Happy Chocolate Cake Day!

January 27, 2010 is National Chocolate Cake Day. In celebration, I will share a delicious recipe I have come across and tweeked for my own benefit.


Too Much Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

• 1 package devil's food cake mix
• 1 package instant chocolate pudding mix
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (i use the mini ones because they don't sink)
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, beaten eggs and water. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a well greased 12 cup bundt pan.
3. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in pan at least an hour and a half before inverting onto a plate Top with chocolate frosting, garnish with strawberries.
   

I've been having a lot of issues with Jake lately. He's been kind of sick, running a low fever, runny nose and cough. He's such a brat though. He's into everything, he doesn't listen when we say no...he's an extreme baby. He literally drives me insane. However, this morning I finally figured out why he was being a complete tool today: he popped through 4 molars. I bet that freaking hurts!

Jake is my high maintenance kid. Like I just had to stop blogging so I could stop him from putting his fingers in the outlet. and i just had to yell at him for pounding on the desktop keyboard. and to stop messing with my papers on the end table. and again with the keyboard. I take things away but he just finds something else to get into and then i have no idea where my shit is.

Lindsey was a good baby. She listened, stayed out of trouble, and cuddled when I wanted her to. Now I've got this hellion and I'm wondering what I was thinking.

And also wondering why when I'm away or he's napping...I miss him and just want chaos back.

Gah, a week-long fail.

It has been a week since I posted. That's an epic failure on my part. In my defense, Lindsey was home sick Friday-Monday, and I had class and work. And I started reading Harry Potter fan fiction. (*sigh*)

HOW 'BOUT THEM COLTS?!?!



I am so stoked. Unfortunately I had to work so I was only able to see the last half, and even then Dan was so superstitious that I couldn't WATCH it, I had to check it covertly online. I died. I was dying the whole time and I couldn't tell him that I was looking at it or he would have beat me. So I silently cried, cheered and ultimately died. I'm desperately in love with Peyton Manning, no matter how many people tell me he is unattractive. They can all shrivel and die. Haters.

Dan and I had a *date* on Friday night. We had gift certificates to the Olive Garden but with Lindsey being sick we didn't want to go out or get a babysitter, so we got takeout. Olive Garden does an awesome takeout. We also got some snickers cheesecake from Publix. It was tasty. And doing it after the kids went to bed assured us of quiet evening. It was awesome. Having time like that lets us focus on us, on our relationship, and what's important to us.

Dan went out with a couple of friends on Saturday night so I stayed home with the kids. I needed to do some cleaning so I went to town. It's hard for me to clean our bedroom because whenever i'm home it seems like dan is sleeping. So I lit some candles, hoping that the bathroom and the bedroom would smell a little nicer when Dan got home. Then I realized that it wasn't doing a good enough job of destinking the house so I used the Lysol room deodorizer. BIG MISTAKE. I set off the smoke detectors. Not exactly sure how it happened, but Lindsey and I ran around the entire house blowing out candles and fanning the detectors. I had this fear that the fire department was gonna come busting into my house while I was cleaning in my little tank top and shorts. Luckily they didn't. Or maybe I would have had some hot firemen carrying me away. DAMMIT!

Classes are kicking my butt. There is soooo much reading and soooo much homework. I'm really fortunate that I read so quickly, but being that i'm one of those people who learn by writing things over and over, my hand is killing me. Not to mention I'm killing trees with my need for nursing.

Good news is that I was finally inspired for my book. I'm back to writing again. WOOT!

Today I'm off from both school and work so I'm doing schoolwork and housework before going to the grocery store. I'm wanting to play with playdough with Lindsey today so I need to get everything done this morning. I figure i'll even take a nap while Jake does, because I'm not sleeping well. Le sigh. There's always something, eh?

OMG SCAMPI!

So I made yummy shrimp scampi and since my little sister has been begging for the recipe, I figured I would share with everyone. Everyone loves my scampi. Every time I go up to New Hampshire I end up making it for my family :)

Beckie's Super Scampi

depends on how much shrimp you have but...

2 sticks of butter
1/2 c-3/4 c white wine
2 cloves of garlic (ish)
2 T flour (for thickening sauce)
1 1/2 T scampi seasoning if you have it. if not, it's okay. still tastes yummy
41-60 count shrimp

mix together, let shrimp cook all the way through then pour over cooked noodles.

