Moving Day

Yikes! Sorry I haven't written. Things have been a little crazy here in the Laing Insane Home. We are yet again moving our large brood to a new home. Our home has not sold in Utah, but we have had quite a few lookers. Patrick has been amazing. I swear he poops money! Luckily, I saved the boxes from our move in October. All I can say, is that if the stars align and we get into this house, I really don't care what it looks like, as long as it is psuedo mine. Yes, I know I cannot technically buy it, but as long as I can paint, and plant flowers, then it is the next best thing. The kids can maintain their school and our ward, and mommy can have a comprimise with daddy. 3/4 of an Acre ain't too shabby in good old Stumptown. And since it is zoned residential/agricultural, I can have my chickens and still live in the city...go figure. Now I am not going to post a pic of this so called villa we will be leasing to own until my hot little hand signs some kind of official document. I've learned the hard way that things can change. So this week will be filled with packing tape and frozen pizza. Screw the diet. Damn the schedule and to Hell with the homework....I have to move! To be continued....

Wheat and Rice and Corn....OH MY!

So all of you who know me well, understand that I am a little bit of a news junkie. I love current events, and I am not talking about what star is in rehab! CNN,KSL in Salt Lake, KATU in Portland, Glenn Beck, FOX news, are all on my favorites list. So if you haven't been keeping up with the whole food shortages and runs...news flash. Flour is more expensive, and rice is being limited in COSTCO. So I ask myself, Self are you prepared for things like this? Now my pantry is full. I have rice and flour and oats. Oil is in no short supply. Powdered milk, beans, chili, and soup starter are in abundance. We are not about to run out anytime soon, but I pose this question to you in cyberspace....what can you do with all this stuff? A crash course in cooking with food storage has been my only pastime this past month. With my husband's job situation, I have tried to live on a lean budget and use my precious flour,rice, and beans. But alas I have come to the conclusion that man cannot live on bread alone. Bread is my friend. We have been consuming copious amounts of the marvelously leavened creation. The sweet smell envelopes the whole house every other day. But I need more. Eggs are an absolute essential along with butter. Without these two ingredients, most of my wholesome creations cannot be made. Our diet these past few weeks has consisted of soups and stews with bread, pasta dishes, tuna and toast points....homemade Mac and Cheese. All of these things are yummy and my grocery bill has gone down dramatically but could I live on food storage alone? Not unless I had a freezer, chickens, and milk products such as cheese and yogurt. Does anyone think they could actually live on Pantry items for a year? Has anyone ever done it? Just making brownies requires eggs...and we all know that brownies are a must have in any food storage plan!

Children's Birthday Parties

How many of you out there really want one more polly pocket shoe stuck inbetween your toes? I ask this question because Brighten's birthday party was today and I was reminded of the horror of these events. Choosing to let someone else do the clean up and planning can have advantages, but it comes at a hefty price. We had the party at a Young Chefs Academy in Tualatin, and the party was fun, but pricey. The lady running it was hillarious and really engaged the children but it was too short for the price paid. Not having to make invites, clean up, be creative, or cook all day can be worth the price, if you are tired mom with a husband out of town for the last two months. Now because it got over early...cardinal sin of birthday parties...I had to think fast on my feet for some creative time waster until parents arrived....didn't I pay $240 for them to do that?

And those cute little gifts which I spoke of earlier, will come back to bite me in the foot one cold dark night when I stumble to the potty. Which brings me to my next point...why support Target, Toys R Us and Walmart? Brighten got a second hand desk for her birthday stocked with her very own art supplies. Now I will admit that it is a messy present, but it is one that she uses everyday. Those late night encounters with all things small and plastic will now be thrown into the trash when they are not picked up...oops!

Ok, if any of you are familiar with the recent statistic that 80% of YM go inactive between 18 and 30, I know why. What brats they are to everyone. Don't people teach there kids to be polite anymore? They grow up with a what's in it for me mentality. Saw this firtst hand today. Granted, they listened and laughed but still nothing was ever enough? What do we do mom's to stop the spread of the Diva? Brighten even had a mental breakdown after the party. She was overloaded. She needed a hug and to be promptly put back in line. No, I didn't beat her, just calmly held her and told her about all the wonderful things she received and that it was time to share and be nice to her brothers and sisters. Her day to be Diva was done.



