Men to be proud of...

How can you trust anybody today in this world of entitlements and I want it now attitudes. Raising boys can be a challenge at times, you want them to grow up strong and "manly" but you want them to have that softer side as well.

I have a duty to my sons, to make sure they are raised up right, to give them every advantage in life, and those advantages come in the form of how they are raised and what they learn while they are young. It started when they were born and it will continue until the moment I take my last breath.


I will raise up my boys to be old fashioned patriots, with the guts to earn what they want and to get their hands dirty with work.


I will teach them to love and live with a servants heart that covers a back of steel.

I will teach them that if they are a senator, to show up, fight for what you believe and if need be lose like a man, not some cowardly I will take my jacks and go home wimp.


I will teach them that if the money is not in the budget than you can't have it until you can pay for it.


I will teach them that women are not objects, but people, equals to be respected and appreciated.


I will teach them to pay it forward, that karma is a very real thing, and to treat others as you would like to be treated is a good philosophy in life to have.

I will teach my boys to have sympathy and empathy, and to be generous and kind to those less fortunate.

I will teach them to be assertive, to stand up for what they believe in, and to have a voice for those that have none.


I will teach my boys that education is a key and ignorance is a brick wall.


I will teach them that family is important, and as long as you have family, you have the world.


I will teach them that the road less travelled is not always the best road to take. And taking the high road will get you much further.


And most of all, I will teach them that life is precious, and it's much to short. They need to make the most of each hour of each day of their lives.

What would you like to teach your children?

Hey Good Lookin, Whatcha got cookin?

My favorite recipe is Tequila Lime Chicken Tacos with Charred Limes....It is a huge crowd pleaser. The recipe calls for "pounded chicken breasts" but we just make them like normal and shred them up and they come out just as good! I hope y'all enjoy!

Marinade:
Minced zest and juice of 2 medium to large limes
1/4 Cup tequila
1 T. triple sec or other orange flavored liqueur
2 tsp vegetable oil
2 tsp ground dried green chile or green chile seasoning or 1 T minced pickled jalapeno
1/2 tsp salt.
4 medium boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded 1/4 inch thick
3 to 4 medium limes, sliced into 4 wedges each
Few tablespoons of tequila
vegetable oil

Sauce:
1/2 Cup Mayo
1/2 Cup sour cream
2 T minced fresh cilantro
2 tsp fresh lime juice
1/4 to 1/2 tsp dried ground green chile or green chile seasoning or minced pickled jalapeno to taste
12 corn tortillas (or flour if you prefer)

1. At least 1 hr ahead or up to the night before you plan to grill, prepare marinade. (The longer you marinade the stronger the flavor) Combine the ingredients in a small bowl. Place the chicken breasts in a zippered plastic bag and pour in the marinade. Seal and toss back and forth to coat chicken evenly. Refrigerate.

2. Up to 1 hr ahead place the lime sections on a plate and sprinkle them with the tequila and rub lightly with oil. Let sit at room temp

3. Prepare the sauce, stir together the ingredients in a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.

4. When ready to grill, drain chicken and discard marinade. Let sit uncovered at room temp for about 20 min.

5. Fire up the grill, bringing the heat to medium

6. Grill the chicken uncovered for 6 to 8 min total. Turn onto each side twice. The chicken is done when it is white throughtout but still juicy. Grill the limes alongside the chicken, turning them from time to time so that they soften and develop a bit of char. Warm the tortillas on the edge of the grill and wrap them in a dish towel or foil to keep warm

7. Working quickly pull the chicken into thin shreds and pile it on a platter. Surround with the limes and set a bowl of sauce on the platter. Serve immediately

8. Fold the tortillas, drizzle with sauce, squeeze on some of the warm tequila spiked lime juice and ENJOY!

This are the best tacos every, once you have these, you'll never go back to regular tacos!!

Sharing these with MamaKat fans

Life is Good

Life is good when you meet one of your best girl friends at downtown Disney, and you get to see a HUGE Lego Woody.


And life is even better when you get to bring home your very own Buzz Lightyear and you love him so much he earns a place in your heart, in your bed and under your arm!
We had so much fun running around Downtown Disney that he slept like a log! And the best part, he didn't even realize he wasn't at Disneyland. That is the bonus of having a 3.5 year old!

Because I can wait

I've never been a "baby fan". My uterus doesn't hurt when I see babies. I wanted to be a mother, yes, in the worst way. It was my obsession for a long time, even more so when they told me it would never happen.