Serve immediately with vast quantities of white wine.

So in other news, I finally organized my coupons and cleaned Lindsey's room. This is big. Now I'm in the middle of writing a little something, it appears as if my writing block is over. WOOT!

Weekend Update and Recipe

So Lindsey spent the weekend with her grandparents this weekend. She had Friday off from school and so we went up to Greenville and had dinner with Dan's dad befor eleaving Linds there for the weekend. Saturday morning I had to work but then I got out at 5:30, leaving Dan and I with an entire evening of...sitting on the couch and playing on the computer. Sunday I had to work from 7a-3p, so Dan got a lot of qaulity time with the boy. I came home and Dan went to sleep, leaving me with my kids. We had dinner and bathtime before Jake went to bed and Lindsey and I made a bed on the living room so we could have movie night and a sleepover. I also kept an eye on the Golden Globes so I could see this:



Anywho, I'm still taking medicine from the discomfort of sleeping on the floor. We went to a playdate today with my friends Kim, Mandy and Jen along with their kids. It was crazy and insane but so much fun. I've missed my friends a lot since we've moved to Anderson.

For dinner tonight, I made a Taco Pie. It was really good, but Lindsey was being picky because i added salsa to it and she didn't want the tomatoes. GRRRR.

Taco Pie:

Ingredients

• 1 package refrigerated crescent rolls
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 jar of salsa, any temperature
  
• 1 package taco seasoning mix
• 1 container sour cream
• 1 cupshredded Mexican-style cheese blend
• 1 package crushed tortilla chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Lay crescent dough flat on the bottom of a square cake pan and bake according to package directions.
3. Meanwhile, brown the ground beef in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the taco seasoning and stir together well. When dough is done, remove from oven and place meat mixture on top, then layer with salsa sour cream and cheese, and then top off with the crushed nacho chips.
4. Return to oven and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 minutes, or until cheese has melted.

YUMMY. It was so good. I topped it with lettuce for Lindsey and Dan, then added tomatoes and black olives for Jakers and I. Jakers ate way more than his share and was all Buddha-bellied when he was done. I'll have to take a picture of the belly, it's hilarious.

So now Dan is off to work and I'm off to bed, because my glasses broke and my neck is starting to hurt from having to hover 6 inches from the laptop screen just so I can see this post. That's dedication right there.

UGH!

Some of my readers may or may not know, but I've been writing for a really long time. I love to write. I write almost anything and everything. I write poetry, short stories, fan fiction, really...anything. And I've got a pretty good amount of followers for fan fiction so I know at least some people like to read what I write.

I can't write. I'm in this horrific blockage. I've tried writing different things, but I can't. I sit there for hours, staring at the empty word document. It's so frustrating...and what's worse is that I use writing as my escape, as my calm down...but this makes it so that I can't calm down. I've been a nasty bitch and evil, all because I can't write. I don't know what to do.

January 12th

My first day of class was great! Since I already completed my Patient Care certificate, it looks like I'm going to be able to skip the next five week session that starts in February, meaning that I'll get to move up to the next class and graduate five weeks ahead of schedule. This is very exciting to me.

I'm already laden with homework. In crazy amounts.

Today was class picture day, so I put Lindsey in a cute little outfit and did her hair all pretty with bows. She hated it. HAHA. My girl is definitely not into the dressing up thing. I put her in dress pants...with sneakers. I wasn't willing to fight anymore.

I went to the grocery store today, spent $90, saved $87. Have to grab some stuff I forgot when i get to work tonight, but that's no biggie. I like saving all the money that I can, it makes grocery shopping almost a game. And it isn't like we don't use the food, because we definitely do! Sales=Beckie's best friend.

In honor of the great deal on chicken I got (1.99/lb!) here's the recipe of the week!

Dan's Chicken Nastiness (aka Easy Cheesy Chicken Bake)

1 pkg. Chicken Stuffing

1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

1 bag frozen broccoli florets, thawed, drained

1 can cheddar cheese soup

1/2 cup milk

1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar

Make stuffing as directed on package.
Mix chicken and broccoli in 13x9-inch baking dish. Stir in soup, milk and cheese; top with stuffing.
Bake at 400 degrees for 30 min. or until chicken is done and casserole is heated through.

January 11th

Nursing school starts today. And I'm scared. This is the first day of my career, and i don't want to eff it up. I'm so nervous. Nursing is a big deal. I could KILL someone if I screw up. I'm going to be putting needles into people. Giving medications. Treating people. Eventually.

