Mommy plus Five

My 365...

Happy Sunday world.  Hope you had a fabulous weekend.  :)

Mine was very restful and relatively uneventful.  Garrett and Kori are coming for dinner this evening.  Spending time with my family is always a great way to end the weekend...or start the week ahead.

They are here!  My gorgeous baby boy and his beautiful love Kori.  His left shoulder still looks so droopy and it is still hurting him, poor baby.  He should be wearing a sling until it heals, but he is so stubborn like his mama.
 They even brought Miss Stella.  They drove over in Kori's car and not the truck so no Supra. Great Dane Supra is too big to fit in Kori's car.  I miss him!  They have to bring him over the next time.

I reconnected with so many old friends this weekend thanks to Facebook.  Wonderful ladies I went to high school with, and even some friends from grade school.  "Go Bulldogs!" Facebook is such an amazing medium. Sure it can get addictive...you all know what I am talking about...but it has been nothing but wonderful for me.  Especially now that I live 2000 miles from Texas!  Keeping in touch with family and friends on Facebook is just as easy as picking up a phone only you have pictures too.  Thank you Facebook.  You rock.  :)

My photo of the day...

This single delightful little dandelion is right outside the window by my desk.  It has somehow managed to escape a certain "death by lawn mower", so I feel the need to protect her.  Isn't she beautiful?  Silly little weed full of surprises.  Just like me.  :)

I am not sure what I am fixing for dinner, but if it is something sexy I will update.  ;)

**Update** Kori and Garrett have requested "Mexico" food as he calls it...lol  So I will be making some "Arroz con Pollo" for my babies.  Mexico food...I think Garrett has been away from Texas too long.  :P



Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ Love,

My 365...

Last night the boys noticed that our favorite game Terraria had some game updates.  We were so excited that we had to start a server and all play together from our different computers.  We had so much fun playing!  The only bad thing was that I was not paying attention to the time.  Casey looked up at the clock and said..."Uhmm mom, it is 4:00 A.M.!"

ACK!!

Fun is fun, but 4:00 A.M. is nuts.  Being a Friday, I was not too upset, but got everyone to bed just the same.

This morning, or shall I say this afternoon, Casey came in and said "Time to get up mom!"  So I did.  Went into the kitchen to get a glass or OJ, fed the dogs, started the day...and no boys?  When in to check on them and they were BOTH sound asleep.

I woke them up and Blake did his early morning routine.  He leaps out of bed, then shuffles around the house behind me until I stop and give him a hug.  He is so cute, he looks like a little old man needing some serious caffeine until he gets his "mama" hug, then he is fine and all is right with the world.  <3

He went over to sit on the chair at my desk still looking a little dazed and confused....

"I am going to lay on the sofa for a little while and watch TV, is that okay mom?"

 "Sure baby."  A few minutes later.....Zzzzzzzzzzz.....

 My boys...gotta love em.  :)

I turned on my laptop and was greeted by this message.
Really HP?  You are a brand "freaking" new laptop!  What is your mid-life crisis?

I managed to fix the problem, and then quickly did a backup of all my files.  It was back-up time anyway, and fortunately with Blogger, FaceBook and Momolog, almost all my information is stored safely on line.  So maybe a reformat today.  When things start running sluggishly, I get annoyed so a reformat is always a good thing.

Music I am listening to today...Martina McBride.

Until next time..."Maybe if you took two seconds to figure out why you are so mad, you will realize how ridiculous you are being."

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ Love,

I was not in the mood for "Fast Food Friday", so instead I made some good "Tex Mex" food.

Chili-Cheese enchiladas, Mexican rice and shredded carrot salad.

 Here is all you need, and total mommy or daddy time in the kitchen is only 30 minutes.

 For starters, you want to soften your corn tortillas.  You can do it 2 ways, one in the microwave...but that makes for dry enchiladas, or dip them in some hot oil.  Once the oil is hot, you simply dip the tortillas in for a few seconds until soft, then stack them on a plate for enchilada assembly.  You don't want to leave them in the oil for too long or you end up with crispy nacho tortilla.  Not easy to roll when crispy.  :P

The great thing about enchiladas is that you can vary the recipe any way you like.

Tonight I placed shredded cheese on the tortilla and rolled them.  Any kind of cheese will work.  Cheddar, Monterrey Jack or a mixture of both.  I think I might avoid cottage cheese.  Although you never know until you try it.  Just kidding!!  You can add anything you like to the cheese filling before you roll.  Jack likes onion and jalapeno added, the boys just like plain cheese.

