Fish. In the Crock Pot. Now I've seen everything.

For those of you who don't know my husband, let me wax some poetic. He's a meat eater. He once told me that if I had been a vegitarian when we met, he wouldn't have dated me (no no ladies, he's all mine). This man needs some sort of meat product in every meal I make. And don't even think about trying to sneak ground turkey into a burger. He knows that's not ground beef and he's not very happy about it. He is the pickiest eater in my house, which is saying a lot since I have a three year old.

So I was really pushing my luck when I decided to try this fish recipe. It could have been terrible. The only thing I was banking on was the fact that he HAS to try everything on his plate to set a good example for Homeslice. Heh, sucker.

And seriously? He LOVED it. He's even requested it! This was the gateway drug to the grilled bell peppers I made last night (which, by the way, he also loved, ThankYouVeryMuch).

So, if you're the mother (or wife) of a picky eater? Try this. I think it'll go over pretty well!

From A Year of Slow Cooking:

Ingredients:
-- 3 or 4 filets of Tilapia (or other favorite white fish)
--1/4 cup mayonnaise
--1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used cheddar. I've made it before with Parmesan and it was amazing. If I was planning a trip to the store specifically to get ingredients for this dish I would pick Parmesan.)
--juice of 2 lemons
--4 chopped garlic cloves
--pinch each of salt and black pepper

The Directions:
--mix all ingredients (except for the fish. definitely not the fish.) in a bowl
--lay out a piece of foil
--rub sauce mixture on both sides of fish
--fold foil over and make a little packet for the fish
--put all the packets into the crockpot
--cook on LOW for 2-4 hours; fish should flake easily with a fork

PLEASE take care when taking the packet out of the crockpot and when opening it. It will be hot.

Meeting Recap - 17 Sept

Hey hey hey!

So sorry this meeting recap has taken so long to be posted, but dudes. There's a lot of new TV that I'm already invested in. Can anyone say Glee?!

Anyway, another good meeting! A lot of information was out there so I'd like to put it all here, just for reference.

Kathleen mentioned that we're going to start accepting things to trade at each meeting. If you're anything like me, you have a year's worth of Real Simple magazines just sitting in your bookcase that your husband keeps giving dirty looks to (so grammatically incorrect. I apologize, Addie). Bring your magazines, books, (unused) toothpaste, formula, coupons, etc to the meetings. One man's trash and all that.

[change for change]
Empty out those change purses at each meeting into our Change for Change coffee can. We collected a ton of money last year, and I know we can do the same this year. Even if it's less than a dollar, every bit helps.

[East Fort Bend Human Needs Ministry]
Connie spoke to us about the EFBHNM at the last meeting too. We love working with them, and now we have a TON of ways to help. The resale shop is open Monday-Saturday and is always accepting donations. In fact, I have a trash bag full of curtains that I got from my Mom's house when I went to help her move last weekend. We mentioned setting up one meeting for everyone to bring their stuff so it can be dropped off all at once, but until then, take it over to them. They're located at 435 Stafford Run.

We'll be doing a holiday food drive, and I know we'll be going out there to help out once in a while so keep them in mind. Also, if you shop at Randalls, you can get community bucks to give to them. See what I did there? I have NO idea what community bucks are, but I totally acted like I did. Impressive, no? ; ) If you have any questions, email Connie - connie@humanneeds.org

[Just Between Friends]
The Just Between Friends sale is the first weekend in October which is...Wow, this weekend! Head out there to pick up some winter clothes for those growing kids. If you want to sell, don't forget the perks: 65% back, or 70% back if you volunteer. They're accepting items on Wednesday the 29th from 6:30 - 9 and Thursday the 30th from 12 - 2. The website is a wealth of knowledge, plus there's a really cute baby on the first page. Check it out and let us know what you scored (or how much you made!)

[Pumpkin Patch at St. Catherines]
Elizabeth Hendrie mentioned that there would be a pumpkin patch at St. Catherine's starting October 11 from 10a - 7p. There will be storytime, photographers and games. Plus, pictures of kids in front of pumpkins are adorable! There's no website for information, but Elizabeth knows a lot about it so if you have questions, email her.

[Charlotte]
Finally, Charlotte talked to us about Matthew 5:5. "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inhearit the earth."
One thing she said really stuck with me: "You're blessed when you're who you are, no more, no less." What do you think about that verse?

