Stuffed

Ok, so I've had sourdough pancakes, waffles, rolls, and today decided I was going to camp out at home and delve into the sourdough bread round. I must admit I was a bit skeptical. I've been studying the sourdough breadmaking process for a few weeks now and have been putting it off because it sounds like such a pain! I've made lots of bread from scratch but nothing requires this much babying. I feed the starter on my counter overnight, the rising for sourdough is double what it is for "bought yeast" bread, I egg washed the bread, I cornmealed the pan, I put a cup of water in the bottom of the oven, I sprayed the ovenwalls and floor with a fine mist of water while it baked (every 2 minutes for the first 10).....And all the while I'm thinking....is this worth it? See for yourself :) Picture #2 was taken 1-hour later.

My Hubby

Right now he's sick and driving me crazy (I mean don't I have enough kids?) but he really is amazing. When he's home, he matches me 100% in child care duties. I'm sure he'd rather be sitting (laying) on the couch, watching tv, getting snacks brought to him while he ignores the kids fighting in the next room. A lot of men call this their "wind down time" after work. What a buncha baloney.

Jay always gives me a break when I need it and is more than sympathetic to my "job". He truly respects the roll of a mother and is often heard to say "What do you need me to do?" It makes for one very happy momma.
Think I'll go lay on the couch with some bon-bons :)

My New Pet

Isn't she beautiful? I grew her myself. My little San Francisco sourdough yeasties are feeding beautifully and in a few days should be ready for breadmaking! (Or rolls, pizza dough, pancakes, waffles, biscuits). I'll post pics of my attempts at sourdough baking. Requires much patience.

Goin' back to the old school. There's no school like it :)

What do people do without Grandmas?

I'm so thankful for my mother and my mother-in-law. The past few Sundays have been INSANE for me for some reason. A certain spirited first-born has suddenly decided that he absolutely doesn't have to listen to ANYTHING I ask him to do and that he wants to see just how many buttons he can push before I'll drag him out of sacrament meeting. He's always been a little on the difficult side when his energy levels are high but he's not known for being defiant and.....just plain nasty. Needless to say, I haven't been really positive about Sundays and church these past few weeks and announced to Jason that I would no longer be attending sacrament meeting. Not only would my sanity remain intact but Bella would get a nap before church, Tyson could actually eat before we go and not in the middle of the meeting and I wouldn't have to pull a child (who's hanging onto a pew) out of sacrament meeting. I'm sure your now wondering what this has to do with mothers. Well my mom called me Sunday morning at just the perfect time (like she always does) when I feel like reality is slipping and I need to vent BAD (to someone who is non-male and doesn't say the words "I'm sorry" over and over again). So of course she listened, made me laugh, tried to help me come up with solutions and gave me some ideas to try (I mean she had 9 children to deal with all on her own during sacrament meeting). Then she called me and listened again at the end of the day and reassured me that I am a good mother and that I will get through this childs behavioral problems. She always seems to know when to call and I swear she stays up at night trying to solve all my problems. She never judges me and is always building me up. How blessed I am to have this kind of mother.

Now for the Mother-In-Law. What a selfless person she is. Anytime she is needed she drops everything to help. When I get sick she brings groceries and dinner (she lives over an hour away). She has been to more of Tysons doctor appointments than Jay has. Whenever she takes Payton and Katrina for the weekend she comes and gets them AND brings them back at the end. She just tries to help make our lives as stressless as possible. And man does she love her grandkids. I sometimes think that this woman is more in love with my children than I am. Seriously she goes through withdrawals if she goes a weekend without seeing them. So I had an appointment with a cardiologist today for Tysons murmur and she called this morning to say that she would come to the hospital to help with the kids. I informed her (through Jason) that it would be totally miserable and could be long and there was no way she needed to come all that way on her day off when I could make Jay do it ;) But come she did, and was I ever grateful. Tyson had to register at one station, get an e.k.g. at another one, and see a doctor at another one. It was a lot of waiting, walking and trying to calm an infant who was sick of being messed with. It would have been horrible with even 1 of my kids let alone all of them. She played with them outside, they walked around the hospital, and then she took us all to Red Lobster afterwards. What could have been a disaster was actually a good day.
I'm so thankful for Grandmas :)

Apology

Ok, so the last blog was a little sarcastic and I have to apologize. I really do have a LOT to be grateful for, it just doesn't always feel like it at the end of the day. Now if I would only post in the Morning I'm sure you would be annoyed at how fabulous and perfect my life sounds. Some things I am grateful for (in no particular order):

My Husband and his patience with a wannabe Princess
My Children and their patience with a nursing/hormonal mother
My true friends for always loving me no matter what
My Scriptures for filling me with inspiration and keeping my brain alert and active
My Heavenly Father (and his patience for a wannabe Princess)
My body that is free of impairments and lets me enjoy life
My ability to express myself through music
My children's healthy appetites
My priviledge to live in the promised land
My ability to laugh
My time spent with my brother
My little primary and their angel voices
My "scratch making" abilities. Some of my favorites are fresh bread, baked french fries, potstickers, and pizza crust (I make a mean whole wheat one that is sooooo yummy).

Which makes me think of another list to make. Things I would like to accomplish:

Making SF Sourdough bread from scratch (I've ordered a special yeast and am going to start "growing" my starter this week!)

Keeping in touch with my family more

Have just 1 day where I don't raise my voice to my children once.

To take Payton to see the Northern Lights someday (in Greenland of course since it's near Jay's Finnish roots). He read about them in a book and we researched them online. Now we're saving our pennies in a bucket to go :)

To smile as much as I did when I was 15. (No that's not when I married Jay to all you jokesters)

To read and study about every tiny thing that interests me and become more passionate about life

To not spend so much time making lists on the internet

Wish me luck! Make your own list and send me a copy....

I wish I had a rewind button

Cuz my life is just so dang peachy keen that I wish I could just rewind the day and do it over and over and over and over again!!!! Oh wait......I DO THAT. (and I'm so very grateful.)