Birthday Bash-ing

Brody's 4th Birthday bash....I think not. It was an epic fail (at least I felt that way)! I was so excited to celebrate his Birthday at Chuck E. Cheese's because that is all that came out of his mouth for over a month. He couldn't stop talking about the mouse, the pizza and the games....this was going to be the best part EVER.....not.

Little did I know that my child does.not.do structure! He wanted to play games, skip the pizza and mouse and go straight for the cupcakes and presents. Figures.

I was completely mortified when my child broke down in tears and a full blown tantrum in front of our party guests. I know that they were all there because, they too, had children of their own but it was still embarrassing. I thought Mike was going to blow a gasket any second and he was literally on the verge of leaving!

One thing I did learn from this experience is that toddlers do not do well with structure (CC's is on a timeline so they kind of push you along) and maybe "home thrown" birthday parties are best until your kid gets older! Too bad this was my one and only learning experience...as some of you know, Brody is my last!

I was really bummed that I didn't capture a lot of photo's! He was misbehaving so bad that my main focus was to keep calm and well, carry on! The camera was the least of my worries when it came down to it. I did get a few so at least I can put *something* in his baby book!

In the end he was all smiles and really did enjoy being surrounded by games and his friends. Next year we may just stick with a good ole' backyard BBQ and swim party!

Holy Hurricane

Today has been a whirlwind of....bad luck and/or timing depending on who you ask in our family! This "storm" can pass as quickly as it approached in my opinion.

1. The upstairs A/C unit went out yesterday and the temps have been above 95 degrees! The kids bedrooms are upstairs so poor Victoria had to sleep on the couch and Brody slept with us. Like most kids he tossed, turned and kicked all night long....unfortunately on my side of the bed!

2. See above. I had to wait on the A/C guy today and unfortunately the part we need will not be in until tomorrow afternoon so this means another restless night of sleep. Sigh.

3. Alex is sick.....with some unknown GI ailment so he is basically stuck in his kennel until the nasty poop subsides and is back to what it's supposed to be (sorry if TMI). I have cleaned up more dog poop today than I have stinky diapers and that is a big downer for me.

4. See above. Alex is sick which meant a vet visit....a $200 vet visit and all I got was a mystery diagnosis with an antibiotic and 3 cans of nasty dog food.

5. My child has been a holy terror the past 2 days. We never really dealt with the "Terrible 2's" so I guess we are dealing with the "Terrible 4's"!!! He refuses to listen to me and nothing is working....pops on the rear, the evil eye, the serious voice and time outs have not even phased the kid. I am at a loss as what to do.

6. See above. My child is nuts. School does not start for another month that means one crazy Momma by the end of August!

I think that is all I can really bitch about for today but it's still early (6 pm) however, it's been enough to drown myself in a beer. Cheers!

Stuffed Green Peppers!

This week I was put in a situation where I had limited groceries and I had no idea what to cook. I had ground beef, a green and red pepper, a onion and some shredded cheese that needed to be used before they spoiled. I was at a loss as what to make because honestly I only use ground beef for spaghetti and tacos! As usual, I went to my source allrecipes.com to get ideas on what to make for dinner and I ran across a recipe for Stuffed Green Peppers. I had never made stuffed peppers before but the recipe I found sounded amazing so it was worth a shot! This recipe will now be saved for future use because it was AMAZING!!! This recipe calls for 6 green peppers but I only had two so the remainder of the mixture was placed in a casserole dish and baked beside the peppers. I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine did!!



Ingredients

• 6 green bell peppers
• salt to taste
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped (I used one can of diced tomatoes)
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup uncooked rice
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (I used one small package of fiesta blend cheese)
• 2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed tomato soup
• water as needed

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cut the tops off the peppers, and remove the seeds. Cook peppers in boiling water for 5 minutes; drain. Sprinkle salt inside each pepper, and set aside.
2. In a large skillet, saute beef and onions for 5 minutes, or until beef is browned. Drain off excess fat, and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the tomatoes, rice, 1/2 cup water and Worcestershire sauce. Cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until rice is tender. Remove from heat, and stir in the cheese.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. (175 degrees C). Stuff each pepper with the beef and rice mixture, and place peppers open side up in a baking dish. In a medium bowl, combine tomato soup with just enough water to make the soup a gravy consistency. Pour over the peppers.
4. Bake covered for 25 to 35 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted and bubbly.                

Living in Fast Forward

I am FINALLY taking the time to write a new blog...it seems that June & July have flown by and the end of summer vacation is fastly approaching!

It's pretty obvious that I haven't blogged in a while so that means we are no longer in North Carolina visiting my parents. It was a great 4 weeks but by the end of it my Mom was politely kicking us out of her house because she couldn't take the toddler anymore! The highlight of the trip was Brody getting to go to "Turtle Beach" (Myrtle) for the very first time. We had a ton of fun and I wish the trip could have lasted a few more days because Brody was really enjoying himself.

Victoria had a great time while visiting her family in Texas and I must admit that even though I was not at home while she was away there was still a piece of our family that felt missing. I end up missing her more and more each year; things just feel strange when she isn't around. She is growing up so quickly that it's really hard to think that she will be turning 16 in October! She finally got her drivers permit so by next summer she will be driving ALL BY HERSELF!! Scary. You always thought your parents over reacted with the whole turning 16 thing until you find yourself a parent of a 16 year old!

Brody's 4th birthday is a week away and he couldn't be more excited. Of course, we have had to play it up because he can't really grasp the concept yet but it's fun to see his eyes light up. We are planning a Chuck-e-Cheese birthday this year instead of the usual Concord party because I felt it was time for him to be surrounded by  his friends. His Nannee and Pappaw can't make it but I am sure he will be too busy to really notice (or at least I hope he is).

We have added two new rescue dogs to our mini zoo....call us crazy, I would have to agree with you! It is a lot of work but it's wonderful to know you have given a home to an animal that almost didn't have a chance. "Bonesy" and "Lou" are great additions to our family even though they are larger than we are used to. Now our home consists of 4 humans, 1 cat,  4 dogs, 2 fish, 2 birds and 3 hermit crabs!!

"Bonesy"

"Lou"

As for me, I am doing better with each passing day. That is not saying I still don't have a "bad" day but I have more good days. I am slowly starting to get back into my routine and things that I enjoy. I haven't gotten back into my craft room yet but I am planning to as soon as Brody starts preschool. I was enjoying my camera again but I left my battery charger at the hotel in Myrtle Beach so I had to order a new one...which arrived last week so I will be able to take pictures of our Destin trip this upcoming weekend!