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I hurt myself today…

by stepping on the scale. I knew it was bad. I suspected just where the number would fall, but secretly, desperately hoped I might be mistaken. Nope. Twenty pounds. Twenty enormous, insurmountable pounds from fitting into any of the pants in my closet, from having pain free joints, from being able to take the stairs without getting winded.

Yuck.

They say the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and yet it seems I’ve already taken so many. The Couch to 5k plan was sidelined by my bursitic hip. Walking dates with friends were scheduled, canceled, re-scheduled, then canceled again at the whim of weather, conflicting schedules and sick children. So I suppose the real trick is not just in taking that first step, but in taking the second and the third and then — upon reaching the inevitable roadblock — making the leap of faith onto another path, leapfrogging, zigzagging, pushing ahead.

Just the thought is exhausting, especially when I realize there’s no real “end” to this journey. But there’s some small part of me, the more adventuresome bit, who thinks the whole ordeal sounds like fun. Wish me luck!

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By jodi – November 9, 2010

Tommy talk…

Mom, can you get my play-doh out?
No, but you can do it yourself.
Ummm…No, I can’t.
Mmmm…yes, you can.
Ummm…No, I can’t.
Then don’t play with it.
Ummm…Okay, yes I can.
Mmmm…that’s what I thought.
Mommy, you’re so funny.

Please, God, could you make it be this easy forever? How about at least until bedtime?

Posted in Family & Relationships, Kids, Uncategorized.

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By jodi – November 8, 2010

Yellow

Least said easiest mended. That’s what my mother told me over and over as my unguarded tongue landed my unwilling body in yet another pot of hot water.

Better to err on the side of caution.

When in doubt, don’t.

Little aphorisms, oft repeated, lie buried inside me – dark and quiet – only to surface, like fossils, during emotional earthquakes or floods.

And so I sat today, lips pressed shut, afraid to anger people whose names I barely know and whose faces I might fail to recognize out of context. Sat mute in my folding chair, tacitly agreeing, while every fiber in me strained with dissent.

“If only my husband were here to back me up,” I fretted while my thoughts turned and churned around an idea, a protest, a gesture…anything to set myself apart from this group of kind, well-meaning people who nodded and smiled as a vile soup, slick and caustic, poured from one mouth to the next. “He’d know just what to say,” I assured myself, “without burning bridges or causing hurt.” Not like me. Too blunt, too direct, too much altogether — able to seize defeat from the jaws of victory with my temper and my tongue.

Unsure of how to proceed, I ached and seethed in silence. Ruffled no feathers. Disturbed no sacred cows.

Shifting in my seat, I glanced furtively for faces whose rigor matched my own, and finding none, stared entranced as the clock crawled inexorably on. A topic shift — banal, unobjectionable – and finally the finish. My mad scrabble for belongings was my only tell.

And so I fled, coward-like, racing through a gauntlet of pleasantries I couldn’t match. Friendly gazes seeking mine as if to confirm our solidarity. Eyes locked on the empty hallway, I willed them to recognize the gulf between their thoughts and mine. Was that me begging pardon as I pushed toward the door?

And now I sit, ashamed, numbering the family, friends and strangers I’ve wronged with silence today. Wondering how to make it up, or if the time has slipped through my nerveless fingers.

Least said might be easiest mended. But sometimes saying nothing can carve the deepest wounds of all.

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By jodi – November 7, 2010

Listen Up!

After Will had correctly answered Dora the Explorer’s televised question for the umpteenth time (‘Largo. Largo! LARGO!!’), he turned to me with a frustrated face and said, “Her’s not listening very good.”

It’s one of her greatest failings, if you ask me.

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By jodi – November 3, 2010

Halloween Mash-up

Bells recently pointed out to me that I don’t post enough pictures. She’s 100% right on that one. I don’t take enough pictures either. It just seems like I never find the time. Time to take pictures, time to blog, time to be much of anything outside the “lady-who-keeps-the-underwear-clean”, but I decided tonight I would make the time for a little recap of just how far we’ve come — starting with Halloween 2007. Sure the boys were born in 2006, but they’d only been home from the hospital a month at Halloween, were quarantined from all outside contact, and where do you find preemie Halloween costumes anyway? So just ignore 2006 and we’ll start with The Year of Spiderman and his 3 Spider Friends.

