Posted on | October 26, 2011 | 32 Comments
so as i sit here eating this for the 3rd day in a row for lunch, i figured i should share it with you guys. if you made and liked the ease and yuminess of the crock pot bbq hawaiian chicken i posted last week, you’ll love this equally. especially if you love buffalo chicken as much as i do. you do, right?
all you do is place 4-6 skinless chicken breasts into your crock pot, and cover with one bottle of Franks Red Hot buffalo wing sauce (be sure it’s the buffalo one, not the regular Franks – i think that would be too hot to really enjoy) and one packet of ranch dip mix ( i used hidden valley, found right by the salad dressings). cook on low for about 5-6 hours. i pulled the chicken out about half hour before we ate, shredded it, and returned it to the crockpot.
toast some french rolls and serve it up. so. freaking. good.
next time (and there will be many, many next times) i’m going to get some ciabatta bread and cheddar and put those bad boys in the panini press, with a side of ranch for dipping on the side. HELLO!
after that, imma make this and add to some homemade mac and cheese. YOU HEARD ME.
found this originally on where else, pinterest.
Posted on | October 24, 2011 | 45 Comments
sunday morning headed out to spooner farms for our third year in a row to pick pumpkins, pet goats and eat corn on the cob and drink cider. it also happened to be the first time we took H out for an excursion sans diaper. i felt pretty good about it since her friend Nora, who is a year older and a potty champ, would be there to nudge her along should she need to go. she also stayed dry at preschool on friday so long story short, we headed out for our annual fun outing with a change of clothes and a bucket of hope. also, coffee.
it was a pretty good day weather wise, but holy cow was it muddy. we walked around and all searched for our perfect pumpkin. i was feeling really uppity about the potty sitch. Harper hadn’t gone before we left and although she is (too) good at holding it, i knew she was going to have to go. on top of all of this, she had been holding her poop in since we started this ordeal, and was beginning to get visibly uncomfortable. she was dancing around every couple of minutes saying ouch. knowing she was in pain, not being able to make her understand that if she went she would feel better, and the nervousness about her letting loose at any moment was enough to make me crazy. i felt a panic attack setting in. everyone else was having fun, but in my head i was losing it. i was sad for Harper and mad at myself for letting this crap (heh) mess up what should be a great day. so we pushed on.
we were just about done picking out some little pumpkins and gourds, ready to weigh our big pumpkins when she peed. i had just asked her if she needed to go, and she said no. i picked her up to take a photo with her and felt it. on the one hand, my fear of public peeing was kind of calmed down – it happened. and with her leggings and skirt, no one would have even known she peed. her first public accident was over and i was almost relieved. at the same time i was a level of frustrated that i haven’t felt before. i felt like a failure.
we payed for our things, cut the day short and left. i came home feeling completely defeated. i wallowed in my feelings of failure, lamenting about it all evening. why can’t she do this? why can i not teach her? what is so wrong with me? it’s been almost a week and we aren’t much closer to success – WHY IS THAT?
and then i read this.
as i read through hot tears, i changed my tune about this miniscule thing called potty training. i don’t care if she wears diapers until she’s twelve. i don’t care if she pees all over my house every day for months before she gets it. i don’t care if she pees at daycare and they have to change her clothes. if she asks me to go back to diapers, she can go back to diapers. i seriously could not care any less about potty training today. and i feel extremely selfish for caring as much as i have up to this point.
“Parenting, I’ve come to understand, is about loving my child today. Now. In fact, for any parent, anywhere, that’s all there is.”