So that was our meeting. Did I miss anything? Keep any eye out for a new post with my new favorite fish recipe - cooked in the crock pot. That's right. I said crock pot. Seriously. It's delicious.

[c]

Great First Meeting

I just wanted to post a quick message to thank everyone for a great first meeting.

One of the questions in our ice breaker today was "Why did you join MOPS?"

Our table didn't get to it, so I wanted to address it here. I joined Mops last year because we had just moved to Houston from Austin. A lot of the people that we knew here didn't have kids and I was struggling with finding women I got along with. MOPS gave me a place to meet women who's kids were in the same age range as mine.

The thing I love most about our MOPS group is that I feel like everyone can find someone they have something in common with. I'm one of the younger moms in the group, but I still felt like I had something in common with some of the people in our group. I know it can be intimidating to walk into a group of women who all seem to know each other. I felt the same way my first meeting and I already knew some people in the group.

But these women could very well become your best friends. They're the ones who you call when your kids are driving you crazy and you need someone to complain with. They're the ones you call when you can't figure out why your kid refuses to poop on the potty. They're the ones you call when you want to see the newest Twilight movie, but don't want to be the only middle-aged mother sitting on the floor at midnight. Trust me, you won't be the only one.

In this group, you'll find women who like the same books as you, even if they're the Sookie Stackhouse series (hey, I've read 9 so far, no judgement here). You'll find women who like to watch The Bachelor, or who spend their free time watching the news. They're the ones you ask for book recommendations when you need something light and funny, or when you want to challenge yourself with War and Peace. You'll find someone who will listen to the same music, enjoy the same vegetarian restaurants, shop at the same stores.

Get to know everyone. It's hard; there's 47 of us. But don't be surprised if you get a phone call after a particularly hard week from someone you don't know that well, telling you that they've been through what you're going through and offering a cup of coffee and a shoulder to cry on.

Don't be afraid to ask for help from these women, because these women? They can change your life.

Welcome to MOPS.

Find your great summer book

The fam and I just got back from a family reunion for a week at Hilton Head Island (go ahead, be jealous. It was marvelous). Since the price of plane tickets require you to drain your savings account, we decided to drive the 17.5 hours.

This sort of trip requires a LOT of To-Do Lists, although I'm not complaining since I LOVE me some To-Do Lists. I'm the sort of person who will write a chore I just finished just so I can cross it off. And since we have floor to ceiling windows in our dining room, I got to write those bad boys right on the window with dry erase markers. No one can say they didn't see the list (*cough* JR *cough*).

But I digress.

In my preperation, I downloaded some books on tape (books on CD? Books on iTunes?) for the drive. I ended up only getting through on full book, and halfway through two more, but in my research I found a long list of books that I want to read.
Here are some of those. Some of these I've read already and would suggest, and some just look good. Feel free to add to this list with your favorites.


This is the first in a series that Charline Harris has written. Think Twilight, but more...adult. It's a quick read. I have this one on my iPod, and the next few in softback. Not too bad.


Or really, ANY David Sedaris book. This is his most recent and as usual, makes me laugh out loud. If you can, find the recordings of them. David reads them himself and his voice makes them even funnier. Other books he's written: Me Talk Pretty One Day, Naked, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, Barrel Fever and Holidays on Ice. He's also the editor of Children Playing Before a Statue of Hercules.


Seriously. Drop everything you are doing right now and go buy this book. I finished the first 2/3 of it in 2 days, then forced myself to read more slowly to make it last longer. I finished it, and immediately started it again. This is NOT a light book. It deals with World War Two, death, little kids. But it's amazing. A+


If you want to think about things a little differently, Malcom Gladwell is your guy. From Amazon: Malcolm Gladwell poses a provocative question in Outliers: why do some people succeed, living remarkably productive and impactful lives, while so many more never reach their potential? Again, I have this on my iPod (I got it for JR, and he finished it - a huge acomplishment for someone who doesn't like to read for pleasure. No, I don't understand it either), but I started it too. So far I've learned that the most successful hockey players are usually born in January and how many hours are required to perfect a skill (spoiler alert - 10,000). I can't wait to finish it.


