Holi - Festival of Colors

I could look at these pictures all day long. They are breathtaking. As we know, pictures usually don't do the real thing justice. In person, not only is it stunning but there is such a fantastic feel of unity from everyone. Last year it was just the kids and I but this year Russell came also and it was so fun! Ashleigh's best friend, Kylee got to come with us. My friend Cinnamon came also and her boyfriend with her two boys, and one of her friends and her boys. 

We got food from Taste of India who had a booth set up again this year but the kids actually liked the food this time! We ended up getting three orders of vegetable pakora by the end of the afternoon. I'm sure if they knew it was made with cauliflower, cabbage, and spinach, among other things, they would have already decided it was gross before even tasting it. But they had no idea what it was made with and they thought it was delicious!  The Sri Sri Radha Krishna Temple was beautiful and the weather was fantastic. I'm looking forward to going back for the festival next year.

Before & After

You know the saying, a picture is worth a thousand words. So, I will let my pictures do the talking for this post.

 

 

  

 

  

 

    

Dancing, playing, eating, loving, singing, I had a blast! Until next year...

Unpleasant Surprise

Be forewarned, the following post is not for the squeamish. (What in the world are you about read?) I'll tell you, it has to do with my kitchen. In order for this to really make sense I have to fill you in on the fact that I very rarely use my microwave. I will use it on the rare occasion I need to defrost something in a hurry or warm up a drink that has cooled off too much.

I was cleaning the kitchen the other night, and as I wiped down the counter tops I noticed some grimy fingerprints on the front of the microwave. Some people, obviously, are messy cooks around here. I wiped down the front of the microwave, the digital keypad and the button to open the door. I figured if the outside was dirty that surely the inside could use a little wipe down as well. I was not prepared for what I saw inside. Oh my, it looked like a kill room from Dexter. If you are not familiar with the show, Dexter, the main character is a serial killer, enough said. I would be lying if I said I wasn't slightly disgusted.

After school snacks. Chili. Ravioli. Soup. Pot pies. Oatmeal. You name it, it was not so carefully spattered on all four sides and especially the roof of that microwave. Nasty. I tried to remember the last time I had cleaned the microwave. It had been at least a week and I was staring at the proof that no one covered a bowl or cleaned up a mess in a while. Apparently we need to have a little family meeting about using the microwave and wiping down the inside will be added to the daily chore list.

Luckily for me, I learned of a super easy way to clean the microwave last year. Rather than scrubbing I steamed it clean. I added some baking soda to a bowl of water plus and I like to add a couple drops of essential oils (tea tree which is a natural disinfectant and lemon just because it smells nice and fresh) and 'cooked' it for three minutes. Afterwards, I effortlessly wiped everything down with a warm dishrag. I should have let the kids do it but they were already in bed.

So, lesson learned. My kids use the microwave because it's quick and easy when they don't feel like really cooking something, so there's really no surprise that it's too much effort *rolls eyes* to clean up any messes they leave behind. They are officially busted though, no more microwave messes.

Thankful Thursday

I thank god for all I have been blessed with. 

Here are just a few things I am thankful for today:

• The Salt Lake County Animal Services, who took great care of Copper today when he got neutered & the pain medication they provided to help him feel a little more comfortable for the next couple days (all at no cost through their free Pit Bull Spay & Neuter program).
• Family. It was nice to have my kids, boyfriend, brother, sister-in-law and mom visiting and enjoying a great dinner around the table. (Thanks again mom for the Pei Wei, I am still full and not having to do dished after dinner is always nice!)
• Photography. I am able to freeze a moment in time and save it forever
• Finding cool looking clouds with my kids, especially ones shaped like fun objects or animals
• Being able to cook with the eggs from my mom's chickens

Thankful Thursday

Of the many blessings I have, both big and small, I am thankful for:

• My kids getting along and being helpful to each other (surprising as it may be, this is not always an everyday occurrence)
• Fresh cut flowers. I got a beautiful bouquet of spring flowers from Rusty last week. Flowers just make me smile.
• Kind strangers. I've noticed more people holding doors open and letting cars through traffic than usual. Maybe this nice spring weather is warming people's hearts.
• Good health. I do get some pretty nasty headaches but I know many friends and family that have chronic pain to deal with every second of the day. I'm thankful for my health and my kid's health but I sure do pray for those less fortunate.
• Kites with long tails

Get to it.

