taquitos and bulldogs

 I totally made (and ROCKED) some

chicken taquitos last night!

Quick recipe:

Shredded chicken

Taco seasoning

Can of Rotel (Aldi brand, of course)

(all thrown into a crock-pot 

for the better part of the day.)

Throw in an unlimited amount of shredded cheddar cheese

& refried beans,

roll up in halve-tortiallas.

Bake for about 10 minutes at 450.

DELICIOUS!

Just look at the reaction!

I know what you're thinking.

Cause I'm thinking it too.

"How in the world is Lori not in EVERY

fashion magazine with her model-esque look?'

Well,  the mystery remains.

Perhaps we will figure that out later.

But keep your eye open for what the future might

hold for an aspiring model, such as myself.

And to stop your twitching,

I give you,

NICK.

 

Would you just LOOK at my gorgeous,

blue-eyed boy?

My ONLY blue-eyed kid?

He is playing football this year,

his senior year.

He hasn't played since the 6th grade.

But golly-darn,

the coach talked him into playing.

That is sooooo Nick, I tell ya.

Go Bulldogs!

 

 

once a month shopping?

Do you ever walk away from the grocery store

saying to yourself,

"THIS time, I got everything I will need to feed 

my ravenous family of eight for a good long time."

"THIS time I have finally mastered the

grocery-shopping-game."

"THIS time, I got this."

Well that's what I said to myself last night.

In the last week I've spent 800 dollars* at

Walmart and wrapped up my shopping last night

at Sam's, spending a thrifty $5,000*.

We should be set for a good 4-5 days.
(*Insert Exaggeration font) 

And speaking of Sam's Club,

I almost ran over a lady in the parking lot.

On purpose.

How can a seemingly normal person,

carrying only a mega-jug of orange juice,

walk down the middle of the parking lot aisle,

and not sense the presence of a

ginormous Suburban, engine revving, nipping at her heels?

She had no idea the kind of day

I had had...and she gambled with her life

taking that kind of risk.

Lucky for her, I had restraint.

Which may not happen next time.

Let that be a warning to everyone.

(And I won't even bother to tell you how 

judgmental my glare was when I saw an old

Asian woman shopping, 

wearing workout shorts and high-heels.)

People, I need help.

I'm having a hard time accepting the

quirkiness of others. 

So on that happy note,

I'd really like to know.....

is there anyone out there who really

does only go grocery shopping once a month?

Is that at all possible?

I'm talkin', hard-core-once-a-month shopping.

No stops in between.

Is it possible?

(I think we can all agree that Lori needs

to stay home as much as possible.)

Go.

my little dude.

Isaiah, this afternoon:

He made it through almost the entire day

wearing his outfit exactly as directed.

Then it all went downhill

around 4:30.

The End.

for the chili-challenged

There are two kinds of people in this world.

Those who make their own chili.

And those who don't.

This blog post if for those who DO NOT.

(If you make your own chili and have a fabulous,

blue-ribbon recipe, look away.)

For those of you who are remedial 

chili-makers,

this post is for YOU.

Don't you feel special?

(I won't name names, but I'm thinking of

friends whose names rhyme with Bonnie and Hatty.)

I love you both.

And I'm here for you in every way,

you know that. 

Here we go!

For MY size family, I brown up 2 lbs. of hearty ground beef.

Around....1/2 cup (or more...or less)

of chopped onion.

Approximately, one+ jalapenos.

(More or less.  Let's be men about this.)

You better add jalapenos or I will hunt you down. 

THEN, add one big ol' can of crushed tomatoes.

(Thank you, Aldi!)

And two cans of chili beans.

(Thank you again, Aldi!)

Add one picture of Lucy-bug because

she insisted!

Then,

add 1/2 cup of chili seasoning.

(Take liberty with this, people.  It's all about what you like.)
Add some salt, too.
Maybe 2-3 tsps.
I'm guessing.
Chili isn't an exact science.
That's why I love it.
Free spirit, baby.

And then you will eventually end up with...

CHILI!!!

It's so easy.

So fresh.

Soooooo what you need to make for your family.

Turn it into chili-dogs and you'll forever

be the hero of all-time.

I'm not even kidding.

brenden back to college

 We took Brenden back to college today.

Boohoohooohooo!

I was so sad....and so happy.

I know that's horrible (the happy part).

But this kid was at the end of his rope with being

at home.

He had no job.

He had no hobbies.