Now? I adore my boys, they are my whole world. They are the 1st thing I think about in the morning, as I see and hear Thomas whispering ever so sweetly at 6am "Mommy....is it wake up time?" and they are the last thing I think about before I go to bed, as I stand next to Christopher's bed and I look down at him and my heart swells, I want to pick him up and squeeze him tight. I want that moment to never end.


I want my boys to grow, as much as I loved their tiny little body against mine, I loved to hold them and rock them....I want them to grow up, I want Christopher to talk more, I love his little voice, and I love hearing what he has to say. I love hearing Thomas tell me a story that jumps from a dragon to a sand toy at school to his beloved bedroom toys. I want to hear more!


I can't wait to take them places, to hear where they want to go, to do what they want to do. To talk about what they want to be, where they want to go in life. I think of years down the line, when the tantrums stop, and it's replaced with "Don't" "Stop it" and "He's touching me"!

It makes me think of my own childhood, the things that I remember, the things we did, the time we spent together as a family. I loved being a kid! I'm not getting any younger, and every year my boys get older, I get older too. But I am in no rush to get there, and for those of you who have been around for the last few weeks, hearing about Thomas' school issues, his school seems to have been in a rush to have him grow up.

I want my children to be just that....CHILDREN! With all that it entails. I want them to experience life, not be forced to be a stepford child as I call it. I want them to learn through play, learn through experience, learn through life.

So although I can't wait for them to grow up, I want them to be who they are....my babies, my boys, my children! And I can wait a little longer if it means I can see them laugh and smile and be happy!

A New blog

So I have decided to create a new blog just for my creative and Red Dress Club Writings,
Want to read what I wrote for this weeks prompt?

My new blog title.....Write You Beautiful. Because if you can drink me pretty, I can write you beautiful. Check it out....

This week I wrote about the "Footprints that never fade"

Check it out.....go now!!

An Epiphany

Anyone who knows me, has been on Twitter with me, or just around my blog as of late know the problems we've had with Thomas.

So as of this morning we were informed that Thomas is not invited back to his preschool. Why? Well according to them? It's because he is not potty trained. But in reality we know that it's just that his "teacher" can't handle a 3 1/2 year old being a 3 1/2 year old.

Now they do not employ a psychologist, child or otherwise, on their staff, yet they don't have a problem labeling children. And with someone who has a degree in liberal arts and another in education, trust me she has no business labeling anyone! But they do not seem to have a problem completely destroying my son's self esteem.

So after several months, of letting them have the power over me, make me feel like I am the worst parent in the world, going home at night crying because my child has potty training issues. Nights of no sleep because my heart was being torn in two. Times where I actually said to my husband, "maybe I really am a horrible mom", Believing that my boys were going to hate me.

I had an Epiphany.... My children are exactly that....CHILDREN! They need time to run, and play, and be social.....and equally they need time to tantrum, and cry, and whine....as well as Learn! Learn what's okay and what's not. Learn that fun can be found in places you'd never expect. And they will learn....Mommy isn't perfect, but no matter what? She will always love them, unconditionally. And that there is always time to be children. And this preschool is not going to change my boys into the Stepford children. They aren't perfect....they are CHILDREN! And it's a shame that school can't understand that.

And any of those children who continue on in that school after their nursery school are going to need some serious help!

So my moment to remember at this time? When I realized that my children need time to be children and not robots!

Brought to you by MamaKat

Thumbs Up!

Ahhh my Thomas. We've been diligently working hard to get him fully potty trained, which means pooping in the potty all. the. time! So in our house it's a big deal! He was so excited, that we got the two thumbs up sign after completing the "deed"!!!

I also had to tell this sweet little face that his school doesn't want him to come back anymore, why? Because he's had potty issues, and the stress of potty training has made him act out. And because he stuck his tongue out at the teacher today, they sent him home and asked that he take a break from school. HUH?? He's 3.5....a break?? RIGHT! So I told him I would bring him into school and his teacher as well as the school admin can tell him WHY they don't want him back, since that is what he asked....."Why mommy? Why don't they want me to come tomorrow?" That is a very good question.....and it's something THEY need to answer!

As you can see I am hurt, heartbroken....angry.....no PISSED OFF is more like it, and I will be speaking with the head master! The absurdity about it makes it almost comical, but not for my Baby. And now? The mama bear in me is coming out!!

To feel.....Home.

It was mere hours after the service. My heart was heavy, and my mind cloudy.