The house is quiet. In the last hour of scrambling to get the kids packed for the weekend at their dad's and have them get chores and bedroom's cleaned up a bit before they left, I've been thinking to myself how much I'm going to get done this weekend. The kids are gone and Russell is working for a few more hours tonight and all day tomorrow. I will have the house to myself with no interruptions other than the dog.

Unfortunately, I think my motivation left with the kids. It just followed them right out of the driveway. I'm looking over at Copper who is napping on the back of the couch in front of the window and I'm thinking to myself that he's got the right idea. I have a hundred things I could be doing and even a few things I probably should be doing. At least there is a load of clothes washing. At least that's something.

Quite frankly, I'm fed up with messy rooms. Somedays I walk into my teenager's room and can't even see the floor. My youngest and I have very different opinions on what clean actually means and my kids in general have too much stuff. Cleaning out my kids rooms was not on my 'to do' list this weekend but they can't complain about me getting rid of stuff if they aren't here to see it.

After working, playing chauffeur, cleaning the rest of the house, cooking dinner, dishes, laundry, and whatever else I have to do from day to day, my bedroom is the last of my concern. After all, I can just close the door and no one will ever know. On the flip side, I feel like a complete hypocrite for telling my kids to clean their rooms when I very well know my own room is kind of a mess. Sigh. I need a maid.

It doesn't help that it's a gloomy day. All the beautiful blossoms on my fruit trees are covered in snow and there is no sign of sunshine anywhere. Well, it's probably time to start the next load of laundry. Hopefully folding and putting away what I pull out of the dryer will motivate me to keep cleaning. I think I'll make some juice for some added energy; I've got a bag of carrots, spinach, and cucumber in the fridge and a bowl of apples calling my name. I'll throw on some music too and see what happens. Wish me luck.

Thankful Thursday

Today is an especially good day to reflect on things I am grateful for. After I got off work I had to run an errand downtown. It was inconvenient and having been fighting a headache all day, I just wanted to go home and relax. As I'm driving down the street, I pull over to let a cop pass when I see lights... but he wasn't passing. He pulled me over for speeding in a 10 MPH zone. Thank goodness he did not ticket me!

 I got to the store where I needed to exchange a pair of shoes for Ashleigh (which were completely worn out after just two months) and had to deal with a store manager with a terrible attitude. Oh my goodness, she was a beast.

After dinner and with a raging headache at this point, one of my favorite plates broke due to someone (who shall remain nameless but had never do this again) setting a plate on the edge of the sink, on an angle, so it slid right off the edge onto the floor in no fewer than a hundred pieces. One of which finding it's way into my foot.  I'm frustrated with my kids not doing things that they know need to be done (like throwing away a wrapper, or rinsing a dish) or only doing things halfway (throwing something away but missing the garbage and not picking it up). I'll just chalk it up to kids being kids but I'm thinking some extra chores might be coming their way if they keep it up. Kids, I am your mother and not your maid.

Even after a stressful afternoon I can still reflect on all the blessings I have. In all honestly I've had a good day. Lucky for me I have a boyfriend that really stepped up when he saw I was stressed and helped me out. I can't stress enough how much it meant when he walked over to me and rubbed my shoulders and neck when I literally put my head down on the coffee table in frustration, then offered to help cook dinner and even did laundry while the chicken was in the oven.

A few things I am thankful for today:

• Russell Brown
• Copper sleeping in his own bed on the floor the last two nights. He is just way to big and sprawls out way too much for it to be cute anymore when he sleeps in my bed.
• Masson jars. Super easy breakfast and lunch for work. Oatmeal with some berries tossed in, add hot water and go. Layer in some fresh ingredients for a salad, add a little salad dressing at lunch time and give it a shake.
• Frozen vanilla bean yogurt & fresh fruit tigers blood popsicles yum.
• The officer that did not ticket me today.
•  My department moving up to the 4th floor from the 2nd floor today. Beautiful mountain and lake view but high enough to not see the parking lot or streets anymore.
• Spring. Everything is blooming. My fruit trees are breathtaking.
• Trash to treasure. I'm going to use a bunch of old pallets my mom and Mark have laying around to build my garden boxes. No spending a bunch of money on lumber and reusing something old is always a great 'green' solution.