What the hell was I thinking?!

I might need a glass of wine and a Vicodin by the time I get home from class today.

Moving on, I lost five pounds in my bout of sickness. So I figured that this was a jumpstart to my diet and exercise regime. I took Lindsey to the gym with me yesterday, it was hilarious. While I jogged on the treadmill, she stretched and did yoga to all the posters in the complex gym. She used the treadmill too, but got very bored with it. I get bored with it too, but alas, I have to do it.

I figured that using the gym would be good for her because we can't go outside right now. It's so cold! When I brought Lindsey to school this morning, it was SEVENTEEN degrees. We might as well be in New Hampshire. At least if we were, we'd have snow.

Birthday time!

Happy 28th Birthday to the love of my life!



You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I'm so lucky that you asked me to marry you. You're an amazing father, a hard worker, and a fantastic husband. You put up with me and my crazy, and just roll your eyes at my random Twilight rants. You're supportive of everything I do and you try your hardest to give me and the kids everything that we could ever want and need. You are the sunshine to my clouds, the best part of my day. I love you more than words could ever say.

I'm sorry that you'll have to be taking care of me and the kids today on your special day, but realize that every day that you are in my life is special to me :)

kill me now

two nights ago, jake was really sick. we thought that he was starting to show an intolerance for meats, but it turned out that he wasn't.

i started feeling sick around 3:00, took a nap and headed to work, still feeling nauseous. i made it 45 minutes before i had to shut down my register and dash to the bathroom. i went back and opened my register back up, with my manager's promise that i could leave at 6pm. just 15 minutes to go. yeah, i couldn't make it. so i went home and just...died. i lost count of how many times i threw up after ten...in four hours.

gastroenteritis is not my friend.

poor dan, he was so amazing. he took care of the kids, made me chicken noodle soup, emptied my yak bucket, rubbed my back...he was awesome. Lindsey was great too. she came in my room and took care of me...but mostly she sat with me, which was better than anything else. i scared Jake when i was throwing up, he started screaming.

i was supposed to work 9-5 today, but i can't. while i'm not throwing up any more, i'm really dehydrated and i just hurt. I still can't keep anything down, and part of me is afraid to try. Lindsey just started complaining about her tummy, and I am guessing that I've got a long day ahead of me.

To top it all off...it's Dan's birthday. Sigh.

Lindsey lost her first teeth!

Well, it's official. My baby girl is no longer a baby girl.

Dan and I helped her this evening to get her two front teeth out. Well, I held her in my lap and tried to keep her calm while Dan got increasingly frustrated at her freaking out and covering her mouth. LOL. After much conniving and persuasion, we were able to get her to open her mouth long enough to get in there and wiggle the teeth. Both came out within 30 seconds of us getting her mouth open.


Then came the trying to get her to gargle salt water. She freaked out because she saw the crazy amounts of blood but she didn't want to gargle the salt water because of the way it tasted. She was crying over the blood, but we were able to calm her down eventually, and let her stay up.

Tonight the Tooth Fairy will come and leave two gold coins. The Tooth Fairy also leaves a really sweet note. I took it upon myself to find a picture of the Tooth Fairy and decided that it is time for me to yank my own teeth out if he'll come into MY bedroom.

January 6th-7th

Well, that was an epic failure. I'm so bad at keeping my resolutions. But, I can still try to keep up. And I'm doing well with my vow to take a picture of the kids at least once a day.

Jake climbing on his Laugh and Learn front door

Lindsey shows off her super loose bottom two loose teeth.

Lindsey had school both yesterday and today. I tried to do some housework, but then I got a copy of the leaked script for Eclipse. And I spent the entire day reading it. Like...the entire day. I cleaned the kitchen. Woot. Then I had to get Lindsey and play before going to work. I worked from 5-11pm and of course, once you get home from work, you can't go right to bed.

I'm dragging today. I need to do all the work I didn't do yesterday, but here I sit on the computer. I did a little writing, a little editing, but nothing major. And where I should be doing the housework while Jake naps, I will probably nap myself, because 5 hours of sleep and the Bex do not get along.

