Easy Tortellini!

2-3 shallots, sliced into rings and separated
8-10 gloves of garlic (whole)
1 jar Sundried Tomato Pesto
1 bag tortellini (refrigerated kind)
crumbled Feta cheese
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

saute shallots in olive oil over medium heat until glassy; add whole garlic cloves, turn to low.
cook tortellini according to package directions; drain.
combine shallot mixture with Pesto in a large bowl.
add tortellini and mix until well coated.
top with Feta cheese and serve.
makes 4-6 servings

if you roast eggplant and add it, it is very tasty and spreads it further!

Beer?

Why is it beer smells nasty, tastes nasty on its own, but is so good when mixed with food?

Some of our favorites:
Beer and Cheddar Fondue-granny smith apples, bread, and broccoli for dipping.
Beer battered onion rings or french fries.
Beer can chicken-you stick the can up the chicken's rear end and cook it standing up!

And Beer marinade on steak/meat/Rouladen.

We don't drink beer (against the word of wisdom) but I have taken to storing some in the fridge for cooking! So if you happen to look in my fridge, don't be alarmed to see some Guinness hanging out in the back. :) If you are at all interested in trying some of these recipes, let me know! They are seriously so tasty! (And the alcohol cooks out....)

Nate is not allowed to cook.

Sunday morning.
Chris, "Honey? Will you set the pork roast out to thaw?"
Nate, "Sure!"

Sunday afternoon.
Chris, "I'm not feeling well, can you start dinner while I take a nap?"
Nate, "Of course!"

Sunday evening.
Chris wakes up and goes down stairs for dinner.
Nate."The roast will be done in a few minutes!"
Chris, "I'll check on it for you."
Out comes the roast. It is a beef roast. (Not pork) It is also twice the size as the pork roast I had asked him to thaw.
Chris, "Honey? This is a beef roast!"
Nate, "It is?"

It was still cold and red in the center, dry on the outside, and was seasoned like the pork should have been. Grape and wine reduction sauce doesn't go well with beef. So back into the oven to finish cooking it for an additional 2 hours. (There went the roast beef I was going to make.) Mommy saved the night by whipping up scrambled eggs and bacon for the kids. Nate ate dry beef 2 hours later. Tonight we will have pork loin roast with the wine sauce. Nate will be eating beef for lunch everyday. Ain't I a stinker?

Is it a bed, a basket, or a shelf?

Look what I found on my bed!

So, I never make the bed anymore. I use to do it daily, faithfully.
I can't remember the last time I really made the bed and put the decorative pillows on it.
{sigh}
I just don't ever have time to!
I spend so much time keeping the rest of the house clean
(the sections people see)
that I never have energy to clean our room up!

We play the laundry game:

RULES: Step 1 Clean all 6-10 loads that are waiting in baskets.
Step 2 As they come out of the drier, pile them on my bed.
Step 3 At the end of the day, dump laundry from bed into baskets.
Step 4 In the morning, dump baskets of laundry back onto the bed so you can find socks.
Step 5 Repeat for 3 days until it is all dirty again.

There is baby stuff all over the night stands and in baskets under them.
I set the car seat, my purse, Afton's sock monkey, Afton, some of Raedin's books, etc. on the bed during the day(next to the laundry) it is there until bedtime.
Then it gets piled into the car seat and sits on the floor all night just to be dumped out onto the bed the next morning so I can put Afton in her car seat and run Nate to school.

I try to keep it picked up, enough that we can walk from one place to the other. Right now my closet is cleaner because all of the clothes are in the baskets!

Oh the joys of being a mother to 4 and a wife to a full-time student!

Look How Small

This is my tiny new niece! That is a normal baby car seat.
Wow!

Overcoming the Potty Monster

This scene from Look Who's Talking Now, use to scare me to death!

Raedin no longer has accidents. Tells us when he needs to go potty. Doesn't complain when we take him when it has been awhile. It is so nice! Most people told us boys don't train until around 3 1/2 years, Raedin isn't even 3 yet! I'm hoping we can now train him to not go over night, then we will be no longer buying diapers for him at all. So far he isn't really wetting in his sleep!

Baby, Bellydance, and Police.

My niece arrived tonight!
Illianna MayLee Harlow
4 lbs 14 oz, 17 inches
Tiny, but oh so sweet!

She arrived at 6:55 pm, which meant I was 30 minutes late for my belly dance class, oh and it was the first class too. I actually tried to run home to change and drop dad off. I forgot I left my house key with Mandy in case she needed more baby supplies. Crap. So dad went with me to my belly dance class and I danced in my jeans. It was a lot of fun and I'm happy 2 friends signed up with me! I'm happy to be back in dance!

On our way to the hospital, I called my sister to let her know what was going on. She was in hysterics, her daughter was missing. Her daughter's ride went to get her on time from school, but Jules never came out. SO she went in and had the office page her. Nothing. They searched ever last inch of the school. Nothing. The police were called. Jules is a special needs child, her thought process isn't like most kids, she could be anywhere. Dad and I drove around trying to spot her. Where are the police? I meet my sister at the school, still no sign of her, still no cops. SO I called the dispatch, let them know this was a child with disabilities and needed to be found! "Oh! We found her, an officer has her now." Seriously? Why didn't we know this? Anyway, we left to meet the officers. A lady in an SUV had seen her and realized something was off. Jules was trying to cross Orem Blvd on her own, at 800 S. Her school is at 400 W 400 S. She walked 10 blocks on her own! Crossed a couple busy roads and was trying to do the same there. The women who found her put Jules in her car (scary!) and tried asking her were she lived. Jules did not answer her, she didn't know. Luckily it was a good person, she phoned police. Jules didn't seem to understand what she did, she was trying to walk home she said. It is so scary to think what could have happened.

I hate my van.

More repairs. More money. Can't get rid of it. I hate my van.

Little Big Planet

Is awesome.

I'm not one for video games, but when we got our new TV and PS3 for Christmas, Nate insisted I get a game for me. I'm happy he did! Seriously cute and fun with no blood, gore, sex icons, lame story lines, etc. Fun fun fun! I recommend it to anyone. Just had to share.

A Visitor!

I am super excited to have Camille here from Saudi Arabia!

We have missed her! No one knew she was coming (except me and Mandy) and it makes it just that much better. We plan on surprising the girls after school, she'll be sitting in the driver seat of my van!

Some background on who she is: Camille is married to Nathan. Nathan is Stuart's twin brother. Stuart is my ex-husband. Now you might be asking yourself, "Why is Chris so excited to see her ex-husband's, brother's wife?" Let me continue: Mandy (mentioned above) is my best friend. Mandy is also the sister of Nathan and Stuart. Mandy and Camille are extremely close. And I'm always with Mandy, and Mandy is always with Camille (except when she is in another country). Therefore, I am always with Camille and she is one of my best friends.

My kids love, love, LOVE their Aunt Camille, they have had a hard time not being able to see her or talk to her. They aren't able to call internationally. They are very, very close to her. She will be staying until May too! :)