A quick funny

My sister-in-law sent me this joke, which I’ve always liked:

Three sisters ages 92, 94 and 96 live in a house together. One night the 96 year old draws a bath. She puts her foot in and pauses. She
yells to the other sisters, “Was I getting in or out of the bath?”

The 94 year old yells back, “I don’t know. I’ll come up and see.” She starts up the stairs and pauses. “Was I going up the stairs or down?”

The 92 year old is sitting at the kitchen table having tea and listening to her sisters. She shakes her head and says, “I sure hope I never get
that forgetful,” and knocks on her wooden table for good measure.

She then yells, “I’ll come up and help both of you as soon as I see who’s at the door.”

:rotf:

I’ve been burying myself in my third book, trying to wrap up the last 50 or so pages. Each time I get close to the ending, I develop Fear of the Ending. It’s like I’m afraid to let go of the book. My only solution is to map out the last few chapters, list the scenes I need, and keep my head down as I press towards the finish line. Then the real work begins–the second draft. Fingers crossed that it won’t require major surgery!

Happy Easter!

I am a sucker for the Food Network website. Tonight I opted to make prime rib for supper. Mmmm….encrusted with horseradish, garlic, rosemary, thyme, and olive oil. Can you smell it cooking? Last Christmas, I knocked off a Tyler Florence recipe, adapting it because I lacked some of the ingredients. You rub the meat with the mixture and bake it at 350 for an hour and 50 minutes. When it’s finished, you take the beef drippings, mix them with Shiraz red wine, some butter, olive oil, heavy cream, a little sugar, salt, and pepper. It makes a delicious sauce. Heaven, I tell you. I also have homemade yeast rolls in the breadmaker, which must be generously slathered in butter before I bake them.

But back to Food Network. I wanted to try out a new recipe for mashed potatoes. The last time I tried to do garlic mashed potatoes, they weren’t all that different from regular potatoes. This time, I’m trying another Tyler recipe where supposedly you mash the potatoes and in a small saucepan heat up some heavy cream, butter, garlic, and thyme. Then you slowly add the heated cream mixture to the potatoes. I’ll give it a try and see how it goes.

Tonight my husband and I will hide the plastic Easter eggs for the kids to find after Mass. It’s a fun tradition, letting them try to find what they can to supplement their baskets. We’re going to attend the 7:30 a.m. service, in the hopes of avoiding the crowds. We’ll see how that goes. My poor daughter will be subjected to wearing The Easter Dress. It’s pink with ribbons. I always dress the kids up for Easter–maybe it’s a southern thing. It’s a good thing I couldn’t find a straw hat and gloves.

And we had snow this morning! The first snow in southern VA that we’ve had all season (at least, the only accumulation). My kids made an eight-inch snow man, but I liked the neighbors’ version. They made a 4-foot Easter bunny made of snow, complete with a basket of Easter eggs. And someone made a snowman sunning himself beside their above-ground pool. That one cracked me up because by the end of the morning, he looked like a dying snowman, screaming out, “I’m melting! I’m melting!”

What do you serve in your household for Easter dinner?

Easter Story

My son is five, and since Easter is coming, I wanted to make sure he understood the true meaning of why we celebrate the holiday. Still, you have to censor some of it. A five-year-old isn’t quite ready to handle the full meaning, but we talked about how Jesus died on the cross and rose again on Easter Sunday. You know, simple and sweet.

Son: But when does the Easter Bunny come?
Me: After church.
Son: (brightens) Oh! So the Easter Bunny helped Jesus rise from the dead!

Real Moms

Missie tagged me with this one, so I’ll share the odds and ends I’ve learned in my five years of “Momming.”

#1 Real Moms Know That Your Kids Are Watching You At Every Second

I never knew how much my children were watching me until one day my two-year-old daughter picked up a toy phone and instead of babbling baby talk, said clearly, “Hello, Papa Johns? I’d like to order a large pepperoni pizza.” It hit me then that every move I make, every word that comes out of my mouth, every decision, is teaching them something. It makes you take a hard look at yourself. And with any luck, you become a better person because you understand that your child will grow up exactly like you. You are their role model.

#2 Real Moms Know that This, Too, Shall Pass
When I first had my son, I tended to make myself crazy over the littlest things. Why does he scream every night for an hour, starting at 5:30 p.m.(when he was an infant)? Why is he throwing his food on the floor and laughing at it? Why is he taking off every piece of clothing after I put him in bed? (Yes, we went through the Naked Boy phase. That’s how I knew it was time to potty train. It’s a little disconcerting when you go to kiss your kid goodnight, and he’s mooning you.) Once each neurotic little phase ends, another begins. And you learn to take it one day at a time and not to sweat the small stuff. (Our nighttime ritual became, “Good night. Sleep well. Keep your clothes on.”)

Real Moms Know that the Bedtime Story Isn’t About the Story Every night, I read to my kids before bed. But I think many people mistakenly believe that reading to your child is about the book. It isn’t. It’s about having quiet, one-on-one time with your child, snuggling under blankets, and showing them love. And I’ll admit, sometimes you get tired and busy and you just want to get them tucked in and off to sleep. But it really is a big deal to them. And so you read The Very Hungry Caterpillar for the thirty-billionth time.

If you’d like to join in on this meme, feel free! Did your kids go through any weird phases? Mine are in the fashion-police phase now. They are very picky about what to wear. And my daughter canNOT understand why I won’t let her go around dressed in orange and purple.

Winner of the March contest

Okay, the lucky winner of the March contest is…Joy Isley! Congratulations, Joy! I’ll be sending you an autographed copy of Her Irish Warrior and a kitchen magnet to enjoy!

Other good news is…my book is now on sale at eharlequin! Wow. It’s so hard to believe that after two years of waiting and submitting, that moment is here at last.

I am enjoying time at my grandma’s, and so far we’ve been haunting thrift stores and flea markets. My grandma loves a good bargain, and although we didn’t find all that much, half the fun is digging around. I did buy some 1950’s magazines because I’m about to teach that unit in school. It’s fun to read the old advertisements. My favorite article headline was: “Can You Trust Your Wife with Money?” :rotf: Um, if you value your life, yes.

What about you? Do you enjoy bargain hunting?