artichoke dip

this is my all time favoritest, yummiest, bestest ever artichoke dip. it was give to me by a good friend who is an amazing chef. (oh and it's super simple too)

1 cup mayo
1 can artichoke hearts
1 tbls garlic
1 tsp lemon juice
1 cup parmesan cheese
1 cup monzeralla cheese

mix together...bake at 375 in shallow pan for 35 minutes...enjoy

nostaligia

i was given this book by a good friend while in the hospital last summer after the birth of babies 3 & 4. i didn't read it because being extra hormonal i figured it would make me cry so i waited.

i waited a few months and read this beautifully written short story about your baby growing up. {and cried of course}

The inside cover reads:
" A mother's love leads to a mother's dream - every mother's dream - for her child to live life to its fullest. "

The first page reads "One day, I counted your fingers and kissed each one."
A page in the middle I love reads " Someday your eyes will be filled iwth a joy so deep that they shine."
A page toward the end reads "Someday I will watch you brushing your child's hair."

it's truly an amazingly well told story of how i feel and dream to see my kids grow.

first cereal

More Wordless Wednesday.

groceries

do you just dread going to the grocery store with your kids? i just dread going to the grocery store. i'm not sure why, but i do. being a mom of 4 young children, i rarely ever go alone, well lets just say, i'm rarely ever alone for anything. a few weeks ago, i was dreading a saturday afternoon trip to super target with all 4 kids, why, the babies are no longer in infant seats, it was a saturday busy, and the afternoon even busier. we have less than 1.5 hours to drive there shop and drive back between baby feedings. but we needed milk and salad along with other items so i packed up my brood and away we went.

as always, in the car i reminded my big kids "no crying, pouting, whining, or fighting. we listen and behave." "yes, mommy. we know" they chimed. okay good now that we're all on the same page. i put both babies in the stroller, big kids holding onto each side, grabbed a cart to pull behind. i gave them a snack and away we went maneuvering in between all the people, pushing a double stroller and pulling a shopping cart. i would find the item i needed and one of my kids would put it in the cart. away we went up and down aisles, getting stares, smiles and many comments {my thoughts.} since time is limited i don't engage in conversations with strangers, i just smile.

"you got the troops today" {"yep everyday"}
"wow, you have your hands full" - {"not really, my kids aren't crying like yours"}
"great helpers" - {"yep they are, i'm so lucky"}
"you're a brave woman" - {"no, just a mom of 4"}

anyway, p&a know that if they behave while we get groceries they get to check out a couple toy aisles. they are fascinated to to see if there are any new toys and play with whatever they can. then after 5-10 minutes we say bye to the toys and off we go to check out, where my little helpers LOVE to unload the cart.

after another successful shopping trip, i wonder why i was dreading it when we had so much fun together.

for me the following leads to a successful trip:
1. tell them my expectations prior to getting out of car
2. make sure they are well fed and bring snacks
3. ask for their help
4. positive reinforcement for good behavior

do these steps work for you? or do you have others that you find work? please share your experiences.

work at home

i'm a work at home mom, i own a stationery company and i have 4 young children a dream come true. working at home has it's pros and cons though. my main pro is that i get to be home with my 4 amazing children, be there when they wake up, be there when they go to bed and be there everywhere in between. my main con is that i live where i work. which can be hard to separate & can be hard to fit in any length of work time during daylight hours.

on days when my mom isn't here helping, if i have work to get done, i head to the office when the babies are napping and the big kids are playing. sometimes, i am summoned to see their creations like this...
dinosaur land...almost the entire herd heading somewhere and staged just perfectly. while my heart usually skips a beat at seeing the mess, i'm truly amazed at the thought, care and imagination that went into placing each dinosaur or toy and the fact that i was able to get an hour of uninterrupted work. so i show my enthusiasm while they show me around and tell me all about dinosaur land.

Cheesy Potatoes

Every Holiday when my clan gets together, someone has to bring the Cheesy Potatoes... another tradition that has been in my family for a while. Word of warning, these are probably not low-fat. And trust me, I have reduced the original recipe list as much as possible where they still taste good.

Ingredients:

• 1 Can cream of chicken soup
• 16 oz sour cream (regular or low fat)
• 1 bag - southern style hash browns
• 2 cups - corn flakes (gestimate)
• 1 stick melted butter (Yes real butter... no fake stuff allowed)
• 10-12 oz shredded cheddar cheese

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Mix soup, sour cream, hash browns, butter and cheese together in a large bowl. It is easier to mix if the hash browns have thawed for an hour or so. Once mixed, put into a 9x11 baking dish. Spread the contents to cover the pan evenly. Dump corn flakes in plastic bag and break them up into small pieces - spread on top of the potatoes. Bake for aprox 50 minutes. Serve hot!

A great kids series...

My daughter's imagination and interest in books really took off with Mary Pope Osbourne's Magic tree House Series. I enjoyed her reading the books as much as she did, as the excitement of the story or the silliness of the characters led to many discussions. And yes, I have to admit, I read many of them myself...

The titles are catchy and make us laugh... what is Mummies in the Morning about? Will it be scary? What about the Haunted Castle on Hallows Eve? What will the two main characters: Jack and Annie get themselves into this week? There are many books in the series, 44 in all. But I found them readily available at the library or very cheaply priced at second hand book stores or Goodwill.