I can't remember how many people touched me that day, how many people invaded my space, as if that is what I wanted. I didn't want to hear another person tell me how sorry they were.

Don't be sorry for me, that is not what I need. Shaking my head clear, I didn't know what it was I needed. But I knew it wasn't food, it wasn't hugs, I just wanted to BE. That feeling where I just want to not feel anything, I just want to BE, to see what my mind wanted me to see, to concentrate hard to hear his voice again, his laughter, his stupid jokes, to hear him call me Paco one more time!

I was at mom's house, a home I had lived in as a college student, but at that moment it wasn't Home.

Home was where we grew up, home was where his room was next to mine, where I always stayed home with him when he was grounded but he never stayed home with me.

Home was a place where his drum playing made me crazy sometimes. And when we were on the same page I would sit and listen to him for hours as my foot tapped to the music.

Home, what is known and loved.

Looking out the window as the sun slowly set, this? Didn't feel like home. My heart ached, and my mind ran, for miles.

Laura's mom told me he was with me always, that he wanted me to know how much he loved me, and how he wanted to stay to protect me, but he just couldn't.

But not to worry, open myself, I have the ability, I see the colorful auras of life. I see the bright yellows that surounds the innocence of a child, the hues of green that engulfs some of the intelligence among my friends, and the Crystals that mesh with the people around them, I see them, always, embrace it.

Just Be, be calm, be still, open myself and I will see him again!

The house was pitched black, you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. I lay on my bed, I closed my eyes, I did what my body taught me to do. I looked inside, to see that calming light, to relax, to slow down life.

I thought of him, I thought of special times, times he and I shared from when we were kids, no one would know except me and him. I felt the tears slowly drop, they tickled my cheek as they slid down my face.

I miss him, I hear a hush, a softness, a caress in the word. I am suddenly scared, what is that sound? Reminding myself to just be.....be calm, be still, and breathe. I want to tell him how important he was to me, to tell him that I loved him.

The room, so still, the door closed, and as I sat up on the bed, my eyes wide open, I felt it.

Something, move.....I was still, I was calm, and I was just going to Be.

I felt it.

I felt him move, through me, like a breeze through my hair.

An overwhelming sense of peace engulfed me, surrounded me. I immediately knew what it felt like to just Be. To be okay and at peace, to just Be, and at that moment, I felt....Home.

This is the last hug I felt from my brother, since his death almost 15 years ago. I want my boys to know that feeling, the feeling of Home. The feeling of peace, to use their extra senses to just Be, and to feel....

Home.

This is a prompt inspired by The Red Dress Club. The assignment was: after you have died, your daughter/son will be given the gift of seeing a single five-minute period of your life through your eyes, feeling and experiencing those moments as you did when they occurred. What five minutes would you have him/her see?

I have no idea if I did it right, I remember what it felt like, I carry it with me, and I just let my fingers write.

I got ripped off.....

I am definitely not a Valentine's Day person. Just another Hallmark holiday, and since our Anniversary is on the 9th, I don't put too much emphasis on it at all.

But this morning, I got just this wonderful surprise....

So I wake up to a wonderful pink envelope, a special card from the hubs, telling me how much he loves me on this day of love!!

Enter Thomas....
Thomas: Morning Mommy
Me: Hi Baby, did you sleep well?
Thomas: Yes, what's this?
Me: That is my card from daddy for Valentine's day
Thomas: Can I see it?
Me: Sure
Thomas: What does it sing?
Me: Well nothing
Thomas: Does it light up?
Me: No
Thomas: You got RIPPED OFF!

So apparently all the thought that my husband went through to get me a nice little card to say he loves me.....and to a preschooler, I got ripped off!

Ahh well, I will have to remember to always get a card that sings or lights up for Thomas to show him how much I Love him!
Happy Valentine's Day!

And the world shifts

I could never have imagined....

A heart, cold with lies and mis-trust.

A mind, destroyed from years of mental abuse.

A body, broken, unable to maintain a life within itself.

A life, lost, mislead, completely let go, and thought to be totally worthless.

And then, a man, complete and in contact, never giving up, despite countless ways that said, I'm not worth it, leave before I hurt you, before I destroy you.

A drive, a determination to show me that love does, in fact, exsist, without judgement, without restrictions, without hesitation and without conditions.

A man that stood by me, he showed me, I'm beautiful, I'm special, and I'm worth it.

That man taught me how to trust, how to laugh, how to believe, and how to love, unconditionally.

That man gave me a belief, that I deserved to be happy, and he was just the one to make it so.

