, but this is the ultimate! Juno!
Now this is coming from someone who saw it from the front row. Neck thrown back, back twisted to hold up my heavy head that is leaning back and eyes that had to scan the screen side to side and I still say it was absolutely amazing and I will see it again, hopefully and preferably from the middle row though next time.I know it is in select theaters now, but it will be everywhere come Christmas.
Oh and can I recommend it to Jamie Lynn Spears? Please little Spears girl, go see it?

I hope I am on before, but if not Merry Christmas. No, not happy holidays. I celebrate Christmas and so there. Merry Christmas!

It is it here...

I woke up and my body ached and I had a hard time getting out of bed. I sighed as I wobbled over to the potty and then got up and looked in the mirror and screamed.....AHHHHHHHHHH! I look old!!!!
Then I woke up, sprung out of bed and said in Kelly Osborn fashion, English accent included, "It's My Birthday!" "Worship me! Adore me!" I embrace you 29! Let me wrap my long go go gadget arms around you! I love you 29! Let this glorious day begin!
And after getting Lily on the bus. Getting Andi buckled in, puppy in the car. I start my van and it was a no go. My rocking minivan had no gas. Now see yesterday I could have bragged that in all my 28 years I had never ever ran out of gas. This morning at 29, I had to face the fact the ol memory is not so good.
So my first gift of the day was my knight and shining armor running to me with a red can filled with gasoline. What a hubby! That could have been a long walk this morning.
Oh and puppy pooped in the car on the way to work. Sweet.
At work I was welcomed with love and gifts and blue birds singing. It is a fabulous day, oh yes it is.
I even get my free dinner from The Keg tonight! Sweet! And some one on one with my knight.
I was worried for nothing. 29 is nothing! Give me a year. Then we'll see the real tears.

I will never...

How many times are you looking in the face of something you swore you'd never?
It happens to be a lot. For instance, puppies. I have always said I will never have a puppy again! I really meant that at the time.
I love dogs. I really do. I just don't love puppies. I mean they are adorable, but the shoes they chew, the potty training, the sleepless nights. I mean they are like an infant.
I like Hailey. We got Hailey when she was 4. Although, not quite the looker, she was potty trained. She didn't jump on our furniture and she is sweet. Sweetest dog I have ever owned. She really rocks. I was not, of course, happy about her Christmas gift, but I would rather see her not limping and have a few dollars less. On her anti inflammatories she is happier, healthier and even a little hyper from time to time. So it was all in all money well spent. It just took me two weeks to get over it.
So.... so... so... what does this have to do with never having a puppy Kim?
Dun, dun, dun...oh I don't know... I let my husband talk me into this....



So now I am at work with Fiona Sue lying on my lap while I work. She pees and poops everywhere. She likes to chew and she likes to nibble. She also has puppy breath and likes to cuddle. If I am not having a baby in the near future, she will have to do.

29????

So I am quickly approaching my 29th Birthday and I am really thinking, Holy Sh!t, I am going to be 29 years old. 29. 29! 29!

29?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

I have always been the youngest. I was the youngest in my family. One of the youngest grandkids. I was always the youngest model, when I was such a thing. I never had a wrinkle. I never imagined being in my 30's. It is ok, I always figured it would happen one day. But already? Already I have lived almost 29 years?

I was so used to being checked out by guys, being an object of affection, but now I am feeling like I am looking more... well... like the mother of the males attraction. Guys are looking at the early twenty thing next to me in line at Starbucks. Not the wedding ring wearing, stretched marked tummy, wide hipped lady that pulled up in a mini van that USED to totally rock. I never liked the extra attention, but I am just as much not liking the less attention. I am sure I am coming off as prideful, but I can honestly say I am only being honest. I can totally see why the beautiful women of the 80's are looking more and more nipped and tucked. Now while I am fully ready to age gracefully and want to do everything so I can do that naturally. I can see wanting to hit the pause button about 5 years ago. See what the fashion industry does to us washed up ones? It is a nasty world! One minute you are on top of the world, then you are an old maid. Thank God for my husband and kids. Otherwise I'd already by hitting the Botox hanging out at clubs prowling around like a cougar... GRRRRRooooWWWWlllllllll.............. loooking like those ladies on Real Housewives of Orange County... oh gag me!