Posted on | October 23, 2011 | 29 Comments
on Harper>> dress: thrifted // leggings: target // boots, thrifted. on Mandy>> top: old navy // jeans, boots & scarf: target // jacket: f21
i got my hairs did! this is very exciting news because ever since H was born i think cuts have been averaging 1.5 per year. one, i didn’t have a stylist and two, well you know – kids and stuff. but i have a stylist now and i LOVE her. i know a ton of you are local, and Carly is in Sumner! super cute little salon downtown, her prices are great and she is awesome. we did some subtle ombre on my hair, and i’m thinking next time i want to go even lighter on the ends. she loves to do ombre so i highly recommend checking her out if you’ve been thinking about it – she’s actually been doing it for years (before pinterest even knew about it).
p.s. she’s having a new client special – free haircut with a color or foil. yay for saving $35 bucks!
this weekend was…hard. Scot and i stepped out very briefly to have dinner together (thanks GG!) and then it was back to the potty training madness that is our life right now. i can’t even really put into words how much i hate this whole thing. if i did put it into words, they would mostly start with F and S and some MFers. i can’t even really go there right now, so lets move on.
today we went to the pumpkin patch! we got some good ones. i’ll be sure to come back and share some photos and stories (before and after she peed her pants) tomorrow.
all i can really say at this point is, i hope your weekend was better than ours. and pass the chocolate, pleaseandthankyou.
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Posted on | October 18, 2011 | 78 Comments
potty training? is seriously the biggest conundrum of our parenting career thus far. obviously we have a long road ahead of us full of god knows what, but in three years (almostttt)? this takes the cake.
today was day one of the 3 day method of potty training. i’m not really one for methods, because lalala all kids are different and the whatnot, but after the “methods” we have tried thus far (which included H peeing on the toilet, then her asking for a diaper and us giving her one – because apparently we are doormats) haven’t stuck. so yes, i’ll try a method. and thanks for calling it a three day so i can at least wrap my brain around a small amount of time this may take. even if it’s all lies, thank you for the illusion, method.
ahem.
so today was day one. you know Harper, right? well yeah. she’s…spirited. and stubborn. and at almost three, she is set in her ways a bit. but we have no diapers. so this was happening. she woke up, we threw her last diaper away and she picked out some hello kitty undies for the day. she was a little upset about saying goodbye to diapers, and even talked like a baby on purpose a couple of times today, but i feel like if you can recognize and then sing most of Moves Like Jagger, then you’re old enough to use a toilet. for the love of adam levine.
so our day begins. i show her the potty (seat on top of our big toilet with a step stool to get there). i kept repeating “just tell mommy if you have to go pee, ok?”. i said it again. and again. i said it so much i was sick of hearing it. we made muffins (that’s not a potty training joke, we really did bake muffins). i said it again. at 12:15 she hadn’t done anything. no accidents. no successes. no pee. huh.
a bit later she peed on hello kitty. and she was sad. but she had a tiny success in the toilet after that and got a sticker on her chart! and she was happy. then she peed on hello kitty again. twice. then she went down for a nap and stayed dry the whole time! and then she got up and peed on yo gabba gabba. just as i was about to call Scot to bring home wine, she told me she had to go. and then – she did! in the right place! party like it’s 1999! so exciting!
Scot came home soon after and i headed out for a much needed haircut (and ombre action). she had one accident while i was out. but when i got home, she told us she needed to go. she waltzed into the bathroom, took her own underwear down and peed. ON THE TOILET. BY HERSELF.
(i promise this is only exciting for us. or other people who have experienced how effing cool it is to have your child learn something such as understanding the feeling of needing to take a leak. i mean, you try explaining that feeling to someone who really only cares about cheese and seeing how many of their own toes they can fit in their mouth).
hugs. stickers. treats. hugs and excitement! and then, a mere few minutes later – pee in the underwear.::facepalm::
but? we are getting there. for day one, i feel mildly successful. the mediocre of potty trainers, we are. she’s asleep in underwear as we speak-type. there are many a pair of hello kitty undies in the wash. i expect to be awoken tonight to sheet changing and the likes. but we are getting there. i dislike these shenanigans greatly, but we are getting there. it’s starting to click. i hope to have good news and reports by the end of the week. Harper hopes to have a chart full of stickers and a special treat here and there. fingers crossed we both get what we want!
feel free to share your potty training woes in the comments. success stories welcome, puns suggested, commiserating encouraged. this ish is hard, yo.
oh and he brought wine anyways. love that guy.
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