I had this on my iPod and listened to it at every chance. From AJ Jacobs' website: The Year of Living Biblically is about my quest to live the ultimate biblical life. To follow every single rule in the Bible – as literally as possible. I obey the famous ones:
The Ten Commandments
Love thy neighbor
Be fruitful and multiply
But also, the hundreds of oft-ignored ones.
Do not wear clothes of mixed fibers.
Do not shave your beard
Stone adulterers
Why? Well, I grew up in a very secular home (I’m officially Jewish but I’m Jewish in the same way the Olive Garden is an Italian restaurant). I’d always assumed religion would just wither away and we’d live in a neo-Enlightenment world. I was, of course, spectacularly wrong. So was I missing something essential to being a human? Or was half the world deluded?

I decided to dive in headfirst. To try to experience the Bible myself and find out what’s good in it, and what’s maybe not so relevant to the 21st century.

The resulting year was fascinating, entertaining and informative. It was equal parts irreverent and reverent. It was filled with surprising insights almost every day. (I know it’s not biblical to boast, so apologies for that).

The book that came out of the year has several layers.

-An exploration of some of the Bible’s startlingly relevant rules. I tried not to covet, gossip, or lie for a year. I’m a journalist in New York. This was not easy.

--An investigation of the rules that baffle the 21st century brain. How to justify the laws about stoning homosexuals? Or smashing idols? Or sacrificing oxen? And how do you follow those in modern-day Manhattan?

--A look at various fascinating religious groups. I embedded myself among several groups that take the Bible literally in their own way, from creationists to snake handlers, Hasidim to the Amish.

--A critique of fundamentalism. I became the ultra-fundamentalist. I found that fundamentalists may claim to take the Bible literally, but they actually just pick and choose certain rules to follow. By taking fundamentalism extreme, I found that literalism is not the best way to interpret the Bible.

--A spiritual journey. As an agnostic, I’d never seriously explored such things as sacredness and revelation.

--A memoir of my family’s eccentric religious history, including my ex-uncle Gil, who has been, among other things, a Hindu cult leader, an evangelical Christian and an Orthodox Jew.


I first read The Glass Castle a few years ago, but picked it up again a few weeks ago. This memoir is about Jeannette Walls' childhood, sharing her fond memories of her father and mother. She tells how they refused to conform to society’s ideas of responsibility, leaving their children to fend for themselves for even the most basic of needs, such as food and shelter. Jeannette tells her story in a straightforward fashion that is not touched with anger or self-pity, belying events that often shock her readers with her almost innocent presentation of the facts. The Glass Castle is an astonishing memoir that will leave the reader both stunned by the tragic circumstances of Jeannette’s childhood and awed by her strength. This isn't a thick book, but I didn't want it to end.

What books are your favorites? What is your preferred summer reading? Any more suggestions?

[cori]

Product Review: Nair Shower Power

Full Disclosure: Nair did NOT approach me to write this product review. I received no compensation what-so-ever. I just thought that it might be fun to use a chemical to burn the hair off my legs during a rainy afternoon. Hey, my house is a disaster, I have no idea what I'm cooking for dinner, and my kid is running around naked climbing the mountain (arm rest of the couch) so I figured why not? It's not like I have anything else do today.

Nair Shower Power. I paid $5.99, on sale, at Target. This, I must confess, was an impulse buy. This is why I don't go to Target alone. It's a lot harder to compare chemical hair removal products with a hollering three year old asking for a chocolate shake. You get the 5.1oz bottle and a small sponge that looks like one I might use to scrub my tub. If I, you know, scrubbed my tub.

*ahem*

The directions are....complex. There are three sections, and take up the entire right side of the back of the bottle.

First step: Apply Cream. Skin must be dry before application. Dispense cream onto green side of the dry sponge and apply evenly. Repeat until the entire area where hair to be removed is covered. Make sure unwanted hair is completely covered. DO NOT RUB IN. Hang sponge on hook in the tub/shower or place with the white side of the sponge down near tub/shower. Wait at least 1 minute before showering.

Ok. Pretty straight forward. I just put the cream on the sponge and slid it across my leg. It wasn't very thick. It looked like most of the cream was getting on the green side of the sponge instead of my leg. No matter, I'll just put the cream directly on my leg, then spread it with the sponge. That worked a little better. I wasn't sure how much to put on, but I was pretty sure I wasn't supposed to touch it. I mean, there's a sponge for a reason, right?

