Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Tuesday's Terrific Food--Happy Halloween!!


Feeling a mite better today--mainly gastrointestinal issues and weakness. I won't elaborate :) Here's a great recipe for you if you want to make something fun and gross looking for Halloween. I made this for a Halloween party at my last job and it was a hit. Have a look:

http://www.fabulousfoods.com/recipes/dessert/cakes/kittylittercake.html

Monday, October 30, 2006

Monday--Misty's Challenge

I'm challenging myself today--to get over whatever this flu bug is that I have. I attended a couples' retreat over the weekend. Great time, really, until Saturday night. I had been fighting a cold/sinus infection all week, but Saturday night, it turned to a flu of some sort. I couldn't even eat when we went to Patti's Restaurant (great place in the Land Between the Lakes area), and I was so sad. Then after that, we went back to our cabins for some couple sessions/fellowship, and I developed a fever and chills, and was aching all over and had to turn in early. What awful timing. My fever is better, but I'm still weak as a kitten, and have little appetite. I've taken the day off babysitting, and hoping I can be somewhat normal by tomorrow (Halloween). So, my challenge is to me--getting enough rest and TLC to get over this thing, and be able to let go of non-essential chores until then. Any ideas, tips, "remedies" are welcomed. Hopefully tomorrow's post will be less depressing. Hope you all have a flu-free day!

Friday, October 27, 2006

Another Snopes-ed out article!

Have you seen the e-mail claiming that Swiffer Wet-Jet killed someone's pets? I got this one today, and Snopes-ed it out. Here's the article:

http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/swiffer.asp

Friday's Quote to Ponder

"We are so accustomed to disguise ourselves to others that in the end we become disguised to ourselves." Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613-1680)
Never heard of the dear fellow, and don't ask me to pronounce his name, but I came across this quote after browsing a quote website, and I think it fits many of us. Who are you really? Do you know anymore? Has the identity you put on for your family, church, and coworkers made you forget what's truly under the mask? Are you afraid to look? With Halloween upon us, many folks will be hiding behind plastic masks, makeup and wigs, but we often wear unseen masks in our daily lives. Take some time to discover you--remember when you were a teen and in early 20's when you used to have hobbies? Try to dig up one of those old things (something wise, of course) and start it up again.
Another quote comes to mind from "The Lion King"--Simba's father came in a vision and said, "Remember who you are..." Simba had forgotten he was a prince--destined to become king. I think we all have some good destiny in us--it's just hidden behind our disguises, and we forget how to uncover it.
Jeremiah 29:11 says it best: "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." God planned us for great things. This week has been busy, lots of cold complaints, kid stress, wierd work hours, travel, but reading this quote and this verse gives me hope. There is a method to this madness, there is a silver lining, there will be shining moments when I will realize--ahhh, there I am.

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Thursday's Laugh Out Loud!

How cute is this? If you don't think it's cute (ok, kinda corny), but if you don't laugh, I'll have to come tickle you. Hope you all have a funny day--mine's been yucky--until I watched this! Have fun!

WAZZUP

Remember the Budweiser commercials with the "Wazzup" guys? Here's a kids' version :)

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Wednesday's Faves and Flops

I had a hard time coming up with a fave this week. I've been sidetracked by a cold, and hard-pressed to really like anything much this week. But, thinking from past experience, I thought of a good fave and flop. Are you ready?

Wednesday's Fave: Food Network!
I've linked stuff from Food Network before, but for a while, I didn't watch the channel or even look up recipes, but I started watching again this past week. They have some really cute Halloween food shows on this week. Very informative--you learn how many of our favorite Halloween treats are made, and get some good ideas for fun Halloween food. All around, it's a great channel AND a great website. You can look up a multitude of recipes, and what's even better is that people rate the recipes, so you can see how others like it before you try it. The recipes are also rated by difficulty, so if you see one labeled "expert", you may want to save that for later :) I got my favorite pancake and biscuit recipes from there. So, if you're not tuning in to Food Network, at least go clicky on these links and see what you're missing.

And now, dum, dum, ta DUMMM!!! What you've all been waiting for....