So tonight is family fun night. We have a movie, or play games, or go out...whatever. All phones, computers, etc get turned off and we focus on what is the most important to us. Tonight we're playing Operation, a game that Lindsey got for Christmas. I'm making sugar cookies, and decorating them with parts from the game, like a bread basket, a wish bone, a funny bone, etc. Here's my recipe:

Beckie's Sugar Cookies

• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.

1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Blend in the dry ingredients. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets.
2. Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies

I'm sure it will be a great time. Dan is off tonight, his work cut him to NINETEEN hours this week. I have more hours this week than he does. Ridiculous.

January 5th

Tuesday, January 5th

I had the monster of all headaches today. The head pounding, vomit inducing, light sensitive migraine was the mother of all headaches. I took Excedrin, took Aleve, Tylenol, Diet Mountain Dew and a Milky Way. When all else fails, caffeine and meds are the way to go.

I wanted to get stuff done today, but for real, I could not do anything. Bend over, throw up. Spin too fast, pass out. I took a nap with Dan while Jake napped...for two hours. Still didn't help. Finally I took some DayQuil and it knocked the headache out for the most part. Can still feel it lurking, but I think that can be attributed to having two children rather than just the headache itself.

We went and spent some money at the stores with the gift certificates we got for Christmas. The kids got new shoes, Dan got the Jeff Dunham Christmas special, and now I'm off to play some Band Hero :)

January 4

Today is my sister's 20th birthday! Happy birthday, Amanda Kaye. Welcome to your twenties.



Today was also Lindsey's first day back at school after Christmas vacation. That was really hard. I hated letting her go to school and it was almost like the first day of school all over again...I got teary eyed. I'm pathetic, I know.

Dan and I went to the gym so we could start our resolutions off right. Jake was a bit of an ass toward the end, but I guess I'd be bored sitting in a stroller while my parents ran around too. I bet exercise looks like fun to kids. HA! If they only knew.

After I picked Linds up from school we went to Publix for grocery shopping. I've become quite the super saver! Yesterday I bought $250 worth of groceries for $100.40. That includes buying MEAT! I'm impressed with myself. It has become a game, how much money can Beckie save this week? Dan's so proud of me, he brags about my savings to his family. I love my husband.

We took our Christmas stuff down today too. I'm happy to have my corner back, but Lindsey was pouty all evening. I wonder, would Santa come even if there wasn't a tree next year? This Christmas decorating stuff is a pain in the ass.

Happy New Year!

The Young family made our resolutions this year!

Dan:
work out four times a week. (wow. he's really straining himself)

Beckie:
Lose 30 pounds by June 1st
Go to gym five times a week
Do something special with the kids once a week
Finish my book
Blog so I can remember everything I did with the kids this year.

Lindsey:
Clean room when Mom and Dad ask
Work on listening
Learn to tie shoes
Work on math and reading.

Jake:
learn to talk.

The Young Family:
eat healthier
get outside at least twice a week
be more active
have a family fun night once a week.

*******

So this is my first day of blogging. Again. Yay.

2009 was a really rough year for us. Dan had been laid off and while he was fortunate enough to find another job, he took a really big paycut. Money problems ensued, which happen to everyone at some point I suppose. In August, he was offered a better paying job in the company, and we moved to Anderson to be closer to his work...and then the job fell through. Such is our life, we supposed.



I found a job working at Publix, a chain of grocery stores. I really like my job, it's very easy and I enjoy the people that I work with. It doesn't get in the way of school and that's what matters most to me. I work about 20 hours a week, and the money definitely helps out. I was accepted into nursing school in November, and classes start next Monday. I'm very excited to begin the part of my schooling that will get me to where I need to be in my career!



Lindsey started Kindergarten this year. We started in Greenville before moving to Anderson. She loves her school, loves her teachers, but still wishes she was homeschooling with Mommy. She's been tested and reads at a third grade level and does math at a second grade level. It's so impressive to very humbling when we meet with her teachers and they tell us how amazing our daughter is.




Jake is just...Jake. He's balls-to-the-walls extreme baby. To date, he has tried to tear the Christmas tree down fourteen times. He started walking at 10 months and hasn't stopped since. He's beginning to talk and it is so funny to listen to him. He's a very structured baby. He knows when he's supposed to nap and when he's supposed to eat. Mess with his schedule and all hell breaks loose.



I'm hoping that blogging will help to remind me what has happened in my life. I feel like so much time passes by me! Before I know it, my children will be grown and I'll be left here wondering what the hell happened.