Here we see two of our Spider Friends, Tom and Sam, putting on their base layer. I will probably never be forgiven for this picture.
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And here we see Spider Friend Will’s feelings about his base layer,
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…his spider costume,
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…and his spider hat.
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Honestly, this is what Will thought of 2006, 2007 and much of 2008. But things did eventually get better. We managed one good pic of everyone, but if you look closely you’ll notice the sparkle of fresh tears in each of the Spider Friends’ eyes.
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Here we are at our finest Halloween hour, The Year of the Big Bad Wolf and the Three Little Pigs. I think this will always stand out as the ultimate in themed costumes for all four boys. Can’t you just hear Tom saying, “You a pink piggy, Sammy!”
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In 2009, Spiderman had grown into this cocky little Fire Chief.
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And where’s a fire chief without his band of firemen? Here’s Sam almost ready to go.
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Will, complete with fire truck props in the background. You have to appreciate the level of commitment there.
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And then there’s Tom, doing…well, only Tom knows for sure.
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And this brings us to 2010 — The Year Where Everyone Picks Their Own Costume. Sam and Will are Wolverine and Thomas the Tank Engine respectively. And both have indulged heavily in Mommy’s Vampire Punch — somehow it just tastes better on Halloween than it does every other day of the year (when we call it Fruit Punch).
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Tom is Captain America and Jack is a Ghostbuster. And of course, both of them are very scary.
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The best part was Tom’s commitment to character. He corrected all and sundry who made the mistake of calling him Tom by pointing to his chest and saying with just the right hint of disdain, “That’s Captain America!”

No wait! Maybe the best part was Jack’s getting a kiss on the cheek from the cutest girl in his kindergarten class. “She loves me,” he informed me. “And I think she likes me, too!”

Or was the best part Will’s permanent Vampire Punch mustache that outlasted his bath and is still holding on this evening?

No, the best part was Sam placidly kicking back on the hay munching candy as Will and Tom scurried from house to house collecting handouts. “Don’t you want to trick or treat anymore, Sam?” I asked.

“No,” he replied around a mouthful of chocolate. “My Will gonna get me canny. I just riding.”

Nice.

I’m with you Sam. Just along for the ride.

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By jodi – November 1, 2010

Holy Moly

What is this thing anyway?

OOOoohh! That’s right. It’s supposed to be a blog. Where I write things. Things that are hopefully funny or interesting or poignant or maybe all three.

Today it would be the place where I write about vomit viruses and doctor visits and ear infections and disheveled houses and…well, quite frankly tons and tons of topics that fall into NONE of the above categories. So, we’ll just chat later. M’kay?

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By jodi – October 26, 2010

Jodi’s Kickin’ Italian Chicken

O.k., so I promised a great main dish to go with my favorite side, right? Well…here’s a chicken recipe so good, that I finally have to call a halt to the boys’ extra helpings. If you like your chicken with a little bit of crunch, then you’ll love this one. Bear in mind that I’m cooking to feed a small army, so feel free to halve this one if you’re cooking for 2-4. Or make the full recipe and use it for a slightly different dish the following night.*

– 2 lbs. chicken cutlets (can also use turkey cutlets — these are sliced much thinner than breasts and can be cooked quickly)

– 1 pkg. Panko Breadcrumbs with Italian Seasoning

– 6 oz. tub shredded parmesan (can also use a blend of Italian cheeses like Fontina, Asiago, Parmesan)

– 4 eggs

– 1 c. all-purpose flour

– salt

– pepper

– butter

– olive oil

On your counter — preferably right by your cooktop — line up three shallow dishes. In the first place the flour, seasoned with 1 T. pepper and 1 t. salt. In the second crack and beat the eggs. In the third, combine the breadcrumbs with the cheese. If possible line it up where you have chicken, flour, egg, breadcrumbs, frying pan. It will cut down on the cleanup later, trust me.

One hand is Wet and one is Dry. Using the hand designated for wet, pick up the raw chicken cutlet and drop it in the flour. Use your dry hand to flip the chicken and shake off the excess flour, then drop the floured cutlet it in the egg. Back to wet hand to pluck it from the egg and drop it in the breadcrumb/cheese mixture. Dry hand presses and pats the coating on, then takes the coated cutlet to the frying pan.

Your pan should be pre-heated over Medium to Medium High heat. To the hot pan add 2 T. olive oil and 1 T. butter. Give it 30 seconds to heat up, then carefully place your cutlets in the pan. You must be able to cook the cutlet approximately 3-4 minutes each side without burning the coating, so drop the heat if necessary. Work in batches of 3-4. Crowding makes for lousy browning, so make sure they have a little room in between. Remove to a cooling rack placed over a jellyroll pan (to catch any drippings) and place in a warm oven while you work on the remaining cutlets. Serve with my favorite side dish (S.T.O.P) and you’ve got a really easy, really great dinner on your hands.

*If you’ve made the whole batch and only need half, save the rest for the following night and serve over pasta with a nice red sauce. I recommend this one unless you want to use bottled. And there ain’t no shame in that. Easy Peasy wins every time.