It was then, while I was naked, sitting on the edge of the tub, when Claire wondered in.

"What are you doing, mommy?" She asked, staring at my legs.

"Shaving my legs," I replied, helpfully.

"Ok. I'll help." She pronounced, climbing out of her twirly princess dress and walking toward me.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" I screamed as her hand veered dangerously close to my now white leg.

But, she was too fast for me. Great. Now I have a Claire-sized hand print on my upper thigh. We washed her hands immediately.

Waiting one minute was no problem. I had my hands full with the aformentioned hand washing, plus then Claire had to go potty, then wash her hands again. When I finally stepped in the shower, I had no idea how long it had been, but my legs were starting to tingle.

Shower. Step into the shower and follow your usual routine. The cream will resist wash off, but a small amount of wash off is not unusual. For optimum product performance, keep skin where cream has been applied away from direct stream of water. Make sure the cream stays on your skin for at least an additional 2 minutes while in the shower. DO NOT EXCEED 10 minutes of total application time.

Besides the overabundance of bolded words in this set of directions, it seemed pretty straight-forward. Shower, as normal, avoiding the water spraying directly on my legs. Got it. The problems started when Claire got in the shower with me. Showering with a 3 year old is hard enough. Add possible chemical burn-inducing cream on my legs and it was as if I were in Circ de Sole. I washed my hair, trying not to touch her. She wanted the "water spray" on her, then she didn't, then she did again. Not only was I worried about her, I was aware of where the water was spraying. Only on my head and back, NOT my legs. Check.

Downside: my shower was beginning to smell like a mixture of baby poop and amonia. Awesome.

Remove/Rinse. Total hair removal depends on hair thickness. Rinse the sponge and use the white side to remove the cream together with the hair in a small area. If the hair comes off easily, remove the rest of the cream by massaging in a circular motion. If the hair does not come off, leave the cream on longer without exceeding 10 minutes of total application time. Once the cream and hair have been removed, rinse your skin thoroughly under the shower. Do not rub. Pat dry gently. Rinse the sponge. Keep the tube closed when not in use.

Here's where things get, pardon my pun, hairy. I had to manuver my body so that one foot was against the shower wall, while trying not to touch Claire. By this point, most of the cream had already rinsed off, but there were still large patches of white goo on my leg. I used the white side of the sponge and rubbed my whole leg. Sometimes I remembered to use a circular motion, but most of the time I looked like I was scrubbing my sink. You know, if I scrubbed my sink.

*ahem*

A few times I dared rinse the sponge, desperately trying to not get any water on Claire, who at this point was entertaining herself by singing "Take a bath, wash yourself, take a bath, show me what you're scrubbing with" and largely ignoring me. Which was good, since I looked like an idoit.

Everything came off pretty easily, and the cream that was still on parts of my leg was rubbed in other parts of my leg thank to my vigorous circular motions. I got everything off, rinsed my leg again and finally stepped out of the shower.

Final Verdict: B+ The parts of my legs that had absolutly no hair were smoother than when I shaved them. But, the whole process was a little involved. Next time I'm going to try with more cream and less 3 year old helper.

I don't know if I'd buy this again; that will be determined once I see how long it lasts. But, it was more enjoyable than shaving. It's worth a try.

"And Then I Had A Cocktail" or "How I Won the Mother of the Year Award."

As I pulled on my yoga pants, I felt positive. It was 7am and I was getting ready for a yoga class at the Y - something I had wanted to start doing for months. I was dressed (including socks and sneakers) and so was Claire (including pants - the real win). I had water. Claire had extra diapers in case she had an accident. We had already discussed the exciting playground at the Y where she was sure to meet new friends.

We were ready.

My plan was foiled the moment we walked in the door. We got a little lost looking for the daycare, and when I picked up Claire to try to walk more quickly, I realized that she was sopping wet. She hadn't mentioned needed to use the bathroom and in my rush to get to class on time, I hadn't asked. I finally founf the daycare and asked for the changing table. As I was changing her diaper, Claire's sixth sense flaired up. She knew I was leaving. I spent a few minutes walking her around the room, pointing out the slide and blocks and princess books. I told her to give me a hug and kiss and that I would be back from my class soon.