He gave me life, in more ways than one. He gave me the most important piece of him, a part of him, the day he said "I do", he gave me his heart, and that is the day the whole world shifted.

This is a post is brought to you by The Red Dress Club and it's dedicated to my husband, the one who gave me all I have today, and our anniversary was yesterday, so in honor of him, Happy Anniversary!

Oh Honey!

"Ohhh Peanut? Come here, wanna taste something oh so yummy?" I asked happily
Happy babbling 9 month old crawles over to me.
I pick him up and give him all kinds of kisses and stupid noises to make him laugh.

I put my finger into the honey and I said "Here Peanut, taste THIS! Tell me that isn't the good stuff!"
Thomas is immediately hooked, wants more and more, he's trying to slip his own little hand into it.
"Whoa buddy, we don't want a huge mess, where's your manner's anyway?" I say

*ring* *ring*
"Hello?" I say
"Hey" She says
"What are you up to?" I ask
"Nothing, just hanging out with the kids, what are you doing?" she says
giggling "Oh nothing, just giving Thomas some of my honey, he totally loves it"
"You are giving Thomas Honey? Like honey from a bee? Like peanut butter and honey?" she says
"Yeah *giggling* he so loves it, it's like crack, he wants more" I say
"I don't mean to alarm you, but YOU CAN'T GIVE HONEY TO A BABY!!!" she says in a panic
"What? Why not?" I ask
"Because, it's bad for them, they aren't supposed to have it before a year old, it says so right on the bottle!!" she says
"WHAT? It does? Where?" I say as I immediately put the plate in the sink, and run for the honey bottle. Yep there is it "may be harmful to children under 12 months of age"
"OH GREAT! Now what do I do? I'm totally freaking out" I said as I imediately grab my computer and turn it on, all while I am carrying Thomas and looking for signs that he's puffing up or not breathing, he seems to be all smiles.
"I'll call you back" I said as I hung up the phone.

I am typing as fast as I can, *click* and I read this....

Infants younger than 12 months are at risk of infant botulism from eating honey. Infant botulism is a rare but serious form of food poisoning

ACK!!! WHAT?? Food poisoning....OMG! I immediately beging to cry, I grab Thomas, I bury my head in his neck and I cry, I tell him I don't deserve him, that I am a horrible mommy, I just gave him honey. How could I NOT know that??

You know you are a rookie mom when you feed your baby, under a year old, honey!

*no babies were harmed in this episode of honey consumption

Brought to you by MamaKat

Super WHAT?

Super bowl Sunday....most thing of food, beer, commercials, and of course the game.

What you don't think about and what happened at our Super Bowl party.....

A kitten decided to climb up a Cyprus tree, about 75 feet.....can you see her little peach head sticking out all the way at the top? I would have gotten a better pic but my zoom wasn't that great..... Little Jazmin, she did come down, about dusk, and when she was about half way down an owl started circling. But she made it safe and sound!

And in our neck of the woods, it became much more important for daddy to teach Thomas how to ride a two wheel bike than it was to watch the game....
Just put your feet on the peddals and....

You are OFF!!! He rode that thing until the sun went down and didn't want to get off it even then!

Super Cake Sunday

It's far from perfect......

And purple is the new blue in the Steelers logo.....
But I think my Super Bowl stadium cake came out kinda cute!
And this is what happens in my kitchen on Super Bowl Sunday!

Even though I am a TN Titans fan, I'll be rooting for the hubs team, The Steelers!

Brought to you by Unknown Mami

16 1/2 weeks

“Why would you want to get a vasectomy now?” she asked.

“Because I definitely do not want any more kids” he said adamantly

“I don’t understand, we talked about this and you said you wanted to have a child with me” she stated as she gently and secretly rubbed her belly. She knew she was already 4 months along. When she rubbed her slightly swelling baby bump she could feel the faintest of flutters inside, and she smiled to herself.

“I said I would think about it, and I did, and I’ve decided I don’t want any more children, and if I do this before we get married I don’t need your signature on a consent form. Besides, you told me you could never have children!” He blatantly stated!

“Well did you ever stop to think how that might make me feel? That maybe I DO want children? The doctors tell me that I can’t, but they aren’t always right, and I would at least like the opportunity to try, and you are taking that for me, from us.” she said almost pleading.

“If you want a child, then I am the wrong person to be with.” He said

Her eyes began to water, but she refused to let him do this to her again! She pretended to look up at a flying cob web from the ceiling, blowing back and forth from the slight breeze the ceiling fan was putting off.