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By jodi – October 22, 2010

Sam…

…busy, buzzy Sam. While I putter around the kitchen, making breakfast for 4 little boys and putting some tea on to brew, Sam chatters.

“Mmmhmm?” I say. Or “Really?” And sometimes a “Well, my goodness!”

Whatever it takes to keep his sweet face smiling while I go about my routine. It’s all that is required most of the time, but this morning, he seems to be repeating a request and there’s a tug on my pant leg.

“Jack not go with me, but you follow me?”

I take a moment to ascertain that I’m between tasks and decide there’s no harm in seeing what he’s up to. He takes my hand and leads me down the hall, his bare feet slap, slap, slapping out the rhythm to the tune I’ve labeled “Little Boy Walking.” I make a note to remember how much I love this sound just in time to realize we’ve arrived. In the powder room at the end of the hall, we find a stash of treasures that would make Aladdin proud. There’s a stuffed dog with crinkly ears, a blue car and a red one, and a huge plastic ring he chose for his prize during the Candy Corn Bingo game at church. He names each one as he gathers it into his arms, then smiles his big, toothy grin to let me know we’ve accomplished our objective.

We turn together and head back toward the kitchen. Slap, slap, slap — Stop!

I look down and raise a questioning eyebrow.

“Mommy, you hold ‘dis so I can hold your hand?”

We make the transfer — crinkly-eared dog, red car, then the blue. Finally, tongue between his teeth, he slips the ring on my index finger, and looks up at me expectantly.

“Wonderful!” I say. “Now we can hold hands!”

Sam slips his warm hand in mine. I feel his little fingers squeeze. Slap, slap, slap. He hums a happy song to himself and I smile…and try to walk a little slower.

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By jodi – October 20, 2010

Pit STOP!

S.T.O.P. — Squash, Tomatoes, Onions and Peppers — my favorite side dish ever. Here are the specifics:

– 2 Large yellow squash (summer squash), sliced

– 1 large Vidalia onion, sliced (if you can’t get Vidalia where you are, just be sure it’s a sweet onion)

– 1 bell pepper (for extra sweetness, use a yellow one)

– 1 can diced tomatoes, undrained

– 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced

– 2 T. fresh basil, chopped

– 4 T. butter

– salt and pepper to taste

– 1/3 c. water

Place everything in a large sauce pan with a lid. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer until squash is tender (30 minutes or so — I throw it all together and let it simmer until the main dish is ready). Enjoy!

P.S. — A great main dish pairing is coming up on Friday.

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By jodi – October 20, 2010

Easy Peasy

It’s official, I’m throwing in the towel…at least when it comes to meal times. From now on, nothing that isn’t Easy Peasy will find it’s way onto our table. No more recipes calling for making my own pie crust (refrigerated Pillsbury brand works just fine, thankyouverymuch!), brining my own chicken (ick!), or following a series of steps that stretches across multiple pages of a gourmet cookbook. I’m acknowledging here and now that when it comes to cooking, I’m half-baked at best. So for all you other Half-Baked Chefs who squeeze dinner prep in between Carpool and Karate, here’s the first in my (hopefully) running series of Easy Peasy dinner offerings. This particular recipe received mixed reviews because it involves the color green (*gasp*), but for older children or a Girl’s Lunch (or Drunch, preferably), it’s a knockout. Here ’tis:

-1 large container prepared refrigerated pesto (can also throw in an additional small container if you add extra vegetables, pasta or just like it “saucy”)

-1 small package refrigerated cheese tortellini (skip the multi-colored kind if you have picky eaters, but it’s a nice touch of color if not), cooked and cooled

– 8 oz. corkscrew pasta, cooked and cooled

-1 tub shredded parmesan, use about half and save the rest for another recipe or go nuts and use the whole thing

-1 large jar artichoke hearts (plain or italian seasoned), coarsely chopped

– 8 oz. diced fresh mozzarella

Gently combine all of the above. This is your “base” which you can spice up with any of the following:

– black olives & cherry tomatoes

– blanched asparagus, pine nuts and diced red bell pepper

– lightly steamed broccoli/broccolini/frozen peas or shoestring carrots

– pretty much any leftover steamed, grilled or roasted veggie

If you want to go carnivore, just ditch the cheese tortellini and add some shredded chicken — preferably leftover from the night before or from a nice rotisserie bird you picked up at the grocery store . Only Easy Peasy things, remember?

To make it go even further and to cut down the calorie load, serve a smallish portion over fresh greens with a broth based soup on the side. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination and what your taste-buds can tolerate.

There you have it. Further successful recipes for the Half-Baked cook as they arise.

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By jodi – October 18, 2010