Then the wailing started.

" I just wnat you Mama," she cried in a terribly pathetic voice. I spent a few more moments trying to calm her down before looking at the daycare workers helplessly. Then one of them said something to me that angered me more than I thought it would: "If you had just dropped her off, she would have been fine. But now she'd going to cry the whole time you're gone."

I shot her a look that I hoped conveyed my anger at her accusation (but probably just looked ridiculous - I've yet to take the "Crazy Eyes" class at the LLU) and walked out.

I was not happy. I had been looking forward to yoga - the quiet, the peace. I was doing it just for me, or trying to, and my plans were thwarted. I walked a little faster to the car than I should have, annoyed that Claire had immediately stopped crying and was now negotiating a chocolate milkshake after lunch and could we go play at Aunt Addie's and how about she gets to turn on the air conditioner for me?!

Didn't she know she had just ruined my plans? Why couldn't she just go play by herself like other kids?

"I'm not happy, Claire. You ruined my day." I was fuming. How could she be so happy? She had thrown a huge fit to get what she wanted. She was acting like a baby.

Then I looked in the rearview mirror and saw her big blue eyes looking at me. That's when I realized. She WAS still a baby. She is only three. She was scared to be in a place she didn't remember with people she had never met. She didn't know how to tell me this, so she cried.

And I yelled at her. Guilt washed over me. But I pushed it down, knowing it wouldn't do any good. I resolved to salvage the morning.

. . .

As I type this, Claire is standing in our atrium, naked, in the rain. She's shivering, but she's laughing. Since that morning, I've yelled again. I've been frustrated and annoyed and angry. But I've also hugged and kissed and said "I love you." I have bad moments, and I have good moments, but they're just that - moments. They don't define my day. I let the bad ones fall away and hold on to the good ones.

How do you handle "bad moments?"

Changing of the Guards

Happy July!

Seriously, as I was typing that, I realized that it's July. JULY. How did that happen?

We're deep into summer now and, at least in the Atkins' household, things are running as smoothly as expected. Potty training is going well, if you could getting pooped on twice in two days "going well." I've done more laundry this week than I have since homeslice was an infant. In fact, Claire is peeing and pooping on so many of her shorts and twirly skirts that I'm doing at least one load everyday. The problem lays in the fact that Claire's clothes are, well, small. A few soiled shorts and dirty cloth diapers does not a full load of laundry make. I'm actually seaching my house for more things to stick in the washer.

Never had that problem before.

Moving on.

I was reading the newest edition of Women's Day (no, I don't have any idea how I came to receive Woman's Day every month in my mailbox) and found a recipe I had to share.

A little backstory: when we lived in the OKC and I was pregnant (seriously? Never go to Oklahoma. They put something in the water out there. People were getting pregnant left and right. It's a good thing we only lived there a year or I'd have come back with scores of little babies. But I digress), I had the most powerful craving for chocolate shakes (and to shoot a gun, but that's a different story).

I tried all the usual places, McDonalds, Wendy's, Burger King. I tried the local places. JR tried to make one for me. They were never exactly as I wanted. Then we went to a place that sold Frozen Hot Chocolate a la Serendipity in NY. I can't remember the name of the place (and sadly I think it's closed now), but I have dreams about this drink. It was cold and frosty and chocolately and it was so good that it almost made up for the fact that I couldn't eat raw fish or soft cheese.

Almost.

Anyway, I found a recipe for Frozen Hot Chocolate in this month's Woman's Day. It looks pretty good - I haven't tried it yet - and it's apparently a "slimmed down version." 150 calories and virtually no fat.

Holla.

So, someone make this and bring me some.

1/2 cup chocolate syrup
1 cup fat free evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups ice cubes
Garnish: reduced fat whipped topping and/or dark chocolate shavings.

1. Combine chocolate syrup, evaporated milk, vanilla and ice in a blender until smooth.
2. Pout into glasses. Garnish with a dollop of whipped topping and/or sprinking of chocolate shavings if desired.

Dude. Not until I finished typing out the "directions" did I think, "Well, duh." Mix everything and pour into glasses. Do we really need written directions for that?

So there it is. Frozen Hot Chocolate to cool down your (really, REALLY) hot afternoon.

Enjoy!

[cori]