Hair of the Day

I’m taking the rest of the week off from the blog, but I had to tell y’all Happy Memorial Day. And show you some of Honor’s latest hairstyles.

As I mentioned last week, she’s begun to choose her own hair accessories. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true. When I dress her, if I don’t put something in her hair, she reaches for the bows hanging on her door. She usually grabs one that somewhat matches her outfit. Smart girl. Except that she pulls them out of her hair over and over again. The little ponytail holders work so much better.

She also pulls her head bands out and tries to put them on herself. Then she’ll bring them to me and want me to put them on for her. So we just put them on with whatever else she happens to have in her hair.

Her first pigtails. Well, half pigtails, anyway. The back of her hair isn’t long enough to join in just yet.

And, of course, there’s the “Mom attempted to fix my hair today but I didn’t like it” look. She rocks this look more often than I’d like to admit.

Oh well. Every day can’t be a good hair day.

Deep Thoughts from Caedmon

We were driving in the car and, miraculously, the radio was on instead of Veggie Tales. “Stayin’ Alive” came on, and Caedmon asked if it was an “is-tru-middle” (instrumental) because it has the long intro. I said it wasn’t, but some songs had long music before the words started, then explained to Caedmon that this was disco music. And then I proceeded to sing along and possibly embarrass myself and him in the process.

“Mom, is this a boy singing this song?”

“Yes.”

“Well, he sounds like a girl.”

True, son. True.

****

If you’ve been reading my blog very long, you know that my family speaks in movie quotes. It’s like a second language. And Caedmon’s picked up on it. Prouder parents, we could not be.

We had recently watched Phineas & Ferb, the episode where Baljeet gets super smart. Phineas asks to talk to him and he says, “Certainly. I will just use small words.”

So.

The other day, I said to Caedmon, “Hey, come here. I want to talk to you a minute.”

His response was, “Sure. I will just use small words.”

I laughed. And then told him to watch himself.

****

For this last installment, I introduce you to Caedmon’s first vlog.

(For the record, this is what my hair looked like that day.)

And here’s what he had to say about it.

(Also, we made this just before he went to bed. He might’ve been trying to find a way to stall. Maybe.)

Yes. Caedmon said my hair looked like a crab, a stinger, and an octopus. Let it be known that he knows how to give a girl a compliment.

Because Pre-Marital Counseling Doesn’t Prepare You For Everything

So, do you remember when I sparked a bit of a pronunciation debate? (He still pronounces “syrup” wrong.) Or the Twitter debate about whether you keep pancake syrup in the cabinet or the fridge?

Well.

The other night, Husband was grumbling because the lid of the (grape) jelly jar was stuck. And I mean stuck. He finally got it open, and I pointed out the goo in the threads of the lid and jar and said maybe that was the cause. I wondered how in the world it got so bad. Husband is the only one who uses grape jelly at our house. (Caedmon prefers peach on his PB&J’s, and I’m a strawberry jam girl. Honor doesn’t talk yet, so she just eats whatever’s fixed. I’m sure she’ll have a preference soon enough.)

And then I found out how it happened.

Husband was using a butter knife to get jelly out of the jar.

A butter knife, y’all. Oh, the horror.

I’ve never once in my life (that I can recall) used a butter knife to get jelly out of a jar. Because, well, it makes a mess. How can you expect to control jelly with a knife? You just can’t. He said that he’s always used a butter knife for jelly. And that it was the blasted threads in the plastic jelly jar that were the problem, not the knife usage.

Denial. It’s not just a river in Egypt.

And for the past 13 years, I must not have seen Husband use a knife to get jelly, because surely I would’ve corrected him. A spoon. You use a spoon.

These are the things that aren’t covered in marriage counseling or any of the bagillion marriage books out there. One day, you might have to come to the realization that you’ve married someone who’s been getting jelly out of the jar all wrong for his entire life. Or that says you should keep pancake syrup in the fridge. Ugh. How does one deal with such a thing?

I’ll tell you how.

You buy a second bottle of syrup for the fridge and stick to eating strawberry jam. It’s cheaper than counseling. And much easier than convincing him that he’s wrong.

“That Works For Me!”

Quite a while back, I stumbled upon Works For Me Wednesday when it was hosted by Shannon over at Rocks In My Dryer. She passed the torch onto Kristen at We Are THAT Family, and it’s continued to grow. What I love about Works For Me Wednesday is that it’s real tips from real people. Things that actually work for them.

I’ve participated in the link-up quite a bit, and was ecstatic to find out that some of my tips were being featured in a new ebook with tons of tips – all categorized and organized so they’re easy to find and use! Kristen and Jennifer sent me a copy of "That Works for Me!", and y’all, I love it.