Now for my final thought: Girls, I would ask you to adopt my philosophy and only torture yourself every other year with the Friend Birthday. The inbetween years are reserved for Family. This is not only money saving but will allow you time to save up so someone else can do the dirty work for you!

PS. I think the whole point of birthdays is to remind the mother of the Labor process she went through to deliver the said child into the world....it's almost as much work...

Stuck in Switzerland

And now it has stretched to Saturday.....

Daddy's Home....for 4 Days....Back to SwissLand!

Patrick was home for a wonderful 4 days. I felt like a pioneer who sent her husband off on a mission. The baby wouldn't leave his side. We all had a great time relishing all the attention and love we were getting. The real swiss chocolate and the fresh baguette really said love to me. Didn't share a piece with anyone. With Patrick home we tried to stuff as much into 4 days as possible, if you get my drift. Mommy is tired. He tried to replace belts on a rototiller...and bless his heart....he couldn't figure out how to put the thing back together again. I will be delivering it to the mechanic today to get reassembled. Patrick really tries, it is just not one of his talents...Today, he left for Zurich and will be back on Thursday. Let's hope it doesn't stretch into 16 days again.

My dear daughter with the gorgeous long hair brought me a special present on Saturday. You know, the Saturday that was 75 degrees? Well, the gift was head lice! After checking all the kids and discovering that just one had them (said a prayer of thanks), I proceeded to pick through waist long hair for two hours. We found one live one and about twenty eggs....by the way, oil works...RID doesn't....metal nit combs better than plastic. It's official, I am now a mother. My children have had chicken pox, croup, ear infections, pneumonia, and now lice. Bed wetting, teething, diaper rash, colic, plantar warts, hand foot mouth disease, stitches....anything else I missed? Oh yeah..severed finger and husband falling off roof...good one honey!

Brighten had a great birthday. My seven year old now has the glamourous job of unloading the dishwasher. Madeline, having to give up her job to her younger sister, has now graduated to cleaning the family room and vacuuming everyday....that's right, everyday. Our carpet is teal green...shows everything. Having had green carpet before, I knew what a hassle this would be, but this house is big and suits our family despite the 90's carpet. Poor kids! They have to vacuum up their mess....wah! As my wonderful father used to say to me on almost a daily basis, it builds character. Again, poor kids!

Book reviews...husband still gone....

Did I call it, or what! Still in Italy with still, no end in site. On a brighter note, I have been honing my homesteading skills. It is very comical that all things for survival, from building a cabin to cleaning horse hooves, can be found in one volume. Barnes and Noble is my friend. The book is titled Back to Basics and is filled with cool stuff.
After finishing Eat, Pray and Love by Gilbert, I was looking for something a little more practical. Although this book had some very noteworthy passages, the ending didn't hold me like I wanted it too. I felt cheated by the fact that in the end, it was all about getting laid! I seriously don't recommend it. If you do want to read it...just read Italy and India. She makes amazing discoveries about herself that can apply to everyone. Bali....skip it. It's not even sexy.

Italy....Patrick's other home. He loves Italy. He speaks italian every chance he gets. One of the perks of owning your company is traveling to where the clients are. I have been home with the kids during spring break without him for over a week with no end in sight. Don't worry...he wanted me to come, but I knew that it would be all business and when I go to Italy for the first time, it will be for pleasure. This picture is of San Marino in central Italy. I have no idea what this castle is. So if any of you want to school me on how to download and then import photos to my computer then I could share all that is going on in my family. Half of my disk loaded but I can't get them into a program to edit them....I am too old to figure this crap out!
For those of you who knew be before Evan was born, I made bread alot. Well I don't think I have attempted it since he was born...no longer. I am the bread queen now! If you ever need a good recipe, I have plenty. Funny thing is that since I started making it, I am not hungry anymore. One slice and I am good to go...this is going to be a great diet! Whole milk, butter, and bread! Sweeet!