Simplify, Schimplify

It's all the rage this Christmas. The watchword of the season. No, it's not some hot new toy or electronic gadget I'm talking about. It's: "Simplify."

I spent a little time waiting in the doctor's office yesterday to get a new antibiotic to finally squash this cough I've had for three weeks now. Surprisingly, there were a number of current magazines to flip through while I waited for an hour.

I looked at page after page of beautiful trees, gorgeous mantels, and chic centerpieces for the table. And almost every article waxed poetic about "simplifying" so we can take time to keep the spirit of the season.

I'm all for simplifying, but my idea of simple and the home magazine editors' ideas of simple are worlds apart.

Sure, that centerpiece of cranberries, oranges and pomegranates is fast and easy if you just happen to have a few antique compotes or glass hurricanes on hand. I think the effect would be lost a bit if I used my eclectic Tupperware collection.

Looking for a cool, free way to decorate your Christmas tree? Why, walk through your neighborhood and find some sticks and pinecones! Just spray them with glitter or craft snow and arrange them in your Christmas tree.

Let me just say, unless you have an eye for decorating, this idea is a guaranteed disaster. The tree in the magazine looked like, well, a tree in a magazine. Such an attempt in my house would more likely conjure images of a porcupine than a glamorous holiday decorating statement. Not to mention that walking through my neighborhood collecting nature's bounty with four small children in tow is anything but simple!

The magazines' simple mantels showed nature-inspired garlands, made by the homeowner, of course, and color-coordinated decorations piled in the homeowner's red and white stoneware collection. Yep. I'll get right on making that garland and collecting my stoneware.

What's wrong with hanging the stockings and throwing a little store-bought garland on the mantel? Now that's simple!

This Christmas my mantra is not: "Simplify." It is: "Prioritize." 

To get some holiday things done around here, something else will have to give. I'm sure the kids won't mind a few meals of Christmas cookies, since they often don't eat what I serve them anyway. And who needs both lights and ornaments on the tree? No need to gild the lily, after all. Without hesitation I choose decorating over cleaning. That's only logical. The decorations will hide the dust.

The second half of my mantra is "Ignore." That's about trying to tune out the magazines, and remain calm and focused under the pressure of elaborate lighting displays and early Christmas cards all around me. As a bonus, "Ignore" neatly handles anything on the priority list that doesn't get done. And that's a Christmas gift for me!

© Trippin' Mama 2010

He Gets That From YOUR Side Of The Family

Isaac was cracking us up the other day when the boys were having their noisy fun. We laughed and laughed, and then we started pointing fingers at each other. "He must get that from YOUR side of the family!

No matter where Isaac gets it from, (His daddy! It's MY blog!) this is just further evidence that the children should wear their bicycle helmets at ALL times!

© Trippin' Mama 2010

Mayday! Mayday!

Yesterday morning at 6:00 my wing man went down. The stomach virus took him hard.

Then last night at 10:30 I succumbed.

By suppertime I knew it was coming, so I rushed to get the kids fed, the house picked up and everyone in bed before I curled up and tried not to think about throwing up.

Unfortunately, the kids didn't cooperate, and both Jeff and I were up multiple times last night.

Fortunately, Jeff was recovered enough today to deal with our now healthy and energetic children. I spent much of the day dozing on and off and gradually reintroducing fluids to my body.

So forgive me for not posting a recipe yesterday or today. I still can't face the thought of food.

This is not how we wanted to spend a long holiday weekend, but if we were going to get it, the timing was perfect. We were all here just hanging out with no real plans, which meant plenty of hands to hold sick kids and lots of time to swap back and forth and get the adults some extra sleep.

I promise a return to our regularly scheduled humorous and less disgusting programming soon. Thanks for hanging in there with me in the meantime.

Tomorrow one more round of Lysol. But for now, please pass the ginger ale.

© Trippin' Mama 2010

Thankful For All Of It

Today I am thankful for kids who are mostly healthy.

And because today they are mostly not, I'm thankful for Lysol, my washing machine and Spot Shot carpet cleaner.

I'm thankful for my husband, the best father I know.