You can find so many useful tips for all sorts of things –babies & kids, cleaning, travel, gardening, homeschooling, you name it. As if the awesome tips weren’t enough, a percentage of the proceeds from the sale of “That Works for Me!” are going to support Mercy House Kenya, a ministry that reaches out to young girls who are faced with the possibility of backstreet abortions after being forced into prostitution.

Whew. That’s a mouthful. And a heart-breaking reality.

So, by purchasing a book that helps you, you’re also helping girls half a world away. It’s a win-win.

If you’d like to purchase the “That Works for Me!”, click here or on the link below and go for it!

(This post contains affiliate links.)

Playing Outside

We had great weather last week, and even though Caedmon was sick, we spent quite a bit of time outside. I would’ve wanted to crawl into bed and hibernate with a fever like that, but when you’re four and a half, fever just doesn’t get you down the same way.

We tried some photos together.

Eh. Pictures together are overrated.

But Caedmon got a pretty good photo of Honor and me.

Oz was with us. He was not particularly interested in anything we were doing.

Honor loves being outside. Loves. it.

Caedmon played in the rocks with Daddy’s dump truck.

He also spent a little time running. Again, how he managed that with a fever, I do not know.

Could Oz be less interested? Yes. Yes, he can.

And Honor explored the patio area, finding lots of things to try to put in her mouth.

I love these kids!

Weekend Recap

We had a nice weekend. Most of it, we spent hanging out together, which was nice after Husband being out of town earlier in the week and Caedmon being sick most of the week.

Honor has started making some fashion choices. And while I might question them, I let her go with it. After all, if she wants to choose her own hair accessories, that’s one thing I don’t have to do.

While we were hanging out outside after dinner Saturday night, Caedmon was trying to figure out how to swing on a tree branch off of the top of his slide. Husband coached him a little, and the next thing we knew, Caedmon was full-on Tarzan swinging on a tree branch. He thought it was awesome until he hit the tree trunk. But the knee scrape he got was pretty awesome, too.

Don’t let the picture fool you. There was plenty of whining and wailing over the knee. My sensitive boy is, well, sensitive. By Sunday though, he was ready to show off his battle injury and tell his story.

After church on Sunday, we went to a friend’s birthday party and played at the splash pad. It wore us out. So much so, that Caedmon fell asleep watching TV.

This has happened only once before in his entire life. When he was gravely ill. (I say ‘gravely ill’ because that one time he fell asleep on the couch, I knew he was sick, but I immediately made a doctor’s appointment. The boy really was sick.)

So we’re hoping to enjoy some nice weather this week and maybe hit the pool (Shhh! Don’t tell Caedmon just yet!).

Italian Beans and Rice

I love fast, easy meals. And if they’re healthy, I love them even more.

Husband and I used to eat Red Beans & Rice all the time. We were poor. It was cheap. A package of Mahatma and a box of Jiffy cornbread mix was a quick, cheap dinner. We haven’t eaten red beans and rice much lately (It’s a bit spicy for the kids.), and I was glad to find a substitute for that inexpensive, homey meal.

I found this recipe in the oddest of places – the back of a can of beans. Not a place I’ve ever found a recipe before, but I saw it and knew I had to give it a shot. I’ve now made it a few times and it’s been well received by everybody at our house.

The ingredients are simple. Rice. Cannellini Beans. Italian diced tomatoes. Seasoning. And for good measure, (and to make it “substantial,”) I usually add some smoked sausage. Dinner. Done.

It’s not the prettiest thing I’ve ever made, but it’s good.

Enjoy!

Italian Beans & Rice (from a can of Bush’s Cannellini Beans)

1 can (14.5oz) diced tomatoes with Italian herbs

1 can (15.5oz) Cannellini Beans or Great Northern Beans, drained and rinsed

2/3 cup instant rice

1/4 tsp Italian seasoning or 1/2 tsp dry basil

Pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in medium saucepan. Cook 3-4 minutes, covered over medium-high heat. Uncover pan and continue cooking 2-3 minutes, or until rice is tender. Dish is slightly saucy when completely cooked.

My variations: I typically use regular brown rice, so I pre-cook it. I dump the cooked rice into a skillet with a little bit of oil on medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes, beans, and seasoning. And I never measure, but I probably add more than 1/4 tsp of Italian seasoning. Add salt and pepper. And if I’m adding sausage, I throw that in and cover it, turn down the heat to low and let it simmer for a few minutes. Done!

1,000 Words