Wednesday's Flop: Celebrity Paranormal Project
I was channel flipping the other night, when I came across this gem. I cannot believe some of these stupid reality shows--so, the flop is really directed at all the STUPID reality shows out there. Some of them are so ridiculous--"House of Carters" anyone?
But, this one really put the icing on the ridiculous cake. The episode I watched included Gary Busey (good celebrity D-lister), and a "Survivor Amazon" contestant, among other not-so-well-known celebrities. They were touring the Waverly Hills Sanatorium in Louisville, KY--"Hmm, local place, supposedly haunted, might be interesting", thought I. In the beginning of the tour, one dialogue ensued where the Survivor contestant was proclaiming that she was terrified to enter the place, and Mr. Gary Busey nobly suggested, "Just remember Jesus Christ as your savior, and you'll be fine." "Hmmm, interesting comment--didn't know Gary Busey was a Christian." Then, after a commercial break and some more channel flipping, I return to hear the gallant Mr. Busey screaming in the face of another participant, "Shut the **** up!" Didn't continue to watch at that point. Will never watch again. Sick of TV producers coming up with the stupidest reality TV shows, and people doing anything to get 15 minutes of fame.

Hoped you all liked today's faves and flops--if you have any comments on these or know any other good ones, let me know. Thanks for reading!

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Tuesday's Terrific Food

Edit on 10/25/06: I just noticed the formatting was wierd. Sorry if it confused you. I hope it makes more sense now.

My Zoe the Joy has become Zoe the Tyrant. She is almost 21 months old now and is into everything. She still stays in the playpen fairly well, though she has learned to climb out now, so I have to cook in short bursts. Here is a recipe that will allow you to do that if you have a little tyrant (or not-so-little tyrants) on your hands.

Salsa Chicken
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thawed
Plain bread crumbs Pepper
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
Salt
Pepper
Paprika
Your favorite salsa
Shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray. (To cut down on cooking time, you could cut the chicken breasts in half or in strips.) In shallow dish beat egg with milk. In another shallow dish, mix bread crumbs with an adequate amount of salt, pepper, and paprika. You will need to eyeball it--make sure you have enough bread crumb mixture to coat the chicken. Now, dip each chicken breast or piece in the egg mixture, drip off a little excess, then coat in bread crumb mixture. Place chicken in pan and bake for about 20-25 minutes, depending on the size, then remove from oven and add about 2-3 tablespoons of your favorite salsa over each chicken breast, and top with about 1 tablespoon of shredded cheese. Return to oven and bake for another 5-7 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
*Note: Serve with some instant rice and some quick-cooking frozen veggies for an easy meal.
If you try it, let me know how you liked it. Hope your Tuesday is delicious!

Monday, October 23, 2006

Monday--Misty's Challenge

Sorry it's so late in the day. We had a field trip this morning to the local pumpkin patch with Meg's preschool class, then lunch and a doctor trip for Meg (possible UTI). Anyway, the cold air this morning has my cold in full gear, so I've been down this afternoon until now.

You can see our field trip pics and some other fun trips here: http://desperatehousewifepics.blogspot.com/.

Now, for the day's challenge. I was hard-pressed to find one, since I've been on decongestants and am lucky to remember my name. But, I thought of some advice that I gave a dear friend a long time ago. I told her, "You can't love someone else until you learn to love yourself." So, my challenge for today is love yourself. Now, isn't this going against some of my previous posts? *see Love is a Choice--September 22. I've been really stressing unselfishness and loving others with a servant attitude. Well, think about it--if you don't love yourself (not pridefully or Narcissistically, mind you), how can you really love someone else? God gave you your body, your soul, your life, and if you hate it, you won't be able to extend unselfish love to others. People who don't love themselves tend to speak negatively about themselves or lead unhealthy lifestyles. It rubs off on others. When you learn that you are a unique creation, deserving of love, when you really love and accept yourself, you begin to see your good qualities, you begin to want to take better care of yourself. When you're ok with yourself, you're better able to extend love to others.