I can't help but think, when I thought about my nearing 30 I thought my house would have been bigger. I would have had three kids. I would have not spent years of my life fighting tooth and nail against something bigger than me, my daughter's seizures. I wouldn't have imagined having to have my house remodeled for wheelchair access. I pictured a son. I pictured time to start my book.

Is that normal? Do we all picture ourselves in our future an upgraded version? Are we disappointed when realization is we are who we are. We didn't get on Oprah this past decade.

For those of you who have past that milestone share words of wisdom. What were your feelings as you hit this time in your life?

For those of you in my generation, what are your feelings leading up to this milestone?

I'm just curious b/c for me this is only my first 29th birthday. I have several more of those to come before 30 actually hits, but I was just thinking ahead.

Cheers to the start of crows feet!

I don't want to wear that!

So Lily has the best wardrobe. Since gifts for her are hard she ends up with amazing clothes. I mean, True Religion Jeans, Juicy Couture track suits, Gymboree, Gap, Pumpkin Patch, you name it she has it. Her hand me downs to Andi are impecable! Maybe a food stain very occasionally. So as you can imagine I was very excited for Andi to get to wear Lily's old clothes. I mean, these are fabulous clothes.

But you know what. She doesn't like them. She only likes the ugly sweater with the Disney Princesses on them. That is it. She hates jeans, she hates zip up sweaters, she hates the UGGS. She hates it all and it is so wrong!

I just have to accept dressing Lily, fun. Dressing Andi, not fun.

Here is our family pix for Christmas cards. Lily looks amazing. Andi is cute, but she had to wear these ugly black boots when we were in pink and tans. Oh well. Whatever. Choose your battles.

Receive Collect Calls from Jail to Your Cell Phone!

I was going to post about this yesterday, but since I was so pissy, I couldn't be funny.

So Monday is usually an annoying day for me. I have to drive, A LOT, and it is just annoying. It is leave at 8:30am get to OT by 9am. She stays there and sees ST afterwards. I pick her up at 10:30am. We rush home, get there by 11am to see PT. At noon Lily eats lunch and at 12:20pm we head to a 1pm Music therapy. I get home by 2:30pm and the girls usually nap and I finish things around the house that needs done b/c Lily's nurse shows up at 3pm and gives me a break.
It is monotonous and a lot of driving and a lot of listening to Dora the Explorer.

So Monday Andrew says, I will go with you. I said, "alright". He says I didn't sound to excited and I said well that is option two in my book. I said option one would be you take the girls and I lay in bed. Well we had to do option two. Interestingly enough, it was one of the best days ever. Andrew and I had a great day together. Like one of the best. Andi slept on the way to Music and stayed asleep. We drove around a bit after dropping Lily off and got some fast food. On our way back to Music I saw a sign that said "Receive Collect Calls from Jail on your Cell Phone" and wondered, is there really a market for that? You don't see those signs in suburbia, but downtown Phoenix I saw two! Back to music we sat in the car and ate white Andi napped. We just ate and laughed. He told me stories about growing up in very small town South Dakota. I've heard some of them before, but he tells them so good, I just let him roll with it. We ate fries and were laughing like we were dating.
Once we got home, we left Lily with the nurse and ran to a new outdoor marketplace with Andi. In the rain. It again was a great time. We love the rain, since we only see it 2x a year. Maybe 3.
I got a lot of Christmas shopping done and felt happy. While checking out at Victoria Secret's (one for me, one for you) the gal was asking for a price check on a jacket I was buying. She saying it has Fox fur on it. I look at the sweater like if it is Fox fur I AM NOT buying it! So as I examine it a little further I realize our check out girl might have needed an extra year in Reading. It isn't a big deal, I had to take reading until the 8th grade. It was FAUX fur. Sigh...
Anyway, it was such a bummer to have such a great day with my hubby then to have him so upset yesterday about lunch. But such is life right, you take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have, the facts of life.
Going to a nice park in Scottsdale tonight, they have a Special Night for Special Kids, it is all lit up and we get to take a train around. It should be nice. Nice and cold! I am so loving this Christmas season in Arizona. It has been so chilly and rainy and so Christmas like. I love AZ, but a Christmas in 80 degree weather is not really Christmasy.
Ta ta for now.