(Except eating and sleeping.)

And he was just so ready to be back

on his own.

I can't blame him!

I love his little college and am so happy for him!

Here is the pictorial:

Leaving Lucy.

The hardest part for both of them.

(Seriously, they are so attached.)

Unloading at school.

 Unloading, done.

Going to lunch now.

Lunch at a BBQ place.

Uncle Kenny came along with us.

We love him!

(He is SINGLE, girls!  Just saying. More on that later.)

Then we went for a quick-trip to a thrift store.

Brenden driving us to the thrift store.

(This is so exciting, right?)

Look what I found!

Is this not the most hideous thing you've ever seen,

ever?

I so bought it!

No, I did not.

DID NOT. 

And B really wanted this dental chair 

for his dorm room.

Maybe for Christmas.

Then we said goodbye.

Uncle Kenny and Brenden.

Brenden and me.

(Wahhhhh!)

K-Man, Brenden, and me.

(Wahhh, wahhh, WAHHHH!)

The End.

Now, leave me alone while I 

cry my eyes out, and deal with the remaining kids.

One down, FIVE to go!

Yesssssss!

how big is your God?

My chalkboard status:

Lucy's chalkboard status:

Lucy's is her Awana memory verses.

Nice!

Mine is a quote from,

In a Pit With a Lion On a Snowy Day,

by Mark Batterson. 

And how do you like God's economy equation?

Get it?

I love it.

Absolutely love it.

paula

Oh my word, you guys.

I love me some Paula Dean.
And I saw this segment yesterday on her show
and I nearly died laughing.

Enjoy!!

dinner tonight {yessss!}

I need to tell you that I am making

a pot roast for dinner, ya'll.

I realize that for 98% of you, this is a normal,

weekly coinsurance.

But for me,

this happens only once every 12 1/2+ years.

Because wouldn't ya know it,

K-Man, despite being a meat-and-potato-guy,

does NOT like roast.

*$^%&#(@*!

Yes, that's right.

But I just bought us a whole dang side of beef.

So, we is having us a roast, people.

And I think she looks mighty fine.

K-Man might be persevering through dinner tonight.

But the rest of us,

we are going to be loving every last bite.

Yesssssss. 

ridiculously high goals {FAIL!}

Tell me,

what is the hardest part of your day?

Are you sluggish in the morning...

then come alive in the afternoon?

Do you...

get the most wind in your sails after dinner?

Or are you...

a burst-of-energy morning person?

I'm most definitely the last option.

I love to get up early.

(But don't you dare talk to me right away.)

I get a ton of stuff done in the AM.

I'm filled with ridiculously high goals and ambitions

for the day.

BUT...by around 2:00,

I crash.

I don't want to do anything else

but sit and read, lounge, and snack.

And talk on the phone.

And text people.

And stalk Facebook friends.

And simply ignore all my responsibilities,

as I plan a lavish trip to Maui.

And then go to bed.

Oh wait...there are people to take care of.

Gah!

So as we all know,

all too well...

the afternoons/evenings is when

we need to put on our big-girl pants

and play this mom-game like we're in it to win.

I do my darndest to eat well,

take in plenty of water,

and of course drink my Lucy-tonic.

*Wink-Wink*

What else can a girl do to put a 

spring in her step??

So I'd like your ideas.

(Never in a million years will these two

little children let me be prostrate in the middle

of the day, so don't suggest a cat-nap

to me.

Don't even.)

So basically,

it comes down to some kind of magical energetic

food/drink, mid-afternoonish. 

I'm thinking,

cupcakes and soda pop

iced green tea with a 

healthy snack.

But if you have other ideas,

lay 'em on me.

And if you want to come over to

serve it to me while I'm lounging around,

hooray for you!

And me!

Thank you for your cooperation

and all-around niceness.

all alone!

Oh golly, I need to do a blog post,

but I got nothin' much to say.

So, real quick I'll just tell you that I am

sitting here ALONE in my house.

(Oh wait, Brenden is asleep in the basement.)

I am sitting here ALONE on the first level of my house.

That hasn't happened in, let's see...

a million years.

And here's what this Prov. 31 gal as done already 

since children went to school today

(and it's not even 11 AM):

1.  I sold 8 dozen eggs.

2.  Dusted furniture.

3. Swept and mopped my wood floors.

4.  Cleaned my kitchen.

5.  Fed/watered chickens & gathered eggs.

6.  Sat down to write a blog post.

And next, a friend is coming over to get a highlight.