So, kiddos, give yourself a pat on the back and say right now, "I love me. I'm ok." Now, think about ways you tend to neglect yourself. Do you eat badly? Do you smoke? Do you not get enough sleep or exercise? Do you often say negative things about yourself--"I'm too fat, I hate my hair, I can't do ___." Turn some things around. Think of things you are GOOD at, take a look in the mirror and see your good features. Remember some good compliments others have given you, and make the decision to love yourself--you and your loved ones will be glad you did.

Friday, October 20, 2006

Friday's Quote to Ponder

It's short, it's simple, it's to the point, but a lot of meaning behind it, I think. It's been a favorite of mine for a long time. Here it is:

"Whatever you are, be a good one."--Abraham Lincoln

Whether you're president of the U.S. or just a stay at home mom, strive to be the best at your occupation. Put your heart into it. Always be on the lookout for ways to improve. Re-examine and alter goals where necessary. Think of who is affected by your position. This is SO vitally important in leadership and customer service roles. I hate to get bad service at a restaurant from someone you know just hates their job. My theory: If you have to work, and you choose to work at a certain place, then why not put your all into it? BE NICE! It will make your day so much better. The person who you smile at or give good service to may just turn around and do that for someone else. It may change the course of their day--all in your one seemingly tiny nice gesture. Just a job well done--strive to be a "good one".

I hope you've all liked my week of new subjects. I know many have looked, but I need some feedback--let's kick it up a notch!!

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Thursday's Laugh Out Loud!!

The video below is hilarious, but he does use a little language that you may want to keep from younger ears. I'm in a wierd mood today, trying to catch up with mundane stuff, keeping the girls happy on a rainy day. I'm down one kid today ("Buddy"), so a little less stress. The exterminator just left--came just after I put the girls down for their nap--couldn't be at a worse time. They're just now getting quiet. I did however, manage to listen to the live Fly Lady broadcast on World Radio. I think it's on each Thursday from 11am to 1pm CST, so tune in if you like Fly Lady. I must admit, I don't follow her advice as much as I'd like, but I have stuck to some basic routines since I first found her. I try to make my bed each day, keep my dishes washed, and do a load of laundry each day. I also am keeping paperwork relatively under control. I definitely recommend her if you are at wits' end with your housework/chores.

Check her out here:http://www.flylady.net/pages/About_FlyLady.asp

And the radio show: http://www.worldtalkradio.com/show.asp?sid=300

Weather Roach

Welcome to Thursday's Laugh Out Loud! I totally cracked up with this video. Enjoy!

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

Wednesday's Faves and Flops

I've managed to exercise two days this week! Go me! Now blogging before I pick up the kids. Hoping they will be a bit less wired today. And Team Kid again tonight--my my. At least it's not my night to teach, so I don't have that pressure. Enough rambling. On to today's topic--

My favorite thing of the day: Digital Scrapbooking! I've decided to venture beyond the paper and glue and gel pens and go digital. All we have is a digial camera now, so it's a bit easier, and I am totally loving the non-mess. I can do it all from the comfort of my laptop and printer. I found a great little free program on the web called Scrapbook Flair. It allows you to set up your templates, add backgrounds, embellishments, photos, etc, and you can download stuff from anywhere else and use with it. There is a lot of free stuff on the internet to choose from and some pretty cheap stuff too. Definitely check it out if you are at all interested in going digital.

My flop of the day: Actually this came from last week. I saw a terrific ad for Chips Ahoy Chunky White Fudge Cookies in Parenting magazine. The close-up picture made me want to eat the page--great ad! I then bought them at the grocery, which I rarely do in response to ads. Needless to say, they did not meet my expectations. They looked great, but had such a processed taste that they almost tasted fake. The chocolate in the dough and the chocolate chips in them didn't taste very chocolatey at all, but the white fudge chunks were good. They were better warmed for a few secs in the microwave, but still were quite the disappointment.

Hope you've enjoyed my faves and flops for Wednesday. Comment all you like. Stay tuned for Thursday's Laugh Out Loud!