She wanted to yell at him, tell him well go have your vasectomy, see if I care, because I am carrying your child and I will do it all alone, because to me, this baby is very much loved and wanted. But this isn’t how she envisioned her telling her soon to be husband that she was carrying their child. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and pictured their perfect baby, growing, day by day. She couldn’t wait to see him or her, she imagined holding the baby close, breathing in every aspect of her baby, imprinting every feature, every movement, and every tiny little noise. She never thought she’d make it this far in a pregnancy, and this one was meant to be.

She opened her eyes, he was looking at her, as if he wanted to say “What’s wrong” and it came out “Are you done discussing this?”

She said, “I didn’t want it to be this way, and I did have something a little different planned out when this started, but you are forcing me to tell you in this way”

He looked worried, as if she were going to tell him she didn’t want to marry him if he was going through with the vasectomy, that she didn’t love him anymore or that she was leaving right now.

She looked at him in a hopeful way and she blurted out, “I’m pregnant”

She thought that maybe, just maybe when he heard that, he would be excited, he would be happy, he would say All this fighting for nothing.

But he didn’t, he responded with “I knew you would do something screw this all up!”

“Screw it up? I thought you would be happy, this is a blessing” she cried

“Blessing??? Blessing? You call this a blessing? This is a disaster” he shouted

“Well you don’t have to be a part of it then, I will collect my things and I will raise this desperately wanted baby on my own” she said

Right at that moment, a shooting pain through her abdomen, she doubled over in pain. Her mind raced, her thoughts immediately to her baby. Because now that is what it is, HER baby. He made it clear he wanted nothing to do with it. The pain, again. Dizziness filled her, she thought she would faint the pain was so intense. It eased for a moment and she was able to breathe again.

“What’s wrong?” he asked

“It’s none of your concern” she said

She stood to go and find her doctor’s number, just in case. She almost fell with another sharp pain, she cried out as he reached for her. She let him take her arm, guide her to the chair. She instinctively held her belly.

“I need you to take me to the hospital” she said

He helped her to the car, as more and more pain came.

In the hospital the doctor had told her she was losing her baby. There was nothing they could do, it was too late. And with the way she was bleeding they would need to do surgery right away. They whisked her off, to the O.R., the prepped her and she was ready.

She lay there, alone, terrified, and depressed. She heard the doctors and nurses coming through the door, overhead she heard the anesthesiologist tell her she would feel nothing, she would wake up and she would be in recovery. Just take deep breaths.

At that time she hears the doctor say to one of the nurses “Do you know why all Italian men are named Tony?”
“No why?” she replied
“Because that is what it said on everything they owned when the came to the US ‘TO NY’” he laughed
She heard the nurse giggle.

A steady stream of tears slipped out of the corner of her eye, down her face and into her ear closing off all sound and her last thought as her 16 ½ week baby was stripped from her, she will feel something, she will feel everything, and all the while the doctors and nurses and telling jokes.

Now that's funny

It's the quiet time of night, you know, that blissful time of the evening when the kids are in bed, the TV is on in the background for noise, and all you hear is the clickety clickety clickety of your fingers on the keyboard.

I'm reading blogs, tweeting, commenting, and writing a post. The hubs is sitting on the other couch, watching TV.

The next thing I know, I hear this strange, yet familiar sound.....yep it would have been the sound of my cat's nails on the leather couch.

What were his nails doing on the couch.....well they would have been trying to stop him from falling OFF the couch while sleeping.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see this fluff of grey start to slip down from the top of the couch, and nothing but panic in his sleepy eyes.

As I begin to absolutely bust a gut laughing, Petey, the cat, actually looks at me and meows annoyingly. It was as if he was saying "Shut up, like it's never happened to you"

I could not catch my breath, I had tears streaming down my face, I think I was laughing so hard that I gave myself a headache!

As I lay there absolutely crying in laughter he got all butt hurt and slinked away into the other room. He normally sleeps right next to me at night. Well that night, he didn't come in to lay next to me until about 3am, when I felt him jump on the bed, I laughed again!

Brought to you by MamaKat

It's all in the bed

Somebody is happy to have a "big Boy" bed!! After taking a tumble out of his crib last night we decided to set up his big boy bed, and let me tell you, he is over the moon about it!

Grandma bought his new bedding to match his room, and he couldn't be happier! Even Thomas wanted to lay in his bed and read!

Now the test....will he sleep all night long in the bed? I'll keep you posted!