i got time!!

i do it all the time ... i'm constantly over booking myself - i need to be more realistic.

today i had a dr. appt. for easton at 10am [don't even worry - my 15 month old baby is the size of an average 2 year old!!], elyssa's kindergarten starts at 12:30, i wanted to help nicki with her christmas lights and then feed the missionaries (and our neighbor) ribs for dinner.

technically that sounds doable. but not for me, apparently.

i talked andy into taking elyssa so i didn't have to come back up after the dr.'s appt. i headed out the door at 9 to take abi to school then drop elyssa at grandma shaw's/andy's office, arrived 8 minutes late to our 10:00 appt. (no biggy), then to nicki's. she had to pick up carson from school and get the rest of the lights and extension cords for her roof. we had lunch, put the baby boys down for naps and headed outside.

[i feel i need to interject here that yesterday i climbed on her roof to do the 'reachable' portion of the ceremonial christmas lighting ... today was to be the daredevil/rock climber hang from the 'fall arrest' tie off on the roof to attach the 'un-reachable' portion. call me crazy, stupid, extreme - whatever you call it ... i don't think i'll be doing that again real soon. i did NOT fall - didn't even slip, but i psyched myself out and couldn't do it ... and besides, it started to rain on me after i finally got myself all tied in, roped off and ready!! BAH!]

in order to pick up the girls on time i would have needed to leave nicki's at 2:30 - so i asked andy (again) to open up his BIG ol' heart and pick them up. he's the greatest. [did i mention that yesterday, while i was on nicki's roof, he was taking elyssa and ammon to music and movement at the Y and then feeding them and then dropping elyssa off at school and then putting the boys down for naps and then picking the girls up from school ... all so that i could be a friend and pretend to be brave on nicki's roof - something that he didn't want me doing in the first place...]

i left nicki's house at 3:10 ... it's a 45 minute drive to my house. i was planning to feed the missionaries my mom's yummy ribs, mashed potatoes, green beans and rolls, then have pudding for dessert. i called my mom, "how long does it take to cook ribs?"

"boil them for an hour, then bake them in the sauce for an hour and a half ... why?"

"so if i start boiling them at 4:15 ... they won't be ready to eat until ... 7:00??"

"right ..."

"i'm supposed to feed the missionaries at 6!!"

"that's not gonna happen i'm afraid."

"k, thanks ... talk to you later!"

i called andy and he talked me into doing it anyway "the missionaries can wait a little bit."

to make an exceedingly LONG story short - i'll give you the highlights (btw: dinner turned out just fine even though it wasn't ready to eat until 6:45.)

first, ribs boil over when you leave the lid on - and it's stinky when the grease gets down under the burner!!

second, don't cram too many potato peels down the dispose-all at one time, MUST CHEW SLOWLY! i fully clogged the drain. (thanks for coming at just the right time, chad!!)

third, kitchen counters work best when their cleared off!

fourth, check the box when making/mixing pudding packages. for instance, instant pudding and cook 'n serve CAN'T be mixed. (missionaries will eat anything though)

fifth and last, people that you invite into your home will ALWAYS eat what you make (even if it's not the greatest meal they've had put before them) and they are the ones that i'm aiming to please!

i got time - what can i do for you!?