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Tuesday's Terrific Food

Man, have you ever had one of those days you wish you could just give the kids some tranquilizers and walk by and wipe the drool off them every now and then? It's one of those days. "What part of 'Don't throw toys' don't you understand?!" For the life of me, I can't understand why they can't just PLAY with toys how they're meant to be played with. Are we giving kids too much sugar these days or something? I can remember sitting for long periods of time playing with my Barbies or coloring--I practically have to tie them into their chairs to get them to color. Both older kids are 4 now, and they are so impatient that they color like baby Zoe. I don't know if they're getting too much entertainment elsewhere, and just coloring or putting puzzles together is too boring or what. Well, enough rambling. Here's a recipe I made for my neighbors last year at Christmas and just made some more last night. The chocolate chips make it a bit rich, so I thought maybe lessen the amount some or even use white chocolate chips. I bet it would also be pretty with melted swirled chocolate on top :) Enjoy!!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
Makes 3 (9x5") loaves
3 cups sugar 1 T ground nutmeg
1--15 oz can pumpkin puree 2 tsp baking soda
1 cup vegetable oil 1 1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup water 1 cup miniature semi-sweet chips
4 eggs 1/2 cup walnuts, optional
3 1/2 cups flour
1 T ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour three 9x5" loaf pans. Combine all dry ingredients in large bowl; set aside. In large bowl, combine sugar, pumpkin, oil,water, and eggs. Beat until smooth. Blend in the dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips, and nuts, if desired. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire racks before removing from pans.
*Note: This bread should freeze well, so if you aren't eating it all or giving it all away now, freeze a loaf or two for later. If you make it now, you could thaw it for Thanksgiving.

Monday, October 16, 2006

Monday--Misty's Challenge!

I've decided to take a new turn on my blog for a spell. Once upon a time, some of you probably remember, I once had a webpage called "The Good-News Letter". I'd update it every week with jokes, Bible verses, stories, etc. It was fun, but our computer died one day, and I lost all my stuff, so I never got back to creating it. So now, I'm going to move in a similar direction for a while here, which may be more simple than keeping an entire website up to date, but will keep me blogging daily and keep my brain working.

So, I've decided Mondays will be Misty's Challenge days. I will challenge myself and you to reach for some good goals. I want you to give me feedback on these too, and let me know if and how you are reaching those goals. I might be more inspired to continue if I get some feedback.

Now, the challenge for today: I was listening to my girls' new Veggie Tales Worship Songs cd over the weekend and the song "Prince of Peace" caught my attention. It ends like this: "You are my prince of peace, and I will live my life for you!" I thought, "That sounds great, but how many of us are actually living for Him?" My challenge for myself and for you--think about who you are living for each day--yourself, other people, or Christ? The world's mindset today says, "Look out for number one (me)". We want instant happiness, instant gratification, instant everything. Waiting on the Lord is especially hard, because we can't sit down by him on the couch and have a face-to-face chat. We can't e-mail him or call him on his cell phone. His answers aren't usually instant, but they're the best. Let's think each day and with each situation, "How can I live for Him?" Jesus says in Matthew 6:33, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." It's hard to wait, but if we depend on ourselves to drive our lives, we'll likely muck it up. If we seek Him, live for Him, mindful of His peace, presence, and word, our lives will flow much better.

Now, was that a lofty challenge, or what? Let me know your thoughts on it. Here are my goals for the rest of the business week:

Tuesday--Terrific Foods
Wednesday--Faves and Flops
Thursday--Laugh out Loud
Friday--Quote to Ponder

Stay tuned!

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Tips for keeping off those Halloween candy pounds!


It's just around the corner! I found this cute little article on Yahoo--read it for how to avoid the candy bulge.

http://health.yahoo.com/experts/joybauernutrition/3862/tricks-for-treats-this-halloween

I really like the tip "Buy and give out candy that you personally don't like". I can imagine, "Want some more candy corn and licorice, kids?? Here, take all the Zagnuts you want!" That cracked me up. We have a "Treats -n- More" party thing with our church on Halloween, so that really helps for me to not have candy sitting around the house. I buy it and take it to the church for the event. Then, I can hope to get a little bit of the good stuff I bought in Meg's bag :)

I think Halloween is just the start of the yearly Holiday bulge that gets us all. We eat candy, then get right into baking fall treats, then Thanksgiving and the leftovers, then start making Christmas treats that last until the new year. I think the best approach is to be really choosy about what you make and buy. Start looking for recipes/ideas early and make/buy only a few things for each event. I love to look for new Christmas candy and cookie recipes to try each year, then I give most of it out for gifts, so that helps a bit. What are some other tips you might have for beating that Holiday bulge? Let me know.

