The Great Thing About Puke

There is a stomach virus going around among our youngsters and it attacked my Lydia.  One our way to small group, Lydia started crying. I thought she was just sick of sitting in the car but she was literally sick to her stomach.  It sounded like someone threw a bucket of water in the back seat.  Then came this overwhelmingly horrible smell.  I jumped out of the car, threw open the door and there she was, my little girl, completely drenched in pink puke.  Parenting is positive!

Since it was already late, we decided to take everything we could to the laundry room and let the car alone until the next morning ... while it marinated in it's own pukey goodness.  The next day we were pleasantly surprised to find out that puke is very easy to clean up.  It all came right out and there is no smell left behind.  

Here is how I recommend cleaning up puke:

- Most importantly, don't freak out. Your child is probably feeling pretty bad and embarrassed as it is.

- Get everything into the washing machine that you can.  

- Get a bucket of hot soapy water (we used dish detergent) and an old rag. Wipe everything up.  

- Get a deodorizer, we used baking soda that was scented. Sprinkle over the area in the car. Let it set for a few minutes. Vacuum and the smell is gone.   

The great thing about puke is that it cleans right up without requiring too much work and if Febreeze-d or baking soda-d, there is no smell. 

Have at it!

Fort Charles

I thought I wanted to be a good cook.  But I don't think I really care about the cook-er part as much.  No, I have much loftier dreams for my place in the kitchen. I aspire to have the best recipes in the world.  Not possible, I know, but this is one of my many life's pursuits ... that I take too seriously.

First I find a recipe with potential and recruit it into my collection with false advertising and bogus promises.  The recipe spends several weeks in basic training where I break it's will by running it through a course of humiliation and impossible expectations. Then I whip it back into shape with hours of drills, marching, and ridiculous punishments.  The recipe will also be able to memorize and recite on the spot core values of the Constitution of Good Recipes.  When I feel the recipe has passed the pre-test, it will bunk with the other recipes and wait.  When the recipe is called into the next phase,  the recipe will prove it's physical aptitude by producing a wonderful (or not so wonderful) meal.  If it passes this final test, the recipe is added to the notebook with honors.  If not, it will learn to do better by running through another course of grueling, unreasonable and futile punishments until it becomes a piece of dependable, reliable machinery.

Hoo-rah!

Family Notebook

When Tim and I got married, his mom handed me a notebook full of her recipes that she's collected over the years.  I thought this was such a fantastic idea, that I created my own notebook.  Every new recipe I experiment with, I ask Tim if it's 'notebook worthy'.  If it is, I type it up really nice and put it in the notebook with a copy also saved in a document on a USB.  If it was just an 'ok' dish, I keep working on it until it's amazing.  If it was horrible, I pitch it.

My goal is to fill a notebook with 'restaurant worthy' recipes that my kids will be proud to have and I would be confident in having published one day.  The book is called, believe it or not, Tried & True.  Tried & True has been 'published' 3 times so far, each edition different from the last.  I'm dreaming of having this cookbook really published for my kids by the time they are getting married.

I guess I need to figure out how to copyright a title. 

To be continued ...

a-Baby

Two days ago was the first time that Lydia (21mos) verbally accepted Liam (11wks) into her family.  Her exact words were, "a-mammy, a-daddy, a-baby."  After their bath, Liam was quite fussy and unhappy in his position.  Lydia compassionately looked over at her little brother and gently put her hand on his arm.  It did nothing to console him, but it made my heart swell with love, joy, peace, patience ... you get the idea.  

I seem to have frequent heart-swelling moments with my children.  Oddly enough, each one is usually followed by a sense of guilt.  I imagine the thousands of lonely, neglected and possibly abused children in orphanages around the world.  I wish for them all to have a safe and loving place, where they feel like they really belong.  

Our small group has been reading through 1 Corinthians together.  Paul says if anyone feels they should do something and does not do it, it is a sin.  Jesus also commands us to help the orphans.  

One day down the road ... Lydia might be accepting more into her family.