Hand-me-Downs From My Ex's Ex

In what world do you take hand-me-down girl clothes from your ex's ex? Well, in MY crazy, mixed-up world.

Why not? The clothes are awesome. My girls love hand-me-downs (free!). They get brand new clothes for birthdays and Christmases sometimes, and they love those. But they are SO happy when they get a bag of girl clothes from someone. And my budget is thrilled.

This is one of those Wonders of Facebook. You've heard of it being used for evil ... connecting with past loves when you are still married, contacting people you hate and being mean on their wall, using the instant message feature to try to get people to talk smack about other people.

Then there are the good things, which I have experienced many of. Meeting my ex-husband's second wife is one of the good things. She is cool, she is sweet. I like her. She has a son the same age as Callie, and we're going to hook up at a fast-food germ joint sometime to let the kids play.

Then there's that thing where we've been through some of the same crazy crap. It's like we're war survivors or something, to put it in an overly dramatic way. Stay tuned ...

Muffins, Mexican Oatmeal & TT Casserole ... All in a Day's Work

Recently I got all industrious and decided to take half a day to get some meals in the freezer for those nights when we're busier than a one-legged man in an ass-kickin' contest.

I got out the blueberries we picked over the summer and made some muffins (the trick is to sneak in some wheat germ to make them super healthy!)

Then I threw a bunch of chicken boobs in the crockpot for the morning. When they were done, they left me with a great broth for my Mexican Oatmeal. I named it this because I always cook the crap out of the rice, making it resemble oatmeal. It's basically chicken, rice, broth, beans, corn, tomatoes and taco seasoning. Top with sour cream, cheese and avocado. This time I did a huge batch in the crockpot so I could freeze some. I'm actually having some for lunch right now and I'm thinking it should be called Mexican Vomit instead. But it tastes good!

Finally, I used the rest of the chicken to make two chicken tater tot casseroles to freeze. I wanted to show you this obnoxious pan because the lid is like 10 feet high, making it impossible to stack these in my commercial freezer. Tune in tomorrow to see what else I got done that day, and it was not more cooking!

Sam's Man Bag(s) (a.k.a. Murses)

Although Sam's dad might not approve of the following photos, I am a firm believer in having photos of my kids that will be fun for their future spouse to see. Hey, guys gotta carry stuff around, too! I see man purse (murse) modeling in his future!

My THREE New Best Friends

I was running out of my current skincare stuff (Aldi face cream and some Roc knockoff from CVS), so it was time to hit the drugstore for some serious stuff. I headed (with 5 kids, picture it) to the CVS armed with my little ad. I was hunting for L'Oreal's Youth Code Starter Kit.

I don't really care what I use. I went to L'ancome's site because they give out tons of MyPoints with a purchase, but that's because a freaking face lotion is over A HUNDRED BONES. Forget that.

Anyway, the Youth Code stuff was on sale AND was going to fetch me 10 Extra Care bucks, so I was all over that deal. Now I can go back to CVS for the humongo bottle of Ibuprofen and B-12 and save 10 bucks on that purchase! Okay, so the kit was 30 bones, and it's just the STARTER KIT. As I told the poor young guy stocking the aisle who pointed me to the product, "This is like the pusher set. L'Oreal gets you started on this stuff and then you are HOOKED and are spending 30 bones every month with ZERO Extra Care bucks. As my dad would say, 'That's how they get ya.'" (Like my use of quotes? Learned that in Life as Fred Math book #2.)

So I call my new best friends Day, Night and Eye. They all share a last name: Cream. They claim they will tackle the signs of fatigue and stress on my face.

How about signs of ANGER and WORRY, like those freaking parentheses between my eyebrows that these days make me look mad even when I'm happy? You could give me a million bucks right now and I could be grinning and STILL look pissed.

I have applied the stuff liberally over face and neck and if I don't wake up looking like a four-year-old tomorrow, I will be truly pissed! I know Crisco would be cheaper, but it doesn't smell as good.

Someday I'll Be a Cat Woman

So yesterday I broke the news that we'll be getting a dog. Well, Aron's actual stipulation was this: "If Mommy isn't pregnant before Sam turns 3, we'll get a dog."

So, sure, sometimes I feel those baby stirrings when I'm around teeny ones. Then I realize I still have a 27-month-old on my boob who would most likely be THAT KID who tries to put his new baby sibling in the trash when my back is turned. So, no plans for now. Stay tuned, though. I'm pretty sure my mom will disown me if I have another, but she'll live.

Growing up we had the typical dogs and cats. I remember one dog kept jumping the fence. One dog kept digging under it. Then there was the night we went to pick up the Persian cat named Marco (Polo!) so he could breed with Pav (piss and vinegar). It was like watching a double-decker bus walk around the living room, and it was weird for me as a 9-year-old to see that crap! Then they had babies, which we sold.


Later, after I was almost 19 and just had a miscarriage, my boyfriend at the time got me a kitten to make me feel better. Then there was another to keep the first company. Then they had babies, and I had cats sleeping all around my head every night, kneading my hair. This is why family bed is so easy for me now!

Anyway, one of the babies would not eat. We had no money but raced to the animal hospital in the middle of the night to buy a teeny bottle and formula, and I tried to keep the kitten alive. It didn't work, and she died, and we buried her in the back yard. I think we got a freaking Chow dog after that. Big mistake.

What's my point? That I'm not exactly excited about getting an animal because I already have 5 of them (just kidding!). I'm just hoping I have the energy to clean up after a sixth little person ... poop, pee, puke, hair, chewed up shoes, doctor visits, baths. The kids will, of course, pick up a ton of the slack there. I want it to sleep in our bed, but Aron already says no. Meanie.

So what kind of dog should we get? I don't like shedding but like some fur. Nothing yappy. We borrowed a shih tzu (I like that it has a cuss word in it's breed) and it rocked. Nothing too big or too small. Something calmish for Michael (remember, his speed of animal is turtle or crab, NOT hyper dog).