Monday, October 09, 2006

It's been 3 years....


Since I lost my mom. I still miss her every day. Here is one of my favorite pics of her--holding Megan on the day she was born. She was the first one to hold her. I'll never forget that day.

Thanks, mom, for teaching me to love unconditionally, for teaching me humility, for encouraging me to do my very best in everything I did. Thanks for being a great mom and granny. We miss you.

Friday, October 06, 2006

Fall break goals and aspirations

I'm climbing out of my "Gloom, despair, and agony on me!" (remember that old Hee Haw song?) week to face a new week of fall break. No preschool for Meg, no Team Kid, no babysitting, and even a weekend trip planned for next weekend--hopefully! Yesterday, I was as gloomy as the weather. Today, I got the kids out and we played in the MMC (big gym) at church and the new playground and had McD's for lunch. We all had good naps, and this evening, I've been picking up and organizing my house. I finally have acknowledged the existence of my second child and have hung pictures of her in my house! She is going to be 2 in January, so I'm a little late ;) I also hung more recent pics of Meg and family pictures and have made big plans to organize more pics and work hard on some scrapbook projects next week.

I feel the itch to organize and beautify my home, to finish and get a good start on home projects. I think this is the key to overcoming my gloomy mood--keep myself busy giving myself a sense of accomplishment, and maybe some extra caffeine too :) I've made a tentative list of 4 big things to accomplish over the weekend. If I can get a good stab at those, I'll feel good and will want to continue with more next week. Do I hear some cheerleading? I'll try to keep you updated. Oh, and will try to blog more interesting things soon. Sorry for the recent dribble. Hope you all have a great weekend!

Thursday, October 05, 2006

Where you at, God?

Feeling like a bad mom, bad wife, bad friend, bad person this week. My support system is nil. Lord, you're even quieter than usual. My head cold seems to be my only constant friend, and I don't like that friend. Lord, I'm waiting for You to give me a ring, to stop by, to tell me it's ok, and that I'll get through it. Give me strength--just enough to get along and survive and keep my family surviving through this dry spell. I'm here, trusting in your strength, trusting even though I can't feel you right now. Knowing you're working in ways I can't see and understand. Praying for a good path to be made for my kids and hubby to follow in the days, months, and years ahead, praying for your direction for them, and that my own attempts to direct will be outweighed by yours. Thanking you for goodness, for family, for faithful friends, for the love of your Son. Amen

Monday, October 02, 2006

Poo Raisins


Yes, you read it right. Poo raisins.

Let me tell you about yesterday. I am perpetually late for church, especially when hubby is working A/V, and I am left to prepare our daughters for church alone. It was about 9:30, and I was finishing up my hygiene routine in the bathroom. I had the girls all dressed, and we were actually going to make it to Sunday School on time. Then, Zoe, my 20 month old, walks into the bathroom and what seems to be a chewed-up raisin appears by her foot. I thought, "Zoe didn't have raisins for breakfast. She must have found it on the floor." I picked it up, and an odor hit me, and I smelled it closer--it was a POO RAISIN!!!

I immediately washed it down the drain, and picked up Zoe, who had completely soiled herself and it was running down her lovely little dress pants. So, my morning was then spent taking off the poo raisin pants, re-bathing Zoe, taking out the very smelly garbage, disinfecting the changing table and bathroom floor, and washing the poo-raisin pants. Many more poo raisins were inside, and other unidentifiable chunks. Luckily I had Clorox 2 and Tide with Febreeze and the smell and stains came out. So, after everything was cleaned and disinfected, we headed on to church. Megan spent about 10 minutes in Sunday school, just in time for their snack, much to her joy, then we had to go to the 11:00 service. I spent my 10 minutes just sitting in the church lobby, enjoying a break from poo raisins.

Yesterday was my poo raisin day--didn't seem too bad until I looked closer--have you ever had a poo raisin day? Tell me about it :)