Mega

Okay, so why does it take me so long to figure things out?  My husband wonders how I make it through life sometimes.  Usually every morning he is the witness to our chaotic fluttering about as we get ready for school. I suppose this will carry on for a number of years- as we have three girls (and three bathrooms thank the Lord!) 

After almost 3 weeks of school, I am still trying to iron out the kinks in our routine.  I never want to be one of those moms who is swooping in 5 minutes late to everything. You see her rushing and snapping.  She is exasperated and thrown together.  Her children follow her- running to keep up, their backpacks unzipped and papers falling out.  She forgets appointments and never returns phone calls. She is unreliable and a mess. Hmmm, why do I know this woman so well ????  Perhaps it is not quite that bad...but it feels like I must appear that way some days!

I thought about it- and the biggest hang-up we have in the mornings is breakfast. (okay finding matching knee high socks that don't have "dark, yucky, shoe stains" is another time waster.)  Remember the muffins?  Well, we can't eat another muffin for about 6 months or more.  Totally burned out on cranberry oatmeal pecan.  I never thought that I would say that.

Currently, waffles are all the rage.  I do my best to make them in huge batches on the weekend and freeze them for quick toasting during the week.  They also love english muffins.  I love them as well because the provide a platform for peanut butter- my favorite food (and good protein).  These are easy right?  All you have to do is toast them.  Well, we had a toaster with two slots, one of which turned things out extra crispy.  There are 5 of us, and one working toaster slot.  Do the math...lots of finger drumming on the counter waiting for the next waffle to go in.  By the time I had served one- and made another...they were asking for seconds!  I could literally sit there and be toasting for 20 minutes.  Solution:

The monster mega toaster!  Why didn't I think of this earlier?  Genius.

More finger tapping at the coffee maker.  I usually like to brew my coffee with a stove top espresso pot and then add foamy milk.  Yeah, not so practical anymore.  This luxury is now enjoyed in the afternoon when life is not spinning out of control at a million miles per hour.  The bigger issue is that Carl drinks regular coffee and I drink decaf.  One coffee maker, two different kinds of coffee to be brewed. This created a lot of tension over who got to go first and how long their coffee would be allowed to sit there before the other person came along and dumped it out to make their own. Tick, tick, tick, can't you just hear me getting later and more snippy by the minute?  Solution:

Super mega, monstrous, "looks-like-it-should-be-working-the-breakfast-shift-at-Denny's" coffee maker.  Regular on the left, decaf on the right.  Whew, that was the invention of the century!  Brilliant!  Yes, these appliances are huge. And no, they do not add to the charm of my decor-- but at some point being practical wins over (geez I really am almost 30 aren't I?).

So you see, little by little I am changing my image.  Before you know it I will be early and fresh faced.  My children will be well rested and put together- no jelly on their faces.  We will walk to their classrooms and bask in the orderliness of our morning.

....or maybe I'll just be on time.

a little comfort

My friend had surgery a few weeks ago and she is supposed to be "taking it easy".  This prescription for light duty is somewhat hilarious (and totally unrealistic) because she has three children under 6.  I scooped her kids up and we spent the afternoon together while their mommy got some much needed rest. I didn't want to send them home without some "real food" to eat for dinner (earlier in the week I took them a pizza).  I just happened to have all the ingredients on hand for one of my favorite comfort food recipes. I have used this yummy formulation for new mamas, neighbors, and today for my tired friend.

 

It is perfect for this time of year, using up all kinds of squash excess that so many of us find ourselves with at the end of the season.  The recipe is found in this book.  I am pretty sure that I am not supposed to publish it here without the author's permission...so I guess that you'll have to check it out for yourself. 

MMMM, nothing like a hug from a squash. I can only make things like this for other people.  My husband would ask, "where's the beef?"

Heading off to do some late night sewing while watching this crazy funny show...hope to have some progress to report tomorrow.

preparations

This morning I woke up at 7:24am. School starts on Wednesday.  Seven-Thirty is precisely the time that we will need to leave the house.  Hmm...showers, uniforms, hair, teeth, breakfast, backpacks, carpool--all before 8:00am.  Chaotic.

In effort to brace ourselves for these early morning adventures my little friend and I did some organizing. Don't you hate mixing dry ingredients?  For me, that is the most dreaded part of any recipe. 

Laurel helped me put together some pre-made mixes for our favorite muffins and pancakes. She was the raisin girl. 

Now, on those busy school mornings, all I have to do is add the milk, eggs and oil. This will hopefully leave more time for coffee. And err, getting the girls ready in a more orderly manner. (maybe the two go hand in hand)

So, the uniforms are dusted off.

The lunch bags are ready to be filled. The car is washed, vacuumed, and awaiting little passengers.  Everything is prepared...except our hearts- which for the next 2 days, will be bidding farewell to summer.