So you had a bad day.....

Sigh.... it is one of those days.
Sigh...

I got two teeth drilled.
Came to work had two refund demands from Ebay. One gal in Italy didn't pay for insurance and she never got her package and she filed a claim with paypal against me! She wanted a full refund, s&h included! I said look, I am out a $200 dress and I have to pay your shipping? It isn't my freaking fault USPS screwed up. I can only imagine it finding its way to her after her damn refund. THEN after I deal with that I see a message that a lady is pissed that a dress she bought was used. It wasn't used! She said the straps were loose, it was on a hanger for a few months, it was a summer dress. She got it less than wholesale! Whatever, I told her to ship it back ALTHOUGH I don't offer refunds.

THEN my email said that Andrew's gift I bought online never got shipped b/c my CC was declined. It shouldn't have been, it is AE. I don't know if it was somewhere I never bought from or what, but now that delayed shipping several days. It is something that is hard to get so I am afraid they will be BO by the time they get to shipping it. Sigh...

Oh and THEN my husband is all pissed at me b/c I went to lunch with my family today. He called earlier and asked what I was doing. I was trying to order Christmas cards thru Costco and the freaking website kept freaking out on me so I said "I don't know" and he got mad that I was frustrated. Then he showed up and my sister and her kids were here and I said you want to come with us? He said no, got mad and left. All he had to say was he wanted to have lunch with me. But whatever. Just add it to my day. Now if I want to keep the peace I have to kiss his ass. Whatever. Whatever. Whatever.

Tis the season

Stage Mom?

Let me take you back a few years... well ok, almost 16. I was 13 years old and my friend Nicole and I were doing our usual Saturday 3 hour lap at Fiesta Mall. I was wearing Nicole's Guess stripped shirt and rolled denim shorts, rolled at my knees. I always wore Nicole's clothes, because she always had better clothes than I did. So were walking and we see this stage and all these pretty people. I mean some of these girls were so pretty, they looked exactly like Kelly Bundy! We say, I wonder what is going on and we see a sign saying "Fresh Face Contest". Oh it is a modeling contest, cool! So we are standing there watching and I hear someone say, "hey you!" and I look up and it is one of the judges, he says "enter!" and I say "me?" with a little pee running down my leg. "Yes you!" I was confused because just earlier that month Nicole and I sent our pictures to Dillards for a contest to do their fashion show and Nicole got it, not me. I thought she would be the model, not me.

So I very timidly walk over to the table and say, pointing to the judge "he told me to enter" and the next thing I know is I have a sticker with a number on it and I am on stage in front of an entire mall. I mean everyone on that bottom floor, people watching from the top floor, people everywhere. I walk out there, Guess shirt, rolled jean shorts and I didn't even brush my hair. I had on very minimal make up, all that I was allowed and I walked. I walked like I was walking around the mall. No sass, just do this as fast as I can and I can get off. After I was done I told Nicole "let's go to Wet Seal!" We go shopping and finally head back there and they are yelling at me that I was one of the top ten and I had to walk AGAIN! Ugh! So I did it again, I still remember this dude in the front looked like he was going to throw up at me. Like I was the last thing he wanted to see when going to a fashion show at a mall. Well I didn't win, but there was my first agent who I was with for 7 years. She sent me to New York and was a great part of my life for those years.