Place the rolled/filled tortillas in a casserole pan and line them up.

Take your can of chili either with or without beans, add to a separate pan to heat on the stove.  I like to add a can of stewed tomatoes or tomato sauce to the chili for flavor. You can also add fresh green onion and cilantro, garlic, salt and pepper to taste.  Heat the mixture all the way through.

Pour the heated chili mixture over the top of your rolled/stuffed tortillas.  Add another layer of shredded cheese and place in a 400 degree oven.  It is ready when the cheese is melted.  Only takes 10 - 15 minutes or so.  Once out of the oven add some diced tomatoes, chopped green onions, cilantro and fresh jalapeno.  My food has to have a lot of color!

For the rice, I coat the bottom of a pan with a little oil.  Take two cups of white rice (or brown if you eat healthy) some garlic, salt and pepper and brown the rice a bit in the oil. Brown...not burn.  Once the rice is brown toss in some green onion and chopped carrots. Top with 3 1/2 cups of water, 1/2 cup of tomato sauce and a chicken or beef bullion. Bring to a boil, throw in some fresh cilantro, lower the heat, cover and steam,  Cook until done.  Notice I add cilantro to everything?  I love cilantro!

Sometimes I like to add finely chopped potatoes to the rice before boil.  Or if Brandon is "not" coming for dinner...peas.  Brandon hates peas!

The carrot salad is easy.  Grate some carrots...stir in some Mayo.  Very simple...very easy.  My grandmother always put Mayo in her rice.  My solution to that is a nice cold shredded carrot salad served "next" to my rice, then they accidentally (on purpose) run into each other.  You would be surprised how good Mayo and Mexican rice taste together.

It is really easy cooking and so delicious!  You can vary up the enchiladas many different ways.  My favorite is rolling some cooked shredded chicken breast into the tortillas with the cheese. For the topping, pour some tomatillo sauce either home made or canned over the top.  Into the oven until the cheese in melted and then top with sour cream and fresh avocado.  Yummy!

Herdez canned Salsa Verde is very good.  Much easier than making your own tomatillo sauce and just as tasty.  At least I think it is.

For desert....who has room for desert after a meal like this?  Who am I kidding...ice cream is good.  :)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ

My 365...


How is it Friday already?  Seems like I was just celebrating that the weekend was here and it was Friday...yesterday?  Hard to believe we have already gone through another week, and are nearing the end of another month.  I wonder if time just passes more quickly the older you get?  That is backwards.  When we are young, time can't move fast enough for us.  "I can't wait to be out of high school!  I can't wait to be 18!, I can't wait till summer vacation....."  Now every day feels like a series of  "Yay it is Friday!"  So curious don't you think?

All the more reason to blog and take photos so you can look back and see what you enjoyed, or maybe what you might have missed.

This blog has become so important to me for that reason.  The older you get, the harder it is to remember.  At least for me it is.  I envy the older generations who can sit with you and recall every minute detail of their fascinating lives.  I love that.  For me, I have trouble remembering what happened this morning....lol  I do have flashes of memory here and there, but if there were a magic pill to bring it all back, I would definitely stand in line to purchase it.  With my luck the line would be very long and by the time I made it to the front I would not remember why I was there.  :)

One of my cousins posted some family pictures of a gathering they had at Brakenridge Park in San Antonio.  Those pictures brought back so many memories.  We used to have family picnics and birthday parties at this park, and daddy always packed our fishing poles so we could get some fishing done in the San Antonio river using mom's home made flour tortilla dough as bait.  I love memories like that.

That is why I blog my story.  Not for anyone else but me, and my babies.  I am no writer, photographer or professional anything but a mom.  A mom with a story that she never wants to forget.  This blog is a place for my children to look back and see what was happening when they were younger.  I sincerely appreciate this medium.  It provides secure blank pages for me to write our book. Thank you Blogger!  And for anyone else reading my blog...thank you for joining us.  Come on over any time...I will leave the porch light on.  :)




Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ Love,

My Kowboy Klops came out delicious!
Ingredients:

Jimmy Dean Sausage
Jiffy Corn Muffin mix.
Veg. oil.
Cucumber
Tomato
Jalapeno

 I rolled the Jimmy Dean into small meatballs, sauteed, then covered and let cook for a good 25 minutes or so on low.  I like to make sure my balls are cooked through.  :)

 Follow the directions on the Jiffy Corn Muffin mix.  One egg, 1/3 cup of milk is all you need per box of mix.  This corn bread mix can be pretty sweet, so you may want to add some savory seasoning if that is your preference.
 Drain the balls on some paper towel, roll those puppies in your cornbread, and plop into your hot veg. oil. 