So, all that to say this.

These kids hold me back, man!

Oh but, I do love them around me most of the time.

(In case they are reading this.)

And just so this post isn't without a couple pics,

here are Macy and Nick on their 

first day of school last week.

Cute, right?

So cute!

Awww, I miss them.

Now I must go.

I have things to do!

kitty cat {terrorized}

Here's the scene:

Kitty cat in tree.

(Big bear-like dog at the base of tree.)

Big boy with big heart to the rescue!

Rescue effort, continued.

Rescue effort successful.

Rescue lecture to kitty cat.

Awww, kitty..I wuv you.

Note to doggy:  Quit terrorizing the kitty cats.

Note to kitty cat:  That big ol' doggy is nothin' but bluff.

Silly kitty cat.

what isaiah learned at school

What Isaiah learned at school:

(I'll try to interpret for you.)

He told me over and over and OVER AGAIN

on the way home yesterday,

"Raise your hand before you speak."

And then, according to this video,

he learned two other things,

though he could only remember one.

Or something like that.

we made it through summer {whew!}

School's in!

Yahoooooo!

Wootie woot-woot!

Hot-diggity-dog!

Brenden is going back to college.

Nick, Macy, and Eli are going to public school.

(Although Nick is doing a couple subjects at home.)

And my littles are being homeschooled.

But two whole days a week they go to

 homeschool enrichment classes.

Which really equates to,

homeschool-mom-sanity-enrichment 

classes. 

They love it!

I love it!

The world is a better place now.

And my little fella is working hard.

(When he wants to.)

And Lucy, being Lucy,

is always ready to control the entire universe help.

We made it through summer.

And the earth is back on its axis.

Can you sense my sigh of relief and my

ear-to-ear grinning?

my friend, kristy!

Hey guys!

Do me a favor, would ya?

Swing over to my friend Kristy's blog

and prayerfully consider contributing to their

adoption fundraiser.

I've known Kristy since our first adoption (Lucy),

and she's been a dear sweet friend ever since.

They are getting down to the wire to raise

funds for the adoption of their

little guy, Nate.

They could really use your help, big or small!

Click HERE to go take a peek!  

mini-quiches (on-the-ready!)

Today I resolved to start really planning ahead.

I mean,

really, really planning ahead.

I'm working on breakfasts.

I already have a dozen+ cinnamon rolls frozen

individually in the freezer.

And today I made some little mini quiches.

Here's how I did it:

Cut some tortillas into little triangles.

Put them into a cupcake pan.

OH, spray your pans first with non-stick spray!

Lordy, don't forget that step.

 Mix up about a dozen eggs, cooked sausage,

cheddar cheese, (about) one cup half & half,

salt, pepper, taco seasoning 

(and whatever else you can think of).

Pour into cupcake pan, about 2/3 full.

I overfilled mine.

Do as I say, not as I do.

2/3 full is perfect.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 16+ minutes.

Top with cilantro and salsa (not pictured).

Serve 'em up.

OR, store in freezer to pull out and

have on-the-ready for those early-morning

school days when you're in a daze.

Delicious!

(Get creative and throw in some veggies,

ham, bacon, etc. etc.!)

my new addiction

Would you like to know my latest 

addiction??

Thanks to Brenden,

I am now obsessed with a website

where you can be in a live typing race with other people.

I win almost every time.

At least in my little race.

Seriously,

if you love to type,

you gotta check it out!

Come back and tell me what ya think.

Oh my gosh...

this is what my life has come to.

Typing races.

thrift store, tim hawkins, side of beef

 The first half of our weekend was

SO DANG FUN.

(The second half, mediocre.)

But I have little to prove to you of our

excitement.

I'll do my best to explain.

First,

we dropped the little kids off at 

my parents' house.

Woo hoo!

Then we had some time to kill before

our big event,

so we went to a thrift store.

Here's what it's like to go to a thrift

store with Brenden:

Then, then, then!!

We saw Tim Hawkins at our church!

Listen to me.

Listen to me carefully.

If you ever get a chance to go see him,

you must.

YOU MUST!

We laughed so stinking hard.

Oh my gosh.

Hilarious!

But that's where my pictures end.

And that's where our fun pretty much

ended too.

But there's hope for tomorrow!

I am going to the meat market to order a side of beef.

Now THAT is a good time,

just waiting to happen.

Bye for now!