Why am I sharing this story? I guess because I think when people hear that I was modeling at 13 it was because my mom was some type of stage mom and she started me that young. It was so accidental it is humorous. My mom was the last thing from a stage mom, she always said when I didn't get a job, no big deal, this is for fun. She let me go to NY at 14, but it was a joint decision. And I am pretty sure it killed her. I am so glad she let me go though, what an amazing experience it all was. I went when I was 15 as well, but quit at 16 for a dumb boy. She never once ever pushed me into anything and in Italy when I was 18 and I felt pressured there to pose nude and I didn't want to be there, she told Homer (that was his real name) that this wasn't the place for me and we went home. She was so not ever a stage mom.

Now Andi is cute. Adorable when she isn't the devil. I think man she would be cute in commercials. And I ask myself, would I ever think of starting her in that lifestyle? Would I ever get her head shots and drive her from audition to audition? Now I am not a motivated person so I doubt I ever would, but my decision was granted for me when she brought these school pictures home. I will never have to worry about myself needing to be a stage mom.

OMG!

I just got Internet access here at work right now. It is 2:20pm. You know how long I have been at work today actually working? It is absolutely disgusting! I mean my desk it getting cleaned off, I did things before they were be late. What is this world coming to?????

Ok in all seriousness I am concerned about my Lily bug. I am going to update her site more with details, but she had a pretty huge seizure last night and I would have never known had I not had a huge case of insomnia and was up from 2:30am - 5am watching all my TIVO'd Project Runways. I heard some noise coming from her room at 5am and went in and sure enough full tonic/clonic seizure. She has been off the med we were weaning for one week tomorrow and I thought all was well. I am going to give it a few more days and see if she has anymore. If she does she is back on that med and not starting this new study she is supposed to start in January.
Wish us luck. Pray if you do so. I can't go back to seizures all the time. I just can't.

Fun times tonight! We are going on Lily's school bus around town to look at lights! We did this last year and it was really fun. Andi gets to go and she is dying since she is so jealous every day Lily gets to ride the bus.
Fingers crossed it is a seizure free, fun bus ride!
Happy Weekend!

Wanna know?

You wanna know what we got our dog, Hailey, for Christmas? Let me see..... blood panel, meds to go to sleep, 4 x-rays, a pedicure, three meds and diet food. Oh and she is now a contestant on "The Biggest Looser" doggy style... oops now who is going to google that and find me... crap. Oops I did it again.
Well Hailey got herself a $530 Christmas and we will now go hungry this Christmas. Happy you old arthritis ridden dog! Ok, I love Hailey, I just really didn't love her THAT much. Next time, you are just limping. Ok, I am kidding again. We love Hailey. You are totally worth all our grocery and Christmas money.
Now having to remember her meds 2x a day along with Lily's 3x a day? I really needed to have gone into a nursing program.

So today we stopped at Starbucks on the way to work and Andi got her kids hot coco and I tried the new peppermint white chocolate mocha, isn't that redundant btw, a little too much peppermint for me, but when I handed Andi her hot coco she said "I need a sleeve."
Too much Starbucks, you think?

Not Gonna Lie

So I am cheesing out in my office listening to Jessica Simpson's Christmas Album and I have to admit, I miss Nick and Jessica. They were so cute. I loved their Christmas special when they sang "Baby it's Cold Outside". She looked BETTER with him. It is just sad. Sure he seems happy with wild one Vanessa, but wouldn't that be a reunion we would all love to see.... hey then they could sing the duet "reunited" on another we got back together special. Oh and while were at it.... could we get Brad and Jenn back together?

When all else fails....

Watch this video. Watching this video makes all the difficulties from this weekend seem to go away. All the car seat tantrums... all 5 of them, the difficult and long line to see Santa, the "I don't want to wear that!" tantrum... all that this weekend was filled with didn't matter b/c this is what I will remember from this weekend.



This is sooo special because Lily is not an easily amused child so this is a true gem!