You don't want the oil to be too hot or the outside will crisp before the inside is cooked...you want crispy balls, but not raw ones.  lol

Drain them on paper towel and your done!

If you want gravy on the side, I drain the grease out of the frying pan that I used to brown the balls.  Add a tablespoon or 2 of butter, and 2 tablespoons of flour.  Season with salt, pepper and cayenne into a roux, then add milk to consistency.  I like hot and spicy, so lots of the cayenne!

With the leftover cornbread mix, you can pour in a pie pan and bake for some yummy cornbread.  Or drop by spoon full into hot oil and make hush puppies that you can dust with powdered sugar or drizzle with honey for desert.  (Then not eat cornbread again for at least a month.)

Cooking time about an hour.

Serve up with sliced cucumber, tomato and jalapeno and a nice tall glass of OJ on ice.

When I cook I seldom measure, so Paula Dean I am not...but dinner was delightful.  :)


Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ Love,

My 365...


Good Afternoon world. :)

Summer is officially here!  Other than vacations, I do not understand why people get so excited about summer.  Blech!  The weather is dreadful!  Now starts the 4 - 6 weeks of pure hot.  *sigh*


The storm last night must have cooled things down a bit though, today it is not too bad.

Speaking of storms, we really enjoyed it.  Once the power was restored, and I was able to convince Blake that it was not the apocalypse (poor baby is not fond of storms), we enjoyed watching the lightning from the safety of indoors.  It seemed like the entire neighborhood was outside watching.  We heard a lot of "ahhhh's" and "ohhhh's", then a major strike would hit and all we heard was "inside, everybody inside!"  It was a bit funny.

Summer time is storm season around here and we usually enjoy that unless the storms cause wild fires.  It is fire season too, and living at the base of the foothills we worry a little.  Fortunately Boise has one of the best fire departments around, and they get things under control fairly quickly.  We do have many crews in other states lending a hand in their fires.  The National Interagency Fire Center is located here in Boise.

And now for today's news.....

Nothing new to report!  Which is a good thing.  After a few exciting days it is nice to have normal easy calm days.  The only stress for me right now is hoping that Garrett's Ortho appointment goes well tomorrow.  Jack has been looking into a transfer with his company.  So far they have offered him two, the downtown Boise location or the Eagle location.  Unfortunately for me...they are both in Boise so I was underwhelmed.  I really want Oregon!  Second choice for me would be Utah.  We shall see.

This will be the last free week for the boys.  I plan to start their summer class next week.  It will only be an hour a day, so they should not complain too badly.  It will be fun.

**Update**

Amber posted new pictures of baby Cooper, so of course grandma had to swipe at least one!  He is sooooo precious.  :)

Thank you Amber.  :)


My photo of the day...

Introducing "Larry, Mo and Curly!"  Not really...it is more like ""Ginger, Thurston Howell. III., and Gilligan."



 My doggy loves.  :)


"Uhmm mama, can you make Lilly hurry up please?  We really have to go here!"

"Patience boys, one must never rush a diva!"

Weather forecast for Boise.  Not too bad.


Dinner plans for tonight..."kowboy klops", my Jimmy Dean sausage balls dipped in corn bread batter and fresh cucumber tomato salad.  (I will update with a picture after dinner.)

Music I am listening to today...Wynton Marsalis.

Until next time..."Take two seconds out of your day to snap a picture.  That is a memory that will last a lifetime."


Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ Love,

Tonight we had a crazy severe lightning storm.  At first I thought it was fireworks, because tonight was opening night for the Boise Hawks, and they usually celebrate that with a nice fireworks display that echos through the valley.  But when the flashes started, I realized it was not fireworks.

We have been in Boise sine 1996, and I don't remember lightning as severe as it was tonight.  I was outside shooting pictures when a strike hit the power pole just across the street around the block.  The following explosion was crazy!  And it took out the power for just under two hours.

After that happened the boys ordered me inside!  There were several strikes a little too close for comfort.

I shot the first part of this video through the living room window using my HTC Evo 4G.  When the battery died, Casey took over with the Pentax.



Mother Nature put on quite a show!

The lightning did spark several foothills fires, but nothing too serious as far as I can tell.  Here is the local news story from KTVB , along with some pretty amazing photographs!

One thing I realized tonight is that I need to upgrade my camera equipment.  We really enjoyed trying to capture images tonight, but my camera does not quite have what it takes.  I need a big girl camera.  :)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