I'm thankful for the peace of naptime and bedtime, and the noise and laughter that fills the rest of our days.

I'm thankful for everyone who reads my (mostly) daily musings and shares in my family. Here's a little noise and laughter for all of you:



Happy Thanksgiving!

Play along with Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop.

© Trippin' Mama 2010

The Wedding and The Aftermath

Travel to and from San Diego was rough. The weather in sunny California was cold and rainy. But considering I returned home to the beginnings of the plague invading my house, I kind of wish I'd stayed in California!

I stayed in the charming La Jolla Shores Hotel, and sat on the third-floor balcony looking at this beautiful view.

I listened to the surf, drank my hot chocolate, and watched the rain.

It's not good when you wake up in San Diego, where the weather is almost always nice, and the weather man is excited. It rained the entire day and a half I was there. Nothing torrential, mind you, but still the weather man said, "RAIN!" An INCH in the next THREE DAYS folks!" Made his week, I think. It was supposed to be 70 there today. It is decidedly NOT 70 here.

As I sat, I watched a whole group of people donning their wet suits in the rain. Ironic, hmm? They were headed out to boogie board, scuba, swim and generally enjoy the ocean. There were lots of people walking on the beach with their umbrellas, so I decided I could do the same. It was nice, even in the rain.

I met up with Sheila, who also roomed with Kris and me in London, and our friend Caryn, whom I also met in London.

Caryn & Sheila

We enjoyed breakfast at a nice restaurant with a great view of the ocean and caught up on more years than I care to think about. Then we did a little shopping before it was time to get ready for the big event.

The wedding was held in a historic home, and it was beautiful. Kris looked amazing and the ceremony was perfect -- personal, sentimental.

The reception after was a blast. The food was amazing, from the garlic cilantro shrimp to the basil risotto to the grilled asparagus to the steak au poivre. Yum! Plus I never once had to get up to get something for someone else.

We ate, we drank, we danced. It's been a long time since I spent an evening in killer heels. And by killer, I mean my ankles killed me the next day. Dancing on a brick courtyard where I was in imminent danger of getting a heel caught between the bricks certainly didn't help my cause.

Caryn, Kris, and me

Turns out that those couple of nights I sacrificed sleep for fun were good practice for sacrificing sleep to hold sick children for the next couple nights once I arrived home.

I just pretended I was listening to the surf, instead of listening to my children's stomach contents resurface.

It appears the storm of sickness has passed now, so hopefully we will be able to enjoy Thanksgiving without any premature "leftovers."

© Trippin' Mama 2010

A Wedding, Some Weather, and A Long Wait

I went to my friend's wedding in San Diego this weekend. I'll give you the details later, but I'm still exhausted and headed to bed. So here's the short version:

The wedding was wonderful.

The weather was rainy and cold.

The travel was horrendously bad, to the tune of two cancelled flights, nine hours of sitting in an airport on standby, and the offer of a child to anyone who could get me out of the airport and home.

I finally arrived home at 10:30 p.m. bone tired after 16 hours of traveling.

I was greeted by a child who had just vomited in his bed.

It was still good to be home.

And watching my friend get married was worth every minute of the hassle.

© Trippin' Mama 2010

From My Kitchen: Cornflake Cookies

I know, I know. Two cookie recipes in a row. Sorry about that, but I'm in a hurry today and this one was all ready to go. Besides, we are coming into the holiday season, and these cornflake cookies are deliciously different. They are yummy enough for your office carry-in or church potluck, but chances are, no one else will show up with them!

Here's the recipe:

Cornflake Cookies

1 cup white sugar

1 cup margarine

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

11/2 cups flour

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups cornflakes ( I crush them a little)

1/2 cup chopped nuts ( your choice)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter and sugar. Add baking soda, cream of tartar, vanilla and flour. Mix well.

Stir in cornflakes, lightly crushed, and chopped nuts. I love these with pecans, but they are pretty versatile, so you can use what you have on hand or experiment a little.

Roll the dough into balls, roll in sugar and place on baking sheet. Press with a cookie stamp, glass or fork.

Bake for 12 minutes.

The result is light, crisp, and oh so good.

Enjoy!

© Trippin' Mama 2010